2018- Annual Report-Distribute

Subsidized Institutions
CNEWA-PMP maintains its commitment to support three public institutions in the health
and education sectors: Near East Council of Churches Mother and Child Clinics (NECC) in
Gaza, Pope Paul VI Ephpheta Institute for the Deaf in Bethlehem, and the Pontifical Mission
Educational and Cultural Center (PMECC), also in Bethlehem.
Paul VI Ephpheta Institute, Bethlehem
There are only 12 institutions for deaf persons in the Palestinian territories where most of
these schools are in the northern district and provide a formal education for children up to
the age of 14 years old; Ephpheta is operated by the Sisters of Saint Dorothy and is the only
school that allows students to continue their formal education to the 12th grade. Ephpheta’s
staff are comprised of 13 speech therapists, audiologists, social workers as well as 37 teachers
trained in the field of oral deaf education and auditory‐verbal therapy, provide 174 deaf
students with a valuable education for life. The school also provides support programs for
parents and family members of the deaf where they have access to counseling services,
advocacy training and guidance in related health and other issues on how to raise a deaf
child. Moreover, Ephpheta also provides boarding for 23 students who come from areas
beyond Bethlehem where access is severely restricted by checkpoints and other road blocks
that make traveling to and from school extremely difficult. In 2018, CNEWA supported
the operating costs of the Ephpheta Institute which covered employee salaries for the year,
minor maintenance work and upkeep of facilities.
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