Americans for Ben-Gurion University Supports University Students Impacted by War
Americans for Ben-Gurion University Supports University Students Impacted by War
October 28, 2014
NEW YORK, NY, October 28, 2014 — In response to an urgent request from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev’s president, American Associates, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (Americans for Ben-Gurion University) raised $1 million for a “Wartime Assistance for Students” fund to help those who served in Operation Protective Edge, volunteered in the community or were otherwise affected by the war.
VIP seats were provided to IDF soldiers during a concert at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev.
During Operation Protective Edge this summer, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) was forced to close its campus to students for more than 50 days due to sustained missile attacks from Gaza. As many as 2,000 students, faculty and staff were deployed both in and around the Gaza Strip. Exams were canceled and many students lost the opportunity to earn needed income over the summer.
These students would have faced unanticipated financial need, creating additional stress and strain on themselves and their war weary families. Americans for Ben-Gurion University has transferred $1million to BGU and the fund is now providing special scholarship assistance as the fall semester begins this week.
“BGU students serve in combat units in larger numbers than any other Israeli university,” explains Lloyd Goldman, president of Americans for Ben-Gurion University. “We needed to assure these students that the American Associates has their backs and that they can focus on their studies without concern over lost income sacrificed in the service of their country.”
Typical of the community spirit at BGU, hundreds of students stayed in Beer-Sheva — facing constant sirens and missile threats — to volunteer, providing support and assistance to people in need throughout the city and the surrounding communities. The University also set up a special day care program on campus to provide extra support for faculty and staff without other recourse.
While BGU remained open to administrators, researchers and faculty, their work was compromised by the round-the-clock sirens and movement back and forth to the shelters, as well as by their unrelenting concerns about siblings, parents and friends called to active duty.
“We are honored to provide the much needed scholarship funds to these students and are grateful for the support of our friends throughout the United States who made it possible,” says Americans for Ben-Gurion University’s executive vice president, Doron Krakow.
ABOUT AMERICANS FOR BEN-GURION UNIVERSITY
By supporting a world-class academic institution that not only nurtures the Negev, but also shares its expertise locally and globally, Americans for Ben-Gurion University engages a community of Americans who are committed to improving the world. David Ben-Gurion envisioned that Israel’s future would be forged in the Negev. The cutting-edge research carried out at Ben-Gurion University drives that vision by sustaining a desert Silicon Valley, with the “Stanford of the Negev” at its center. The Americans for Ben-Gurion University movement supports a 21st century unifying vision for Israel by rallying around BGU’s remarkable work and role as an apolitical beacon of light in the Negev desert.
About Ben-Gurion University of the Negev
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev embraces the endless potential we have as individuals and as a commonality to adapt and to thrive in changing environments. Inspired by our location in the desert, we aim to discover, to create, and to develop solutions to dynamic challenges, to pose questions that have yet to be asked, and to push beyond the boundaries of the commonly accepted and possible.
We are proud to be a central force for inclusion, diversity and innovation in Israel, and we strive to extend the Negev’s potential and our entrepreneurial spirit throughout the world. For example, the multi-disciplinary School for Sustainability and Climate Change at BGU leverages over 50 years of expertise on living and thriving in the desert into scalable solutions for people everywhere.
BGU at a glance:
20,000 students | 800 senior faculty | 3 campuses | 6 faculties: humanities & social sciences, health sciences, engineering sciences, natural sciences, business & management, and desert research.
For all press inquiries, please contact:
James Fattal, J Cubed Communications
516.289.1496
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