Earlham graduate Salma Khalaf to travel world to research displaced Palestinians

Salma Khalaf is going places, both physically and figuratively. The December 2021 graduate of Earlham College was one of 42 students selected nationally to receive the Watson Fellowship.

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The Watson Fellowship awards a $36,000 stipend to each receiving student to support international travel for research of the students' personal relevance. Khalaf is a Palestinian who grew up in Lebanon and graduated with a degree in international relations. According to an Earlham release, she will go on a six-country tour starting in August to interview displaced Palestinians and others affected by the 1948 war that established Israel.

“My project seeks answers from Palestinians like myself and others who have a vision or aspirations of what Palestine might look like in the future,” Khalaf said in the release. “My great-grandfather was forcibly removed from Palestine in 1948, and ever since then, for three generations, we have been holding this status as refugees in Lebanon. The topic is important and personal for me.”

The countries on Khalaf's tour include: Jordan, Qatar, Egypt, United Kingdom, Chile and Algeria, sending her to four different continents. There are an estimated 7 million Palestinian refugees displaced around the world, the release states, and Khalaf said this is an opportunity to talk about that on a global stage.

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“I am a Palestinian advocate and activist, and I will always be that," Khalaf said in the release. "These stories need to be heard by everyone. Palestine has consumed my life, but this is not just about me; it’s about all Palestinians in the diaspora. I want to understand why I feel this way and what is behind this love that we, as Palestinians, hold for this land we’ve never seen or may die without ever seeing. Where does this devotion, this dedication, to fighting over the liberation of this land come from?"

Khalaf said her research will address a unique aspect of Palestinian identity, and she hopes to eventually write a book about her findings.

“A lot of people keep talking about the past and the issue about how we were forced out of Palestine, but no one is thinking for the future or talking about what a free Palestine would look like,” Khalaf said in the release. “I feel like every Palestinian has a different vision for what this will look like.”

Khalaf is the 43rd Earlham student to earn the Watson Fellowship. Three other Quakers — Grace Muma, Jus Tavcar and Marianne Finot — were also members of the 158-student finalist pool.

In addition to the Watson, Khalaf was also selected for the Indianapolis-based Orr Fellowship. She, along with fellow Earlham seniors Tsitsi Makufa and Trevor Marimbire, are the first Earlham students to be selected for this fellowship, which was first awarded in 2001. They were part of the less than 8 percent of 1,200 annual applicants to earn offers through the program.

According to another Earlham release, Orr Fellows submit personal essays for consideration, and finalists interview with multiple company executives to see if they would be a good fit for the company.

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Khalaf has accepted a position with Kiwanis International, a global organization of clubs, members and partners focused on improving the lives of children.

“As international students, this is a significant opportunity because we don’t have a lot of options to stay in the country after graduation," Khalaf said in the release. "The Orr Fellowship is doing a great job of negotiating a lot of benefits with these companies on our behalf. If I applied directly to an entry-level position, we would not necessarily have the same opportunities.”

Zach Piatt reports on sports and education for The Palladium-Item. Contact him at zpiatt@gannett.com or on Twitter @zachpiatt13.