A School for Peace

At the Mar Elias Educational Institute, Christian, Muslim, Jewish, and Druze students and teachers are “Building Peace on Desktops.” MEEIs provides academic excellence while modeling values of respect, mutual understanding, forgiveness, and nonviolence. A significant majority of graduates pursue higher education and become key leaders in their careers and communities. One example, Dr. Swar Hassan Asla was recently hired at UC, Santa Cruz. Despite her family’s economic struggles, they always valued and supported her education, which is why they sent their daughter to Mar Elias. Without scholarships, these low-income students, Swar’s education wouldn’t have been possible. We envision a future where Swar and female students like her, undeterred by economic circumstances, societal prejudices and travel restrictions, and now the lingering echoes of a war, can still fulfill  their dreams while uplifting entire communities, build and promote peace and become one leader at a time.