Lee conducts research and teaches at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, and was named Theologian Laureate of the Netherlands in 2019. As rector of the Centre of Theology of Migration, he developed a postgraduate vocational training programme for migrant church leaders and workers. Lee is also deeply committed to the community in Amsterdam Zuidoost, where he is deeply rooted. He founded a large migrant church and an academy offering alternative higher education to undocumented people, refugees and others who – for various reasons – have limited access to further education. “Teaching is my calling,” says Samuel Lee. “When I started doing this 20 years ago, I thought: if Abraham Kuyper could found a university, then I can start an academy. One that’s open to everyone. Because access to higher education is a question of human rights. Not just primary and secondary education, but tertiary education should be available to all. Not only to those with the right documents or in the right circumstances.”
Personal experience and the desire to change the world
Lee himself arrived in the Netherlands 40 years ago. Unrest and war in his country of birth forced him to build a new life here. He initially lived in the Bijlmer area of Amsterdam, where he got to know many people with roots in countries like Ghana and Suriname. “That’s how I learned more about political issues like apartheid,” he explains. “But I also had to work hard, because I didn’t speak Dutch yet, and I had no strong social network around me.”
Navigating the Dutch social system was a major challenge. For instance, Lee was required to visit the immigration police each week for a stamp – often spending nights outside on the street to secure a place at the front of the queue the next morning. He also worked night shifts and went straight from work to lectures in Non-Western Sociology at Leiden University. Through these personal experiences, the stories of apartheid, social injustice and discrimination as well as his studies, Samuel Lee developed a desire to change the world.
Foundation Academy of Amsterdam
“I’ve ultimately had the privilege of completing a university degree and earning academic titles,” says Lee. “But I realised that many people never get the chance – for example, because they lack the right documents, diplomas or financial resources.”
Lee decided to share his knowledge of sociology in an accessible way. His target group? Anyone with an interest, regardless of prior education or qualifications. Specifically, people who have difficulty accessing higher education, such as refugees living in Ter Apel. “I just started, and I saw how my students changed through the sociological knowledge they were acquiring. Where my students had previously found it difficult to understand people outside their own religious or ideological bubbles – whether that was members of the LGBTQ+ community or people with different worldviews – I saw how they began to bridge those differences and support their views with knowledge. Eventually, my lectures evolved into a school: the Foundation Academy of Amsterdam,” Lee explains. Today, the academy has between 300 and 400 alumni, and many people are involved in teaching, including several VU Amsterdam colleagues who volunteer their time to give lectures and help out. “The tuition fees are kept very low because we want to reach people with fewer opportunities in society and, in doing so, to help make the world a better place.”
His students learn about human rights. Not just in legal terms, but also what their rights are and how their legal status relates to the Netherlands, their country of origin, and their immediate social environment. For some, the Foundation Academy of Amsterdam has served as a stepping stone to continue their studies at VU Amsterdam once they’ve obtained the proper residency permit.
Lee’s advice for anyone who also wants to make a difference? “If you have ideals, go for it. Just do it. Don’t wait until everything is perfectly in place. Try not to focus too much on the organisational aspects, but treat it like a living organism. If I can’t access our building for some reason, I’ll teach under a tree in the park. I’ll always find a way to serve my calling: teaching.”
Strong links with VU Amsterdam
“My work at VU Amsterdam is also based on my ideals,” says Lee. “The postgraduate training programme for migrant pastors came about because there are over a million Christian migrants living in the Netherlands, and the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science asked whether pastors and Christian workers from a migrant background could be trained to support these communities. During the programme, VU Amsterdam students learn not only about the Dutch church context but also about that of other communities, their colonial histories, and how those histories interact. At VU Amsterdam, students learn to view different groups in different ways and, just like at the Foundation Academy, I see that transformation taking place – people begin to look at others with more understanding.”
Lee continues: “Some of the graduates from my academy also go on to join the postgraduate programme. I’ve made sure they can transition to VU Amsterdam without any problems. We now have over 110 alumni from the programme, of which more than 10% come from the Foundation Academy. They’re now active in society as refugee advocates, social workers or church leaders. They’re doing meaningful work: creating opportunities for others and fostering tolerance between groups.”
