Oranim College has always worked to strengthen and support the advancement of research among its faculty members. So 2022 was a particularly important year for progress on this front.
The Academus Program, initiated by Oranim President Prof. Amit Schejter and Provost Dr. Nir Michaeli, provides time and resources to strengthen the potential for academic advancement among Oranim's faculty. Prof. Amit Schejter describes the importance of the program, "The strength of an academic institution is derived from the knowledge it produces and shares with its students, with the academic community and with society as a whole. Oranim, which is a unique academic institution that combines a social mission with a wide variety of subjects that its faculty members research and teach, aims to strengthen the research component of its activity. For this purpose, we strengthened the Research Authority, the internal body that coordinates research activities in the college and makes connections with other institutions in Israel and worldwide. As part of this effort, we launched this year the Academus Program, which supports research among faculty members by reducing their teaching load and providing them with a range of resources to support and advance their research efforts."
Following a call for research proposals, a selection committee, led by the Head of the Research Authority, Prof. Mila Shwartz, chose six candidates to participate in the first cohort of the program, with support being given for three to five years. The program is a combination of a research stipend and increased available research hours with an enriching and supportive program that aims to reinforce the academic leadership of Oranim College . The first cohort of Academus researchers and their fields of study this year include:
Dr. Liora Goldman, The Dead Sea Scrolls and biblical exegesis of the Qumran Scrolls.
Dr. Rona Yona, The democratic rise of the Labor Movement in Palestine from 1927-1932.
Dr. Laura Sigad, Multicultural perspectives of at-risk and resilient children living in poverty.
Dr. Michal Dolev-Cohen, The online behavior of adolescents with a focus on areas of risk and harm in the online space.
Dr. Eli Ashkenazi, Bedouin nomadism in the Negev before the State of Israel from geographical and archeological perspectives.
Dr. Noam Lapidot-Lefler, Social-Emotional Learning (SEL), SEL Online (O-SEL), SEL in a sociocultural context, and social inclusion.
Dr. Lapidot-Lefler explains the applications of her research. "Within the SEL framework, I have investigated ways to cope with challenging behaviors such as aggression (e.g., in the form of bullying) in various types of spaces, in the educational mainstream and its social periphery (e.g., examining elements of inclusion of people with special needs). As ongoing research increases our understanding of these issues, new SEL tools and programs are being developed, which pave the way to replacing aggression, avoidance, exclusion, and risk with social inclusion. I am applying this new knowledge in my work in the field as a pedagogical mentor in schools, in my classroom teaching, and in my research."
We wish the Academus awardees much success in their research endeavors!