With great energy and determination, the twenty-year-old student, Diana Saleh, was able to overcome her silent instinct, and to take confident steps towards excellence and creativity in her university major, "Ceramic Art", and to employ all the blessings bestowed upon her by God of insight and quick intuition, to compensate for the loss of her sense of speech and hearing, and to refine her skills. She has a variety of artistic talents.

Disability did not stand in the way of the ambition of the student Saleh, from the village of Sarta, west of Salfit. Rather, she volunteered her to take on many challenges and engage with her peer students at An-Najah National University, which in turn established a unit for the care of students with disabilities to create the appropriate environment, to integrate them into society and provide them with the necessary services, while she spent Diana lives her school life with her classmates who are deaf and dumb, with whom she used to communicate in their common sign language.

Saleh speaks to Al-Quds.com, in her language, and her older sister Walaa translates, saying: “I am the only deaf and dumb student at this university, and through my successful experience I wanted to be the key that opens the doors for other students of this category who wish to complete their studies.” teach them.”

And she continued her studies with brilliant excellence, increasing day by day, despite all the difficulties she faced since high school - according to her sister Walaa -, but she was able to gain many experiences in her field of specialization, and she worked on developing and developing her, and she began marketing her artwork in various exhibitions and in partnership with different institutions. And a trainer for other students. She also represents the university in many conferences that are held inside or outside the country.

Saleh added, "I want to learn the art of cinematography via YouTube as well, and for me all the skills I have gained are not enough, so I have to research and explore new things every day, as there are no limits to science in my opinion."

Saleh expressed her gratitude to the university, which embraced her since she joined it from the first day, and met her needs through the unit for the care of students with disabilities, noting the cooperation of her teachers and colleagues in the specialty as well, and she does not forget the virtue of her family, who stands side by side with her in every step she takes.

She hopes to achieve her highest wishes to work in this university that she has always loved, as a teaching assistant in the College of Fine Arts, and looks forward to fulfilling this wish with eagerness to be the first teacher in the deaf and dumb class at the university, while she will seek to attract male and female students from this category so that she will not be the last student Considering that this step is a qualitative leap added to the university's achievements.

social responsibility

Samer Al-Aqrouq, Director of the Unit for Students with Disabilities at the University, told Al-Quds.com: “Out of our social responsibility, we established this unit to take care of more than three hundred students with disabilities, while this university has become the only and pioneering university in providing this service to its students.” people of determination, out of its belief in the need to integrate these groups with other members of society, and to guarantee their right to education.

He praised the success achieved by the student Diana Saleh over the years of her studies to reach the brink of graduation, indicating the role played by the unit to assist students in choosing their majors and seeks to serve them based on the capabilities they possess, as he said: “We receive all cases that want to join the university, and we found that The student Diana has a hobby of drawing and her abilities enable her to enroll in the ceramic art program at the College of Fine Arts.

Optimism and determination despite disability

In this regard, Al-Aqrouq also spoke about the experience of the student Yasmine Janajra (19 years old), from the village of Talouza, east of Nablus, whose mobility disability is challenged by the strength of her personality, her optimism about life, and her constant insistence on learning.

He points out that the university has been fully prepared since the establishment of this unit, as it worked to find adaptations to facilitate safe access for people with disabilities to the campus and its facilities, which helped a lot in their mobility, especially those with mobility disabilities.

Janajra told Al-Quds.com: "The university suggested the special education program to me, because it suits my condition, and I also wanted to learn it in order to know more information about my situation in particular, and about people with special needs in general."

She added, "I have overcome many challenges, so I decided to be an inspiration to other people of determination, and to show them through my experience that there is no failure in life, no matter how difficult we face, and we must try with strong will in order to reach all that we aspire to."

The student Janajra expressed her strong love for the university because of the constant interest and support she receives from her fellow students and the administrative and academic bodies, which makes her feel the importance of the effective role she plays within the university, and makes her play her role as a diligent student to the fullest, as it always pushes her to do everything she can to serve others. of students with disabilities.

Al-Aqrouq continued: "Creativity negates and eliminates disability, so we are interested in making them initiative and productive in society without dependence on it, and that they have duties as they have rights, so we work to refine their personality and enhance their self-confidence, so that they can discover their capabilities and creativity."

Unlimited contribution

This unit contributes to their involvement in many student activities within the university - according to Al-Aqrouq - such as exhibitions and sports activities, and some of them joined the choir of the Deanship of Student Affairs, and some of them were distinguished by the talents of playing and singing, and many of them participate in courses and conferences that are held inside or outside the university.

Al-Aqrouq calls for supporting students with disabilities financially and morally, and establishing special units for them in all institutions of higher education, in addition to promoting the integration of these students into university life, implementing counseling and awareness activities for them and paying attention to their reality in various Palestinian universities.

It is noteworthy that this unit was established by the university in 2008, and it was able to attract many students with disabilities after joint efforts with local authorities and schools in various regions and governorates of the country, and work to educate parents and introduce these groups to their rights and provide them with scholarships, in addition to creating a suitable environment for them within the university and meet all their needs.