Neve Shalom - Education

Education

According to Grace Feuerverger, Neve Shalom/Wahat as-Salam's emancipatory education 'has become a global role model of intercultural harmony, of teaching and learning to live together in peace.' There are three educational institutions in the village;

• A bi-national, bi-lingual (Arabic – Hebrew) children's educational framework, from preschool to eighth grade, with an enrollment (2009–2010) of 250. About 90% of the pupils come from towns and villages in a 30 kilometer radius of Neve Shalom ~ Wahat as-Salam. The largest unit in the children's educational framework is the primary school, founded in 1984 as the first such bi-national school in the country. Today, the school is recognized and receives some support from the state.
• The School for Peace: a unique educational institution offering Jewish-Arab encounter programs in the spirit of Neve Shalom ~ Wahat as-Salam. Founded in 1979, the SFP has conducted workshops, seminars and courses for some 35,000 youth and adults from Israel and the Palestinian territories. The School for Peace also trains facilitators in conflict-group encounter skills. Its teachers workshop has obtained accreditation from the Ministry of Education for in-service training.

• The Pluralistic Spiritual Centre in Memory of Bruno Hussar, known as the "House of Silence" ("Beit Dumia/Bayt Sakinah"), is a place and a framework for spiritual reflection on issues at the core of the middle east conflict and the search for its resolution. The Centre conducts a variety of activities and seminars that are open to the general public. Muslims conduct Friday prayers, Jews, Sabbath services, and Christians worship there on Sundays.