How it all started
Taking the child by the hand, Jesus said to her, "Talitha kumi!" which means, "Little girl, I tell you, get up!"  Mark 5:41

This school was founded in Jerusalem in 1851 by Pastor Theodor Fliedner and Sisters of the Deaconess Institution in Kaiserswerth, Germany, the place where Florence Nightingale trained as a nurse.  It began as a home for orphaned Arab girls, later developing into a girls’ boarding school.  In 1961, the school moved to Beit Jala, a Christian village beside Bethlehem, and in 1980 it became fully co-educational.

The name Talitha Kumi was given as a motto and an inspiration: Just as the Lord awakened Jairus’ daughter from her physical sleep of death, so, too, he wants to give a life affirming ‘Talitha Kumi’ to young people in the Holy Land in their spiritual sleep!

Current activities
There are about 900 pupils at the School, with an equal number of boys and girls.  Keeping the proportion of girls high is not easy, as many Christian families prefer to send their daughters to single-sex schools.  However, Talitha Kumi has such a good reputation that parents are prepared to allow their daughters to attend.

The School teaches the usual government curriculum, with additional emphases on languages, sport, art and vocational education.  As well as learning English from an early age, pupils learn German, an option that is not available in most schools and which includes an annual exchange programme with pupils in Germany.  The School has excellent sports facilities, including an indoor gymnasium - the only hall of its kind in the West Bank - for basketball, gymnastics and volleyball.  Outdoor facilities include playgrounds for football, basketball, and athletics.

The students’ last two years at the School can be spent either continuing their academic education or in the vocational training section, where all aspects of hotel management are taught, from catering to business studies.  The School has a guesthouse on site, where these students can put their learning into practice.

Up to 50 girls board at the School, either because they do not live locally, or for of a variety of economic and social reasons.  The girls live in four ‘families’, each with a house mother, who helps and advises the girls in their studies and provides care and attention through this time of growing up.  Many of the girls consider the School their second home, with its atmosphere of love and care. 

The presence and caring attitude of the many Christian staff all help to further the Christian education of the children.  About ten per cent of the children come from Muslim families and the law does not allow them to attend the Bible lessons that the Christian children receive.  However, everyone joins in Morning Assembly, led by Christian staff or the local Pastor, and the boarders join in evening devotions.

Talitha Kumi Scout Troop was established in 1995.  There are currently 120 members and the number is still increasing.  The Scout Troop has a band with drums, bagpipes and trumpets and a pair of castanets!  The Troop has a camp every summer, which lasts for two weeks.  This is held at the school, using its excellent facilities, especially the sports hall.

The high levels of unemployment and poverty in the troubled Holy Land mean that many parents are now unable to pay more than a nominal sum towards their children's education.  However, no children is turned away because of financial difficulties and through BibleLands’ child sponsorship scheme, the School is able to continue to offer a high level of education to these children.