Beit HaShita

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Beit Hashita (also spelled Bet HaShitta, Bet Hashita and other variations) is a kibbutz between Afula and Bet She'an, Israel founded December 4, 1928 by members of "Kvuzat HaHugim" and members of "Tnuat HaMahanot HaOlim" from Haifa and Jerusalem. The kibbutz was named after the biblical town of the same name.

The kibbutz has been privatized and today has a population of approximately 1,000. Many of the member families of the kibbutz are secular, therefore the kibbutz is defined as a secular kibbutz.

Eleven kibbutz members fell during the 1973 Yom Kippur War, the largest number as a percentage of the population than any other town in Israel. Kibbutz Beit Hashita served as the basis for the 1981 English language book Kibbutz Makom, which described the kibbutz society.

Between 1985 and 2002, Kibbutz Bet Hashita hosted the American Class, a year-long program of High School in Israel for 10th, 11th, and 12th graders from abroad.