Shalem College
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Shalem College (, ''HaMerkaz HaAkademi Shalem'') is a
private Private or privates may refer to: Music * "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...
liberal arts college A liberal arts college or liberal arts institution of higher education is a college with an emphasis on Undergraduate education, undergraduate study in the Liberal arts education, liberal arts of humanities and science. Such colleges aim to impart ...
in
Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...
,
Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
providing
undergraduate education Undergraduate education is education conducted after secondary education and before postgraduate education, usually in a college or university. It typically includes all postsecondary programs up to the level of a bachelor's degree. For example, ...
and founded with the aim of producing "broadly educated citizens for lives of influence and service." It is the only Israeli institution of higher education to offer a broad-based Core Curriculum as the basis for a first degree, as opposed to the general practice in Israeli universities and colleges of restricting a student's courses to a single department or field. Candidates to the college are selected on the basis of exams, intellectual capabilities, and demonstrated commitment to public service. Accepted applicants receive substantial financial aid packages. The college is accredited by the
Council for Higher Education in Israel The Council for Higher Education in Israel (, ''HaMo'atza LeHaskala Gevoha'') is a supervisory body for universities and colleges in Israel. It is the only organization with the authority to award academic educational accreditation. The head of th ...
.


History

Shalem College was founded in January 2013 following accreditation by the
Council for Higher Education in Israel The Council for Higher Education in Israel (, ''HaMo'atza LeHaskala Gevoha'') is a supervisory body for universities and colleges in Israel. It is the only organization with the authority to award academic educational accreditation. The head of th ...
. It grew out of The Shalem Center, a think tank that aimed to enrich Israel’s intellectual discourse through research, publications, and public lectures. The Center was home to notable Israeli public figures, including former Israeli Ambassador to the United States
Michael Oren Michael Bornstein Oren (; born Michael Scott Bornstein; May 20, 1955) is an American-Israeli diplomat, writer, and politician. He is a former Israeli ambassador to the United States (2009–2013), former member of the Knesset for the Kul ...
, who wrote his definitive history of the
Six-Day War The Six-Day War, also known as the June War, 1967 Arab–Israeli War or Third Arab–Israeli War, was fought between Israel and a coalition of Arab world, Arab states, primarily United Arab Republic, Egypt, Syria, and Jordan from 5 to 10June ...
while a fellow there, and the human-rights activist and Israel Prize winner
Natan Sharansky Natan Sharansky (; born 20 January 1948) is an Israeli politician, human rights activist, and author. He served as Chairman of the Executive for the Jewish Agency for Israel, Jewish Agency from June 2009 to August 2018, and currently serves as ...
, who currently teaches a seminar at the college on democracy and national identity.


Academics

Shalem College has pioneered the use of required courses for all students alongside a choice of major concentrations. Its Core Curriculum, the centerpiece of the college’s academic community, includes courses in philosophy, history, the natural and social sciences, literature, and the fine arts. It emphasizes the classic texts of both Judaism and Islam (the
Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
. '' Talmud The Talmud (; ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of Haskalah#Effects, modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cen ...
, and the
Koran The Quran, also Romanization, romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a Waḥy, revelation directly from God in Islam, God (''Allah, Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which ...
, among others) and courses on the history of the wider Middle East—subjects the college deems essential to meaningful citizenship in a modern Jewish state and active participation in Israel’s diverse society. The college also encourages the reading of primary sources. Most courses in the Core are taught in seminars of no more than 25 students. After their first year, students choose one of three majors: the Interdisciplinary Program in Philosophy and Jewish Thought (IPJ), the Program in Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies (MEIS), or the Program in Strategy, Diplomacy, and Security (SDS)."Shalem Center in Jerusalem Recognized as Academic Center,"
Israel HaYom ''Israel Hayom'' () is an Israeli Hebrew-language free daily newspaper. Distributed for free around Israel, it is the country's most widely distributed newspaper. Owned by the family of the late Sheldon Adelson, the casino mogul and politica ...
, January 2, 2013.
An additional major, in economics and policy, is planned for the coming years. The Department of Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies is notable for requiring fluency in Arabic as a condition of its degree. The department pioneered the practice of bi-weekly, one-on-one sessions with native Arabic speakers and summer Arabic immersion programs to help students attain this goal. The language of instruction at Shalem is
Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...
, although students are required to demonstrate a level of English proficiency as a condition of their admittance.


Citizenship and Peoplehood

The college features a comprehensive citizenship curriculum, including an experiential course on the major challenges in Israeli society and the “Israel Story” event series, part of the Asper Center for Zionist Studies. The series brings notable Israeli authors—including David Grossman, Meir Shalev, Eli Amir, and Micah Goodman—to campus to discuss texts that have shaped the nation’s narrative. The Shalem accelerator also encourages student initiatives for social change, several of which have become sustainable organizations and nonprofits organizations. Through the Koret
Jewish Peoplehood Jewish peoplehood (Hebrew: עמיות יהודית, ''Amiut Yehudit'') is the conception of the awareness of the underlying unity that makes an individual a part of the Jews, Jewish people. The concept of peoplehood has a double meaning. The firs ...
Project at Shalem College, students participate in annual delegations to the Bay Area and the AIPAC policy convention in Washington DC.


Leadership and Faculty

Middle East scholar Dr. Martin Kramer, a student of the British historian
Bernard Lewis Bernard Lewis, (31 May 1916 – 19 May 2018) was a British-American historian specialized in Oriental studies. He was also known as a public intellectual and political commentator. Lewis was the Cleveland E. Dodge Professor Emeritus of Near ...
, served as the college’s first president, from 2013 to 2017."Martin Kramer Chosen to Serve as Founding President of Shalem College,"
Jerusalem Post ''The Jerusalem Post'' is an English-language Israeli broadsheet newspaper based in Jerusalem, Israel, founded in 1932 during the British Mandate of Palestine by Gershon Agron as ''The Palestine Post''. In 1950, it changed its name to ''The Je ...
, October 13, 2009.
Although the college had a reputation for being dominated by immigrants from the United States, it has reportedly "broke out of the Anglo mold." The staff and student rosters span the political and religious spectrum, and the college is not affiliated with any political stance or ideology. Moreover, although no Arabs are currently enrolled, the school has made extensive efforts to boost diversity and to recruit students from the Arab sector.


Shalem College Press

Shalem College is home to Shalem College Press, established in 1995 with the goal of enriching Israel’s intellectual life by translating classic works of Western thought into Hebrew for the first time.


See also

* List of universities and colleges in Israel *
Education in Israel Education in Israel encompasses compulsory education, which spans from kindergarten through 12th grade, and higher education, which is characterized by a public university system and significant government subsidies. The school education, which ...


References


External links


Shalem College Official Website

Shalem College Official Website (Hebrew)
{{Coord, 31, 45, 7.1, N, 35, 13, 41.01, E, display=title 2013 establishments in Israel Colleges in Israel Educational institutions established in 2013 Universities and colleges in Jerusalem Liberal arts colleges