History, Organisation & Funding
of the Hope Flowers School
Other pages in this introductory section:
Interview with Ibrahim Issa, co-director
Interview with Ghada Issa, administrator
 
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 Hussein Issa
PAGE SUMMARY First, the history and development of the school since 1984. Second, the ethos and status of the school. Third, about peace and democracy education. |
The founding of the school
The founder and original director, Hussein Ibrahim Issa (who passed away in 2000) was the creative inspiration and driving force behind the establishment of the school. After his family was forced from their land in the 1948 war, Hussein Ibrahim Issa grew up in the harsh and restrictive environment of the Deheishe refugee camp, in the south of Bethlehem.
As a result, and arising from his subsequent work as an educator and social worker in the West Bank, he experienced at first hand the deprivation faced by Palestinians, especially their children. Remarkably, he was not embittered by these experiences. Instead he was motivated to work tirelessly to help create conditions for peace between Palestinians and Israelis. He focused firmly upon combining peace-building work with attending to the basic needs of Palestinian children.
As a result, Al-Amal Childcare Centre opened in 1984. Hussein recognised the severe lack of basic social services at the time, including childcare facilities. The ongoing occupation, and Palestinian resistance to it, had left many homes without male income-earners and with many mothers seeking work. This, combined with other factors of the occupation such as violence and uncertainty, had a direct negative effect on the physical, social and psychological health of children.
As a trained and experienced educator and social worker, Hussein knew of the proven benefits of pre-school education for young children. He was also fully aware that no such facilities existed in Bethlehem and area. At first, the facility suffered from a lack of basic equipment, but his 'one brick at a time' approach sustained the centre through its difficult and uncertain early years.
Gradually the centre grew from one rented room with 22 kindergarten pupils, to a small building recognisable as a school. It centred its delivery of standard primary school education on an ethos of non-violence and peace and democracy education. For several years the school grew as children progressed from grade to grade and more students joined.
Further development
In the 1990s an ambitious building program was begun, with the aim of making the educational philosophy of peace and democracy more widely available. At the time, the budget for this program was far beyond the limited financial resources of the school.
However, with the courage, grace and kindness of the school's many supporters, here and abroad, the new school building, in the Bethlehem suburb of Al-Khader, was completed and licensed as an educational establishment in 1993. The school continued to expand, reaching a stage where 500 students were being educated from kindergarten to grade 12. The second intifada, starting in 2000, and the increasing severity of the Israeli occupation, reduced the number of students attending the school to 200. It is now 250 and rising.
The school now provides classes for students from kindergarten to grade 7. However, we have a cliff-hanger: the threat of the building of the Israeli security wall across the edge of the school's property, affecting the school garden and causing the likely demolition of our cafeteria. Construction started some years ago, but stopped because of this uncertainty.
Our unique approach
The uniqueness of the Hope Flowers approach to education has been the major factor in its appeal to many people from so many different backgrounds - including students, parents, teachers and staff, local and international volunteers, friends, educationalists and financial contributors. This uniqueness is based on the school's commitment to providing the following:
- a sound formal education to all students in mandatory and extracurricular subjects;
- psychological and emotional support mechanisms for students, families and the local community;
- opportunities for students to develop self-esteem, dignity, appreciation and pride in positive cultural values;
- ongoing support for parents and families of students;
- education in positive relationship-building, allowing students to expand and utilise such skills beyond the school environment in the wider community and region;
- opportunities for students to appreciate the value of peace, democracy and non-violence in society;
- opportunities for students to communicate directly with students from other faiths, cultures and nations.
An independent school
The school is independently run. We have no political or formal religious affiliation. Christians, Muslims and non-religious attend, support and work at the school, and Jewish students once attended.
Without independence, the school's uniqueness could not have been achieved. Some examples are demonstrated in some of the school's peace-building activities:
- student and teacher exchange projects with Israeli schools, bringing students, parents and teachers on both sides into contact with each other (these have now ceased, owing to a change in Israeli law preventing direct contact);
- Hebrew language lessons for all children at the school, so that they can communicate with people on the 'other side';
- development of sister-school relationships with the Democratic School of Hadera and Harishonim High School in Herzlia, Israel.
Our autonomy has allowed us to develop a strong leadership role in the region. The school's various outreach programs have offered adult educational activities in the form of workshops and seminars in community democratic development, peace education and other subjects.
Funding and support
Independence means responsibility for supporting the school ourselves. Direct funding from religious, political or governmental organisations would remove our neutrality. We therefore rely on a wide variety of funding sources, such as parental contributions, donations from individuals, groups and trusts, and grants from governmental and non-governmental organisations here and in Britain, Germany, France and USA.
Parents are asked to pay school fees (US$200 per year plus $300 in other expenses), though this source of income is inconsistent and minimal due to economic problems resulting from the Israeli occupation. The majority of our students are from surrounding refugee camps where employment opportunities are extremely limited. We operate a scholarships fund to help poor children, and welcome financial contributions to it.
Contributions made by our network of supporters and friends have been vital in allowing the school to continue operating.
Support from all corners of the globe has been a natural outcome of our commitment to peace and democracy. We have received support from people of many faiths, nationalities and cultures who see our efforts as an integral part of the wider peace and justice movement in the region. The school has received several visits from Israeli rabbis, who have delivered lessons on Judaism to the school students and staff.
Peace and social activists from Holland, UK, Sweden, Germany, Austria, USA and Australia have visited and worked as volunteers, offering a wide range of skills and opportunities for the students. We are committed to maintaining and developing this network of support for the benefit of the children, the community and the peaceful, democratic and free future of Palestine and the Middle East region. Our autonomy has been vital in allowing us to carry out such outreach projects and permitting participants from many different persuasions to become involved.
We are embarking on numerous projects to combine improving educational facilities at the school with income-generating opportunities. The school is currently developing an extensive mini-farm for educating students in basic agriculture and market gardening techniques, as well as to provide income for the school through the sale of produce. Our computer centre operates as an IT learning environment for students, a community education facility and as a commercial Internet centre. Other such multipurpose projects are under way.
The school represents the future of Palestine. We hope that our unique prototype of peace and democracy education will serve as a catalyst for educational improvements in the region and worldwide, and that it will continue to play an integral role in the peace process.
Our doors are always open to those who share the belief that future generations of Palestinians and Israelis can live together in peace and mutual respect. Visitors are welcome and warmly received by the children, teachers and staff - we have accommodation too! Visitors are enriched by the experience of witnessing such purposeful peace activism carried out with joy and humility.
Peace and democracy education
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Peace and democracy education is integrated into most of the school's activities and the curriculum, for all age-groups. Classes study peace-related topics appropriate to the age and level of students, and all afternoon and evening extracurricular activities are geared this way. It pervades our educational approach.
The school also operates as a Centre for Peace and Democracy Activities for the benefit of members of the local community. The school hosts projects responding to the concerns of Palestinian people, including regular meetings to discuss and debate community issues such as education, community democracy and local health. Information provided at such projects serves as an empowerment tool for local people and encourages their proactive involvement in community affairs.
Our commitment to building bridges for peace and justice is an integral part of our work. For years we have actively worked to bring together Palestinians and Israelis in a safe and constructive environment. Students and their parents have benefited from meetings with Israeli students and parents, and both sides have come away from such meetings with increased understanding and respect and reduced fear of each other.
The school has carried out field trips and meetings with the Democratic School of Hadera in Israel and actively seeks to establish a wider range of contacts with other Israeli schools who share our commitment to co-existence and a peaceful resolution to the current conflict.
Please feel free to visit the school. You will be received with warmth and appreciation by all.
None of our students or former students has been engaged with the ongoing violence – we intend this to continue.
NEXT: Interview with Ibrahim Issa, school director
HOPE FLOWERS SCHOOLEDUCATION FOR PEACE & DEMOCRACY PO Box 732, Bethlehem, Palestine Tel: +972 2 274 0693 / 4975 Fax: +972 2 274 747084 E-mail:
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