The program addresses matters of peace building through extensive contacts with key institutions and people on both sides. Leadership The Jerusalem Program has operated annually since 1982 and is led by faculty members from the sponsoring colleges. Coursework Students earn a total of 17 semester hours for successful completion of the program. Courses are taught by Israeli and Palestinian professors and by the Program Leaders. Orientation During the Spring Semester student participants gather at Earlham College for a weekend to introduce group members to one another and to prepare to spend a semester together in Jerusalem.
Further orientation takes place on-site in Jerusalem during the first few days of the program.
Curriculum Conflict and Identity Students examine themes that emerge from living in a conflicted society and analyze how these themes impact the construction of identity. A major component of the course is a concluding exercise in which students are asked to model peace negotiations. Zionism Students examine the political,cultural, and religious roots of the Zionist movement and trace their influence on the formation and development of the State of Israel. The course includes an extensive field trip which focuses on major Zionist ideologies and their historical pre-State and contemporary Israeli expression. Historical Geography of Palestine Elements of archaeology, geology, migration patterns, and study of natural resources make up this course which is taught in the format of an extended intensive field trip.