In 2020 Andrews University partnered with the American Society of Overseas Research to establish the Lawrence T. Geraty Endowment to foster and serve as an accelerant for the development of know-how and innovative approaches for local community engagement with the custody and care of archaeological sites. The first distribution from the endowment happened in 2021 (read the 2021 report here). A second distribution from the endowment took place this past summer, and here is a brief update on how the funds were spent.

Karam and Hesban is the English translation of a children’s book in Arabic about Hisban authored by Rasha Dababneh and illustrated by Safa Abudoush. The book, which was published in 2021, tells the story of a little boy, Karam, who visits Hisban and while there, meets a local shepherdess, who becomes his guide while also grazing her sheep on the slopes of the tell. The project of producing the book was initiated and supervised by the writer and AlRaqeem,  with funding provided in part by the ASOR Geraty Endowment. Copies of the book have been distributed for free to children living in Hisban. The book is part of the book series “Discover Jordan with Karam.” The sale of the book in local bookstores supports the protection of the site.

Husban Culture and Heritage is a local history book authored by Abdullah Abdulazeese Al-Masha’lah. It was published in 2022 in Arabic and English and offers a local account of the agricultural know-how, crafts, and wisdom of past generations of the contemporary Ajarmah families of Hisban. The book also offers a local perspective on archaeological discoveries at the site. As with the above-mentioned children’s book, the project of producing the book was initiated and supervised by the writer and AlRaqeem,  with funding provided in part by the ASOR Geraty Endowment. The book has been distributed for free to local residents and is available for purchase in local bookstores.

Another archaeology summer camp for Hisban community children and others was organized and supervised on the hill of Hisban by our Sela/AlRaqeem.  The leader was Amr Awawdah, a teacher in the local schools who also is a veteran of more than two decades of excavations at Hisban. Activities for the children—most of whom are elementary level–include learning about stratigraphy, pottery, excavation techniques, and documentation. A capstone activity is a play produced by the children that tell a story that ties in some way to the history of the site . Funding for these camps was provided by the Geraty Endowment.

A Memorandum of Understanding between Andrews University and the Department of Antiquities represents a major milestone on the road toward a sustainable future for the Hisban Archaeological Park. The agreement commits our team to provide funding for an archaeologist to supervise four local workers for 12 weeks spread throughout each of the next three years: 2 weeks in November, 2 in February, 4 in May, 2 in July, and 2 in September. The salary of the archaeologist supervisor will be paid by the Geraty Endowment, while the local workmen’s salaries will be paid by the Department of Antiquities. The overall arrangement and work will be supervised by AlRaqeem and will provide proof of concept for such a partnership involving a foreign university and the Department of Antiquities. The agreement, which was signed in June 2022, also allows time for raising funds to sustain the arrangement into the future.

We are excited about the many ways in which the ASOR Geraty Endowment is proving to be a powerful accelerant for learning about ways to engage host communities as partners in caring for archaeological sites such as Hisban in Jordan. You can help sustain and further grow the impact of the Endowment by selecting “Geraty Endowment Fund” from the drop-down menu at the following link.

-Øystein LaBianca, Andrews University, Director of the Hisban Cultural Heritage Project