Nadeen Siam, Star for Life Jerusalem

Nadeen was born in Kuwait and lived there until the outbreak of war in 1990, when she and her family fled to Jordan. They lived there for seven years until they moved to Jerusalem in 1997. Nadeen still resides in Jerusalem, where she studied and got a good education. She holds two bachelor’s and two master’s degrees. She has attended university on the Palestinian side but also studied at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. She has studied computer science, English literature, and Spanish, among other subjects. Languages are important to Nadeen, who speaks Arabic, Hebrew, English, and Spanish.

“Learning languages is a real privilege, and as an Arab, you want to learn Hebrew because then other educational opportunities and the job market truly open up. And then you can find good jobs and have a good future,” says Nadeen about the benefits of learning languages.

When Nadeen was 17, her family wanted her to start studying computer science, which meant she had to supplement her grades to gain eligibility. It went as planned, and she earned her first bachelor’s degree in computer science in 2006 from Al-Quds University. It was a good education, but she nurtured a dream of working as a teacher or an HR specialist.

She brought that dream to life in 2015 by earning her second bachelor’s degree, now in English, American, and Latin literature at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. In the same year, she also received a diploma in English teaching from the same university.

Nadeen’s first master’s degree was in organisational management in 2019, from Ono Academic College outside Tel Aviv. And if you love studying and have a passion for knowledge, why settle for just one master’s degree? So, she earned a second master’s degree in 2021, now in policy and leadership in education, from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

“It was fun and educational to study computer science, but since I love languages, teaching, and working in education, it was a bit of a dream to pursue these studies,” says Nadeen about her impressive list of qualifications.

With many years of experience in the education sector, a well-founded knowledge base, and proficiency in several languages, she applied for and got the job at Star for Life Jerusalem in March 2022. For someone who truly enjoys learning and believes that education can genuinely be life-changing, she had found the perfect job. Here, she is responsible for HR, serves as an executive assistant, oversees finances, and more. At Star for Life Jerusalem, she is the linchpin and is on top of most aspects of the organisation.

“When they described that the goal of Star for Life Jerusalem was to integrate children from the Palestinian side in East Jerusalem and inspire them, showing the power of school and getting an education, I felt this was exactly the right place for me to work,” says Nadeen about the beginning of her Star for Life career.

Before joining Star for Life Jerusalem, Nadeen worked for 16 years as, among other roles, an HR manager in the education department of the Jerusalem municipality. She was responsible for 500 employees and the budget for the department. There, she saw where resources were needed and, over the years, had close contact and cooperation with all schools in Jerusalem. This contact is invaluable in her current work, establishing support groups for children and parents in schools in East Jerusalem.

“We have come a long way in building up our organisation. When I was hired, we were only five people, and we didn’t even have a proper office. Now, we have 40 employees and three departments,” says Nadeen proudly about how they overcame the initial challenges.

The three departments are SFL Sigma Labs, SFL Education, and SFL Job Hub. The goal of SFL Sigma Labs is to create 7,000 IT jobs in five years, thus supporting the development of the high-tech ecosystem in East Jerusalem. This will be achieved through direct employment in the tech industry, educational programs, career support, training at their own education campus, and support for entrepreneurs and startups.

Star for Life Education aims to inspire young people in East Jerusalem to make the most of their education and help them realise their dreams of a good life in a city characterised by social cohesion, peace, and prosperity.

Star for Life Job Hub is modelled after Uppstart Malmö. Here, Nadeen and her colleagues working in this part of the organisation aim to get more people into work. The vision is for more people to have jobs and gradually get better-paying jobs. They hope this will lead to better lives and a stronger belief in the future.

“We are optimistic about the future of our organisation. We believe we can make a bigger and greater impact as we become even more established here. Our biggest challenge now is to fund our operations sustainably, where we are currently working on starting our fundraising activities and finding engaged companies and partners,” says Nadeen.

Nadeen and Star for Life Jerusalem have many challenges ahead, but she has already seen the benefits of their work, which inspires her to work even harder. If that’s even possible, as Nadeen already works hard and has a solid and clear overview of the operations and what’s going on. And if a weekend is needed to get something done, it’s highly likely that she’ll be in the office. For that’s where you’ll usually find this dedicated, ambitious enthusiast who is always working and always has everything and everyone under control.