Marking International Women’s Day Under Fire

This International Women’s Day, we honor the remarkable women of Tel Aviv University, especially in a moment when leadership, resilience, and care matter more than ever.

As Israel faces a prolonged and intense war with Iran, many TAU women and men are on the front lines of supporting the University community: deans are navigating the upheaval of another academic semester, lab managers are keeping research going, faculty and staff are supporting students through uncertainty, and students themselves, many of whom have been called up for reserve duty, are showing incredible strength and resilience as another round of war disrupts normal life. 

“Over the past week, like many Israelis, my life has been punctuated by sirens. We haven’t gotten a lot of sleep,” shares Prof. Milette Shamir, TAU VP International.

“Leadership in moments like this often looks less like grand strategy and more like steady care: answering messages late at night, solving practical problems, and making sure people know someone is looking out for them,” she says.

For Prof. Shamir, times of crisis are when her job becomes especially busy. “We are responsible for the hundreds of international students and faculty currently on campus, making sure they feel safe, supported, and looked after. At the same time, we are helping the many TAU students and faculty stranded abroad because their flights have been canceled. These are people who want nothing more right now than to go back home.”

Prof. Drorit Neumann, TAU Dean of Students, adds: "Leadership to me means creating a space where every student is seen, every staff member is valued, and every challenge is met with a cohesive, meaningful response."

In the meantime, TAU international students who are staying put in Tel Aviv are keeping their morale up. "I was here during the 12 Day War in June, and I learned that there is nothing I can't get through with the right support. Together, we will get each other through,” says Sara Beth Yurow, an MA student in Conflict Resolution and a teaching assistant, originally from Hawaii. 

For Sandra Haievska, an MBA student at the Coller School of Business from Ukraine, finding moments of balance is essential: "In this challenging time, yoga has become a shelter for my inner peace. The quote that keeps me going these days is: ‘At the end of the day, light always finds its way back.”

Today and every day, we send our deepest gratitude, love, and strength to the women of Tel Aviv University and to women across the Middle East holding their communities together in these difficult days.

We see you. We honor you. We stand with you.