Development programs in eastern Jerusalem are an asset - opinion

On Sunday, the government is scheduled to discuss the Five-Year Development Plan for east Jerusalem. Unfortunately, at the present moment, this plan does not include support for the pre-academic preparatory programs specially designed for east Jerusalem’s young men and women.

Despite the widespread criticism of this move – and recommendations in favor of the program by virtually all relevant professional agencies, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich refuses to budge from his decision to withhold financial support from the preparatory programs included in the five-year plan. Not only is he unwilling to reconsider his stance, but he also spreads misguided and misleading arguments that seemingly support his position.

The preparatory programs, which prepare young people from east Jerusalem to enter higher education, are nothing less than a strategic asset on a national, social, and economic level. They constitute an important state interest, and it was with good reason that they were conceived (surprisingly or not) by a right-wing government.

The original motivation for this support was not a matter of narrow political interest, so gaining voter support was not the issue. Rather, the government understood the value of programs designed to enable the integration of these young east Jerusalem residents into the country’s social and economic fabric, effectively preventing the negative consequences that could arise from their failure to earn a decent livelihood and subsequent potential alienation.

These preparatory programs are not just a strategic asset; they rectify a longstanding blunder of Israeli governments – which for decades allowed municipal schools in east Jerusalem to teach according to the Jordanian curriculum – and later according to the curriculum of the Palestinian Authority, under the supervision of Israel’s Education Ministry. As a result, their studies have not included Hebrew language instruction.

Hadassah Academic College's mission

The preparatory program for graduates of the east Jerusalem school system is an initiative of the Hadassah Academic College in collaboration with the Jerusalem Municipality. It aims to solve the issue faced by these young Arabs from east Jerusalem who, supported by their families, wish to study in Israeli academic institutions, but have been rejected due to a lack of Hebrew proficiency.

The success of this initiative led to the establishment of additional preparatory programs in other academic institutions in Jerusalem, and stimulated activity within the framework of the previous five-year plan for the Arab community in Israel.

One of the major roles of Hadassah Academic College is to assist young people to overcome obstacles to social mobility, even when the path ahead seems very hard. In doing so, we support not only young east Jerusalem Arabs, but also members of the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community, as well as thousands of other Jewish students who are the first in their families to pursue higher education.

Our social mission is important, complex, and challenging. Some of the young individuals from east Jerusalem come to us without knowing a single word of Hebrew. Their exposure to Israeli society has generally been framed in negative contexts that cause alienation and even less desirable effects.

In these preparatory programs, we bridge language and cultural gaps, and most importantly, we bring together different communities, much like other academic institutions in Jerusalem. 

The interaction in an academic setting of these young people with members of diverse groups in Israeli society, while challenging, allows them to gain joint experiences, create friendships, and learn that the negative images that they were exposed to during their childhood are not necessarily accurate representations of Israeli society as a whole.

Smotrich seeks to cut off support for this program. He speaks of extremist Islamic cells within universities and about preferential treatment given to Arabs over other students. I have no idea where he draws this false information from, but I invite him to visit the preparatory programs, speak with the graduates, and meet them in the job market.

Academic institutions, and especially Hadassah Academic College, have a social commitment to the State of Israel, and it is our intention to make every effort to continue to operate these pre-academic preparatory. 

We cannot achieve this without the support of the state. 

The State of Israel is far greater, far more important, and far more significant than any political interest, and the time has come for the interest of the state to take priority over the interests of a publicly elected representative. Any other path will be a lament for generations.

The writer is the president of Hadassah Academic College.