Birzeit University History - Narrative
Birzeit University's Institutional Development
The history of the University dates back to 1924, when Nabiha Nasir (1891-1951), an educational visionary, started a school in Birzeit at a time when schools were almost non-existent in the area. Her main objective was to provide elementary schooling for the girls of Birzeit and neighboring villages.
By 1930, the school developed into a secondary school for both boys and girls. As secondary schools were often called "colleges" during that period, the name Birzeit College was adopted in 1942. Under the leadership of Musa Nasir (1895-1971), Birzeit embarked on further development of the institution where first-year post secondary classes in Arts and Sciences were added in 1953, and followed in 1961 by second-year classes. With the addition of the second year, the institution became a junior college while still maintaining its high school programs. Graduates of the junior college were able to transfer at advanced standing to a number of universities in the Arab world and abroad.
Because the College was then the only institution providing higher educational opportunities in the area, it decided to focus its efforts on making this service available to the largest possible number of qualified students. As a result, its elementary, preparatory and secondary classes were gradually phased out. By 1967, Birzeit was offering first and second year college programs.
After the June 1967 war, when the West Bank and Gaza fell under Israeli military occupation, the College saw the pressing need for developing into a full fledged university, essentially to provide higher educational opportunities to students who were often barred from continuing their education abroad due to imposed military travel restrictions. Therefore, the College announced in 1972 its plans for the development of a four-year program leading to a Bachelor degree in Arts and Sciences. It also announced its intention to build a new campus on the outskirts of the town of Birzeit.
With the expected growth of the College, the founders decided to form an autonomous Board of Trustees to ensure the continuity of the institution. The Board was formed in 1973 and since that time, assumed its full institutional responsibility although it took several years before the Israel military authorities approved its official registration. The first Chairman of the Board after its registration was Tawfik Abu Saud (1902-1981).
The development of the College continued as planned. The third year level was added in 1974 and the fourth in 1975. With the addition of the fourth year, the name of the College was changed officially to "Birzeit University."
The University became a member of the Association of Arab Universities in April 1976 and on July 11, 1976, the University celebrated the graduation of its first graduates with the Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees. In 1977, it became a member of the International Association of Universities.
In the academic year 1977-78, a Master program in Education was offered and in the year 1978-79, the Faculty of Commerce and Economics was established, followed by the Faculty of Engineering 1979-80.
With the establishment of the Palestinian Authority in 1993, the University decided to further expand its developmental programs as well as its undergraduate and graduate program offerings in response to the pressing needs for well-trained graduates to shoulder the new responsibilities of an emerging Palestinian state. Several new centers and institutes were developed and in 1995-96, the University established its Faculty of Graduate Studies.
Birzeit University Under Military Occupation
The University is guided by the principle of academic freedom and upholds independence of thought, freedom of discussion, and unimpeded circulation of ideas. Ironically, it is these principles that have made Birzeit University and its community suffer and become the target of harassment under the military occupation.
Through the years, 15 of the University's students have been shot and killed in the wake of demonstrations that called for an end to occupation. Scores of students and faculty have often been detained for lengthy periods without trial and some have even been deported in a flagrant violation of the Fourth Article of the Geneva Conventions.
In 1973, just as Birzeit's development into a full-fledged university was nearing completion, Israel closed the campus by military order for two weeks. This was the first of many military ordered closures. Between 1979 and 1992, the University was closed 60% of the time. The 15th and last closure lasted for 51 months, from January 8, 1988 until April 29, 1992. During this prolonged period of closure, the University continued to operate underground with small study groups in makeshift arrangements outside the campus. Under such conditions, many students needed as long as 10 years to complete their four-year degree courses.
In 1980, the Israeli occupation authorities issued military order number 854 which granted them full military control over such university matters as hiring of faculty, admission of students and the curriculum. The order affected Birzeit as well as all other higher educational institutions in the occupied territories. Fortunately it was rescinded shortly afterwards due to the local and international protest it generated.
To date, while the University has not been closed in over seven years, it still faces great obstacles in carrying out its mission in spite of the Oslo peace agreements between the Palestinians and the Israelis; violations of human rights continue unabated and students are often arrested and detained sometimes for being members of the student council. Student from Gaza are often barred to travel to the West Bank to enroll at Birzeit. Moreover, the University is facing prolonged financial crisis due to the stalled peace process and the resulting poor economic situation.
Despite such hardships, the University continues to expand in new and creative ways in order to better meet the needs of the Palestinian society.
