BEER-SHEVA, Israel (Press Release) — With as many as 1,000 Ben-Gurion University of the Negev students, faculty and staff deployed both in and around the Gaza Strip, American Associates, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (AABGU) has established an emergency Wartime Assistance For Students Fund to assist those now serving in combat.
The Fund will provide special scholarship assistance for students in combat who are unable to work and earn the income necessary to cover their tuition and expenses. Many students are married with young children.
“BGU students serve in combat units in larger numbers than any other Israeli university,” explains Doron Krakow, executive vice president of AABGU. “We do not know when this conflict will end and we need to make sure that these students do not return in dire straits with all that they have already had to bear putting their lives on the line to keep Israel safe.”
Due to the daily influx of rockets, BGU has been closed for two weeks. According to one BGU professor, “The University is safe and well sheltered, but getting around is a significant problem as rocket alert sirens sound multiple times throughout the day. People don’t have shelters so they sleep with their kids in the hallways, which are protected. Jumping out of your car onto the side of the road and lying on the ground until the alert passes has become routine.”
According to BGU President Prof. Rivka Carmi, “The University remains open to administration and faculty. However, their work is compromised by the periodic sirens and movement back and forth to the shelters, as well as their unrelenting concerns about siblings, fathers and friends called to active duty.”
“Typical of the community spirit at BGU, hundreds of our students are staying in Beer-Sheva to volunteer, providing support and assistance to those in need throughout the city and the surrounding communities,” Krakow explains. “The University has set up a special day care program on campus to provide extra support and assistance to those faculty and staff without better recourse. In times like this, we need to shore up our support for Israel and we need to let our student-soldiers know that we have their backs.”
Contributions may be made online at AABGU Wartime Assistance For Students Fund.
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Preceding provided by American Associates, Ben Gurion University of the Negev