News

The Jewish Federations of North America Supporting Sapir College’s Community On October 7, the Sapir community suffered a severe blow in the brutal attack by Hamas. Since then and in the subsequent war, over 30 students, alumni, staff and member of the board of trustees along with their family members were murdered, injured or kidnapped. About 1,500 students and staff living in Otef Yisrael/Gaza Envelope communities were forced to evacuate their homes. They were dispersed throughout the country in temporary accommodation.

The School of Audio and Visual Arts has long been a key factor behind Israel’s emerging film industry, helping train the country’s next generation of video artists and empowering young people in underserved communities. Now, the Israel Documentary Forum has recognized its unique contribution to that genre. During a prize ceremony at the Ennis Cultural Center in Jaffa, the Forum bestowed a recognition award on Sapir for “its significant role in the City of Sderot and other communities in the Gaza Envelope.

Sapir Brings Cinema to Negev Evacuees. While thousands of families from the Western Negev shelter in temporary locations, Sapir College plans to bring to them new and innovative cultural events. So, this year, the School of Audio and Visual Arts will take its 22nd annual Cinema South Film Festival on the road, visiting evacuee communities around Israel. From March 2nd to 27th, the itinerant cinematic event will screen in locations ranging from Eilat to Herzliya, from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv, and from the Dead Sea to Rahat.

Sapir College is delighted to invite you to join our online Internationalization Study Day which will take place on March 25th, 2024 at 12:00-17:00 Israel time. The study day is intended for members of the academic and administrative staff in all academic institutions in Israel and around the world and its purpose is to expose the staff to international Partnerships and provide tools for building international courses and creating academic collaborations. Participation in the online day is free. About the event 12:00 - 12:10 Israeli time | 11:00 - 11:10 CET StudyDay Opening and Welcome by N

At the beginning of January, a delegation of US Jewish Studies scholars in solidarity with Israel, led by Prof. Steven Fine from Yeshiva University, visited Sapir Academic College. During the visit, the president of the college, Prof.

Sapir Academic College is located about 2 miles (3.5 kilometers) from the Gaza border. To date, 1,000 students, both men and women, were drafted to active reserve duty (miluim). Sapir is launching a Reserve Soldiers (Miluim) Fund, to create a safety net for these special soldiers, who left everything behind to keep us safe.

Prof. Nir Kedar looks pensive but determined as he surveys the human tragedy that has struck his college – and the unfathomable destruction of the surrounding communities it serves.  Kedar – who assumed the presidency of Sapir Academic College just a year ago – suddenly finds himself in the eye of a maelstrom, leading a vital institution at the heart of the area most impacted by last week’s murderous onslaught. “Our academic community is bloodied but not beaten,” explains Kedar, whose college is located adjacent to the town of Sderot, a stone’s throw from the border with Gaza.