| my school |
| Zababdeh Latin School built by the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem in 1883. From inception thousands of graduates have entered into the wider Palestinian society. School structure and facilities today in sharp decline. Location of Zababdeb School in relation to town; present-day circumstances. Enrollment demands exceed availability and speed decay. Inadequate water and washroom facilities pose health risk. Zababdeh School continues to provide advanced academic standards to its students. The first Latin School in Zababdeh was built in 1883. It was founded by the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem on the precept of strengthening the community of Zababdeh Christians through education and upon principles of social-conscientiousness (community minded citizenship). Since then thousands of Christians and growing numbers of Muslim children have taken, and are continuing to take their Pre-School, kindergarten, Elementary and Primary (up to grade nine) instruction there. Zababdeh School is located at the north end of town on church grounds. On this property, surrounded by a perimeter fence, church and school are nominally connected; in the first instance, the basement area under the church has been converted into classroom space, opening onto an asphalt common; in the second, the two-story school structure is itself adjacent to the church. Over the years Zababdeh School has been renovated and new construction added on to keep pace with growth and demands. This latest incarnation, specifically the free-standing complex adjacent to the church, was built in 1984 to receive an influx of more students than what available space could then handle, raising school enrollment capacity to a new total of 380 students. As was the case at the time, limited funds purchased results now proven as temporary and out-dated; poor construction methods and materials used by contractors in the structure are now not sufficient for longer term usage. In fact, costly, chronic repairs are today a troublesome corollary. Zababdeh School with a Day School population today of 550 students has been forced to move some classes off school premises altogether. These classes have been instated across the street on the main floor of the home belonging to the Rosary sisters (an order of native Palestinian religious sisters attached to Latin Patriarchate School parishes). Maintaining healthy, hygienic conditions is a compounding problem: there are neither proper facilities nor the available capital means to meet these increased demands. Already a leader educational institution in the Northern Region of the West Bank, expansion from primary to full Secondary school offerings - to 'Tauwjihi' certification - is in progress. Beginning next year, Zababdeh School will implement "Grade i0~ for a small number of students. This response is rooted in the palpable deficiency of quality instruction elsewhere in the region and reflects an urgent need. Next year and the following year Zababdeh School will attempt to add grades eleven and twelve to its already critically burdened capacity. Despite existing and mounting pressures to perform, Zababdeh School continues to provide �advanced� standard education to its students |
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