Go Middle East has its roots in The Excellence Center in Hebron, Palestine, which was founded in 2011 with a simple but important goal: to connect Palestinian students with international volunteers and English speakers while creating opportunities for meaningful cultural exchange. What began as a local initiative focused on English education gradually grew into a wider network of educational, volunteering, and community development programs.
Over the years, our work expanded beyond teaching English. We developed Arabic language programs for international students, created opportunities for volunteers to work directly with Palestinian children and communities, and welcomed participants from around the world to experience life in Palestine. As our experience and international community grew, we expanded the Excellence Center model to Syria and Jordan, where volunteers can teach English, work with children and refugees, participate in community activities, and study Arabic while engaging directly with local communities.
This continued growth eventually led to the creation of Go Middle East, allowing us to expand our work into a broader range of fields and countries. Today, our programs bring together volunteering, education, Arabic language learning, cultural exchange, internships, and community development. This page tells the story of how that journey began, how our work developed, and how the experiences of thousands of international participants and local community members have helped shape what Go Middle East is today.
Table of Contents
Our Beginning
In 2011, a group of dedicated Palestinian community servants in Hebron launched the Excellence Center, primarily to connect international volunteer English teachers with Palestinian students wanting to learn English.
In Hebron, Palestinian students in schools are taught English by Palestinian teachers and have little to no exposure to native or foreign English speakers unless they happen to meet them around the city. As Hebron is not a major tourist destination, many Palestinian students have never or rarely met English speakers from other countries. This is something that the Excellence Center endeavored to change.
Palestinian Students Learn English In School, However…
While Palestinian students learn English in school, the school curriculum in the West Bank has similarities with English curricula worldwide in that it is often teacher- and grammar-focused with little or no time for speaking practice. In addition, class sizes, particularly in public schools, can have 40-50 students per class, making learning another language much more difficult.
This approach often leads Palestinian students and students all over the world to leave school and feel like they can’t speak or use English, even though they spent many years studying it. Since our founding, we have strived to bridge this gap, and we continue this important and innovative work today.
We Sought A Different Approach To Teaching English
The Excellence Center sought a different approach, wanting to teach English in a different way, using more practical and communicative methods, and bringing native and fluent English speakers to Palestine.
Connecting Palestinian students inside the English classroom with international teachers gives Palestinian students much-needed practice and exposure to English. Not only that, it can also increase their confidence and present the perfect setting for cultural exchange and building multicultural relationships.
Our Success Led To Our Expansion
As the Excellence Center became more established and reputable within the local community in Hebron, we began to have more Palestinian students join us for our English courses. We also began to develop our intensive Arabic courses aimed at international students wishing to come to Palestine primarily to study Arabic, whether the local dialect or Fus’ha. True to our name, we continued providing excellent English and Arabic education to our international and Palestinian students to help them achieve excellence in their lives.
Furthermore, because we have continued to offer unique experiences, great value, and meaningful impact on our local Palestinian community in Hebron, we began to have more international volunteers, and our international reputation also grew. Our success with our English teaching programs led to our continued growth, which allowed us to create Go Middle East to expand into other important fields.
Our Success Led To Our Expansion
As the Excellence Center became more established and reputable within the local community in Hebron, we began to have more Palestinian students join us for our English courses. We also developed our intensive Arabic courses for international students wishing to come to Palestine primarily to study Arabic, whether the local Palestinian dialect or Fus’ha. True to our name, we continued providing excellent English and Arabic education to our international and Palestinian students, helping them develop language skills, build confidence, and achieve excellence in their personal, academic, and professional lives.
Furthermore, because we continued to offer unique experiences, great value, and meaningful opportunities to engage with the local Palestinian community in Hebron, we welcomed increasing numbers of international volunteers and students. As our programs grew, so did our international reputation. What began as an initiative focused primarily on connecting international English speakers with Palestinian students developed into a broader model of education, volunteering, cultural exchange, and community engagement.
Our success in Palestine eventually allowed us to expand this approach beyond Hebron and Palestine. We established Excellence Centers in Syria and Jordan, creating new opportunities for international volunteers to work directly with local communities while also learning about the cultures and societies in which they were volunteering. Like our original center in Palestine, these programs combine volunteering, education, cultural exchange, and Arabic language learning, allowing international participants to contribute to local communities while gaining a deeper understanding of the Middle East.
Today, the Excellence Center model extends across several countries in the region. In each location, we adapt our programs to the needs of the local community while maintaining our commitment to meaningful cultural exchange, education, volunteering, and language learning.
The Excellence Center in Syria
Following our experience in Palestine, we expanded our work to Syria, where the Excellence Center provides international volunteers with opportunities to support local communities while learning more about Syrian society and culture. Our programs in Syria focus particularly on working with children, teaching English, and volunteering with refugees and communities affected by displacement.
Volunteers can participate in educational and recreational activities with children, helping them practice English and develop their communication skills in a supportive and engaging environment. Rather than simply providing classroom instruction, volunteers are encouraged to interact with children through activities, games, conversation, and informal learning. This gives local children additional opportunities to use English in a practical setting while allowing volunteers to build genuine relationships with the people they meet.
Our work with refugees is another important part of the Excellence Center’s activities in Syria. Volunteers can contribute their time and skills to programs supporting refugee communities and people affected by the challenges of displacement. These experiences provide international participants with an opportunity to better understand the realities faced by refugees while contributing in a practical and respectful way.
At the same time, international volunteers in Syria have the opportunity to study Arabic, including the local Syrian dialect. Arabic lessons complement the volunteering experience by helping participants communicate more effectively with local people and better understand Syrian culture. In this way, volunteering and language learning become closely connected: participants can use what they learn in their Arabic classes in their daily interactions, while their experiences in the community provide a practical environment in which to develop their language skills.
The Excellence Center in Jordan
We also expanded the Excellence Center model to Jordan, providing international participants with opportunities to volunteer, work with children, teach English, and support refugee communities. Jordan has a long history of hosting refugees from across the Middle East, making community-based volunteering an important way for international participants to learn about the country while contributing their time and skills.
Volunteers in Jordan can work directly with children through English teaching, educational activities, games, and other forms of community engagement. These activities are designed to give children additional opportunities to practice English outside the traditional classroom while creating a friendly environment for cultural exchange. For volunteers, working directly with children provides valuable experience in teaching, communication, and intercultural interaction.
Our programs in Jordan also provide opportunities to volunteer with refugee communities. Participants can learn more about the experiences and challenges faced by refugees while supporting activities designed to provide educational and community assistance. As with our programs in Palestine and Syria, the emphasis is on meaningful participation and direct engagement with the local community rather than simply observing from the outside.
International participants can also study Arabic while volunteering in Jordan, giving them the opportunity to learn the language in the same environment in which they are using it. Learning Arabic alongside local people and using the language during everyday interactions can make the experience much more immersive and meaningful. Participants can develop their language skills while gaining a deeper understanding of Jordanian culture, society, and the wider Middle East.
Through our work in Palestine, Syria, and Jordan, we have continued to develop an approach that brings together volunteering, education, language learning, and cultural exchange. While each center responds to the needs of its own local community, they share the same basic goal: creating meaningful opportunities for international participants to contribute while building genuine connections with the people and communities they encounter.
Community Development With Go Middle East
While the Excellence Center focuses primarily on teaching English to local students and Arabic to international students, Go Middle East places a greater emphasis on community development, volunteering, and international engagement. This includes working with children, refugees, students, and other members of the local communities in which our programs operate.
Go Middle East runs numerous volunteer programs, internships, educational opportunities, and training services designed to support local communities while providing international participants with meaningful opportunities to get involved. Through these programs, participants can contribute to education, community development, youth activities, and other initiatives while gaining firsthand experience of life in the Middle East.
The creation of Go Middle East therefore represents the natural continuation of the work that began with the Excellence Center. As our programs expanded and our international community grew, we wanted to create more opportunities for people to participate in meaningful projects beyond traditional language education. Go Middle East allows us to bring together our experience in volunteering, education, cultural exchange, and community development under a broader international platform.
Other Aims Of Go Middle East
Go Middle East also aims to educate and inform international participants about the countries and communities in which they volunteer. Our programs cover a wide range of subjects, including human rights, women’s rights, local cultures, laws and legal practices, medicine, healthcare, education, and community development.
Today, Go Middle East offers volunteer programs and internships in various fields for international participants wishing to come to the Middle East and engage directly with local communities. These programs are designed not only to provide participants with practical experience, but also to encourage greater cultural understanding and meaningful relationships between people from different countries.
This is particularly important because international perceptions of Middle Eastern countries and communities are often shaped by limited or one-sided representations. By welcoming international volunteers and students into local communities, Go Middle East provides an opportunity for participants to experience everyday life firsthand, meet local people, learn languages, and develop a more nuanced understanding of the region.
At the same time, our programs create opportunities for local people to interact with participants from around the world. This exchange is at the heart of what we do. Through volunteering, studying Arabic, teaching English, working with children and refugees, and participating in community activities, international participants and local communities can learn from one another and build connections that extend beyond the duration of their programs.
Awards, Recognition, And Program Reviews
Go Middle East has been honored with several prestigious Community Awards and recognized as the Best Language School and Top Volunteer and Internship Program Provider for 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025. For more details, please visit our profiles on GoOverseas.com and GoAbroad.com.
- +1000 reviews (96.8%) on gooverseas.com
- +190 reviews (93%) on goabroad.com
- Participants’ video testimonials
- Our Awards
The Future?
Our story is not finished. Since the Excellence Center was founded in 2011, we have continued to grow, develop new programs, reach new communities, and welcome participants from an increasing number of countries. While our work has expanded from our original focus in Hebron to programs across the Middle East, our core values have remained the same: education, community engagement, cultural exchange, and creating meaningful connections between local communities and people from around the world.
As we look to the future, we will continue developing opportunities that benefit both the communities in which we work and the international participants who join us. We hope to expand our programs, create new opportunities for volunteering and learning, and continue building bridges between people and cultures. At the same time, we remain committed to the local communities that have been at the heart of our work since the beginning.
If you are interested in volunteering, studying Arabic, teaching English, completing an internship, or simply experiencing the Middle East through meaningful engagement with local communities, we would be happy to welcome you. Whether you join us in Palestine, Syria, Jordan, or through one of our other programs, you can become part of the continuing story of Go Middle East.
Find Us Online
Excellence Center in Syria Website: https://ecsyria.org/
Excellence Center in Jordan Website: https://ecjordan.org/
Excellence Center in Palestine Website: https://excellencenter.org/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/excellence.center
Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ExcellenceCenter
Watch us on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsQSLdFZWZcBm6Uj0XMYuKg