Higher Education as Empowerment

Abstract

Palestinian universities have been a dynamic force across Palestinian communities since their inception under Israeli occupation in the early 1970s. What began as initiatives of private families or religious foundations to provide local access to higher education soon grew into a widespread presence across Palestinian communities that has had a profound impact on Palestinian national identity and the persistence of Palestine as a nation. This study specifically argues that Palestinian universities have provided Palestinian communities with the physical and conceptual space to sustain the nation of Palestine by enabling Palestinians to define and articulate a Palestinian national identity, engage in resistance to the Israeli occupation of Palestine, and build the nation of Palestine in the absence of a Palestinian state. This study considers the case of Palestinian universities in an effort to shed light on what enables the university to consistently contribute to the human experience over time and across space.