Adam Abdullah
Photo: Tzafrir Abayov
Darfur refugee hired as high school English teacher
Adam Abdullah is the first Sudanese refugee to join Israel's education system, as teacher in Be'er Tuvia regional council. We want students to learn from Abdullah about the hardship he endured, says regional council's head
Adam Abdullah, a refugee from Darfur, was hired to serve as an English teacher at the local high school in the Be'er Tuvia regional council, near Kiryat Malakhi. Abdullah is the first Sudanese refugee to find employment at an Israeli school.
Abdullah, who speaks fluent English and worked as an English teacher in Sudan and Egypt, was recently approached by the regional council's representatives, who were seeking ways to aid refugees. Students working with the refugees referred the representatives to Abdullah.
"He is a 40-year-old refugee who had endured countless troubles and could not do physical labor," explained Dror Schor, the regional council's head. "He left nine children from his first marriage behind in Sudan, and his second wife, who had a miscarriage after being beaten up, remained in Egypt."
Teaching students to help others
After interviewing Abdullah for the position, the school invited him to give demonstration lessons to students and found that he was qualified to teach junior high classes. The regional council later allocated a budget for hiring him, and this week he was finally granted a work permit from the state."It's important for us that the students meet Abdullah for talks about him being a refugee, of the hardship he had suffered, and mainly to convey the message that you do not abandon a person at a time of need, but that you extend your hand to the weak," Schor said.
Abdullah stated that he was "thrilled and excited" to become part of the education system in Israel. "I hope to get help that will enable me to bring my wife from Egypt to Israel," he added.
Abdullah was given a caravan in Moshav Timorim, and students, parents and fellow teachers have already started collecting furniture, electronic appliances and other basic equipment to help him settle in.
