Christian Arab professor at the Hebrew University

Professor Khoury (39), married to a police officer in the Jerusalem police and mother of two, was born and raised in Wadi Nisnas in Haifa. “I grew up in a poor neighborhood but my parents always encouraged me and my sister to study. When I was 19 years old, I arrived in Jerusalem to study social work here, at the most respected university and leading in the field. I completed my BA degree with honors and started to study for a MA and then a PhD.”

At the age of 28, on receiving her PhD, Prof. Khoury received a scholarship from the Fulbright Foundation for a post doctorate in Chicago. When she returned to the country, she won a further scholarship, named for Golda Meir, and specialized in studies on violence in the education system.

“In 2005, I received a post at the School of Social Work and Social Welfare and over the years continued to research the subject. At the same time, I worked in the field of discipline at home and the relationships between parents and children. Academic life is not simple. You have to publish research, analyze different subjects from a variety of view points, and you also have to come up with an agenda. In my case, in the field of the violence of children, one has to understand why the phenomenon exists and how one can limit it. In fact some of the field of research ties up with the environment from which I come and therefore I have always felt a closeness to the subject.

As an Arab woman I received support from my close family. I believe one of the best ways to fight discrimination and stereotypes is by education. I invested and knew that nobody can stop me”.

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