Kuwait principal from WA says she remains calm for her students amid explosions, sirens: ‘We can support each other’

Lisa Dallas, a Washington native now working as the principal of Global Bilingual Academy in Kuwait, shared the importance of staying calm in the wake of chaos.

While she hears sirens throughout the day and explosions in the distance, she told “The Gee and Ursula Show” on KIRO Newsradio that life in Kuwait has carried on somewhat normally.

“I look out my window, and there’s a construction site across the street for a new resort, because I live right across from the Gulf itself, and the workers still come to work,” she said. “Our Uber Eats is called Talabat, they’re still making deliveries. It has been suggested, though, that you give them a bigger tip than you usually do if you’re making use of their services. But the stores are still open.”

The situation reminds her of the pandemic, as her school is currently doing online learning.

“If we go back a few years to COVID-19, that’s what we’re back to, and so all of our teachers had to pivot and immediately go to online learning,” she said. “So that’s what we have. Every student is set up and able to get online. The internet continues to work. I’m grateful for that as well.”

Leaving Kuwait is nearly impossible

While many are hesitant to stay in Kuwait, local officials have urged people not to leave unless they absolutely have to. And for those who have tried to leave, Dallas explained it’s nearly impossible.

“I can’t leave because the airport is closed. If you call the number to the embassy, you get a recording that tells you, ‘Do not rely on us to help you get out of the country.’ You have to find your own way out, basically,” she said. “But I do know someone who owns a travel agency through the UK, and she has offered that should I want to leave, she can help me find a way out through her British contacts.”

Staying positive for 1,300 students

But even with that option, Dallas is staying put. She acknowledged that an 11-year-old Kuwaiti girl died Wednesday after being injured by shrapnel, but she’s focused on staying positive for the 1,300 students she’s responsible for.

“As an administrator, you have that responsibility to make sure that everyone you come in contact with knows you’re working on their behalf, that you want to do what’s best for them, and so here in a multicultural situation, it’s about learning what for a Kuwaiti makes them feel secure,” she explained. “What do they need so that they are assured that we, as administrators, are making the best decisions?”

Dallas said she has been sending messages to students’ families to keep them updated on what the school is doing and the decisions it’s making, for example, working around Ramadan.

“Right now it’s Ramadan, and this is a whole new holiday for me to experience. But they fast already throughout the day, so we were already on a shortened day for those who are fasting, so that they don’t have to be in school too long,” she said. “So all of that, when you’re planning, has to be taken into account. So for me personally, I just want to do the actions that will let them know, I’m being calm, I know we can create a plan, we can think through this, and we can support each other.”

A message for Americans back home

Dallas, a devout Christian, hopes her experience challenges assumptions some Americans hold about Muslims.

“The Muslims that I work with and that I get to stand hand in hand with through a crisis like this are nothing but generous, kind-hearted, truly,” she said.

Dallas wants Americans to understand that the Muslim world is not a monolith, and that many have stood shoulder to shoulder with the U.S. during the conflict.

“I think sometimes in America, they see someone with the hijab, or whatever it could be that makes them look like they’re from the Middle East, and they think they’re all thinking the same thing about Americans. Granted, yes, there are some Muslims in Iran who are saying ‘Death to America,’ but there are Muslims who are side by side with the U.S. military, shooting down the drones,” she said. “They’re working side by side, and they want to keep each other safe. So, I just want people to have that understanding.”

Watch the full discussion in the video above.

The subject in this article, Lisa Dallas, is related to a MyNorthwest editor.

Listen to Gee and Ursula on “The Gee and Ursula Show” weekday mornings from 9 am to 12 pm on KIRO Newsradio.