Welcome to our website

The Evangelical Lutheran School in Beit Sahour (ELS), founded in 1901 by German missionaries, is one of four schools run and financed by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land (ELCJHL). The school has a total of 520 students, most of whom belong to one of the several Christian denominations represented in the region of Bethlehem. About 20% of the students are Moslem. Although the ELS is one of the oldest institutions in the Bethlehem area, it is a modern school, with all the facilities to make it attractive to the students of Beit Sahour and the surrounding area. Contrary to the great majority of the schools in Palestine, our school belongs to the very few coeducational schools in the country. While keeping excellent academic standards, we believe in the holistic approach. Student activities cover a wide range of themes including music and choir, poetry, sports, dabkeh (a traditional Arab dance), manufacturing of candles and ceramics, wood carving – especially with olive wood –, mosaic designing and recycling paper and glass. The Evangelical Lutheran School in Beit Sahour (ELS) is one of five Lutheran schools located in the major cities of the West Bank and Jerusalem. All of the schools, sponsored in part by partner churches and organizations, are run by Palestinian personnel. The ELS was established as a coeducational school in 1901 and in 1997 grew to be an all-encompassing primary and secondary school. The school renders its services to the community regardless of religious affiliation and social status. The good reputation of the school is constantly attracting more and more parents to enroll their children here, where they can be sure their children will receive a good education. The average number of students has grown from around 450 in earlier years to 520 this year. The school curriculum includes the following subjects: Arabic, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies, Religion, Arts, Sports and Music. English is already introduced from the KG as the first foreign language and German is offered as the second foreign language, starting with the 2nd graders.