Rochelle Zell Jewish High School, Rochelle Zell, RZJHS, RZJHS.org
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6 Tevet, 5776 December 18, 2015 This Week at Rochelle Zell Happy Chanukah TriM Music Honors Kashrut Panel Hour of Code DECA Stock Market Contest This Week in Sports From the P.O. V entra Cards for Students Alumni in the News A Taste of Torah Class Schedule Monday, January 4 A Tuesday, December 5 C Eight Nights, Eight Lights Chanukah FesKviKes ConKnue Thank you to everyone who sang, danced, cheered, hugged, and thumped the shtender through the most joyous Hallel Rochelle Zell has seen in many years, to everyone who brought in children's books for Bernie's Book Bank, who baked challot and lit candles and celebrated the fes@val of lights with us!
Transcript
6 Tevet, 5776
December 18, 2015
This Week at
Rochelle Zell
Happy ChanukahTri-‐M Music HonorsKashrut PanelHour of CodeDECA Stock Market ContestThis Week in SportsFrom the P.O.Ventra Cards for StudentsAlumni in the NewsA Taste of Torah
Class ScheduleMonday, January 4A
Tuesday, December 5C
Eight Nights, Eight Lights
Chanukah FesKviKes ConKnue
Thank you to everyone who sang, danced, cheered, hugged,and thumped the shtender through the most joyous HallelRochelle Zell has seen in many years, to everyone who broughtin children's books for Bernie's Book Bank, who baked challotand lit candles and celebrated the fes@val of lights with us!
January 19Semester 2 BeginsSophomore Parents Mee@ng
January 25
Rabbi Feinsmith's guitar was humming, the !sch club wasrockin' the ruach, and Chanukah was brought to a joyous closethis past Monday.
Announcements were blessedly cut short in honor of theholiday, and in honor of the fabulous music video prepared byMr. Scher and the Va'ad in honor of the Rochelle Zell holi-‐daze.And speaking of holidays, a resounding yasher koach to Mr.Griffith for his Friday dvar Torah on the holiness of theholidays and the rebirth of every youthful neshama inhappiness and freedom.
The Rochelle Zell P.O. kicked off the final week before breakwith a special Chanukah lunch for the students. Many thanks toSheila Small and Jodi Weisskopf for their outstanding planningand execu@on, and to Susan Laney, Terri Krauss, Cindy Taitz,and Debbie Copley for helping with the set-‐up and cleanup ofthe fes@ve meal. Thank you, too, to the following families forsponsoring the yummies: the Weisskopfs family in honor of
Illinois Ins@tute of Technologyinvites high schoolsophomores, juniors andseniors to aaend NxtGenTech Program in the summerof 2016. Students will learntechnologies and tools andget a glimpse of the future ofthe Internet, compu@ng, andthe next wave of emergingtechnologies. To learn more,click here.
The Illinois BioGENEiusChallenge is a compe@@on forhigh school science studentsto present their originalresearch inbiotechnology. The Illinois
Joshua's birthday, the Taitz family in honor of Jason's birthdaylast summer, and the Ecanow family in honor of Natalie'sbirthday. Thanks also to Rochelle Zell's administra@on for thefaculty BBQ!
This Week in MusicRochelle Zell Admi\ed to Tri-‐M
Twelve Rochelle Zell students have been admiaed to the Tri-‐MMusic Honor Society, an interna@onal music honor society forhigh school students. Congratula@ons to Becca Abrams,Zach Becker, Emma Canter, Sarah Comar, Coby Drexler, AudreyHonig, Hana Lieber, Aitan Maeir, Dina Matkowsky, MayaMichalewicz, Sarah Tenner, and Henry Wolle, the society'snewest members! Tri-‐M is designated to recognizestudents for their academic and musical achievements,reward them for their accomplishments and service
winner will receive an all-‐expense-‐paid trip to theinterna@onal compe@@on,which will be held at the BIOConven@on 2016 in SanFrancisco, CA. Click here formore informa@on.
ac@vi@es, and inspire the community through publicperformances and service projects. Tri-‐ M's 67,800members are spread through twenty-‐four interna@onalchapters in figeen countries; our chapter is sponsoredby Ellen Singer, vocal director. Ms. Singer adds that,"The Tri-‐M chapter at Rochelle Zell consists of Jazz bandmembers as well as Vocal Ensemble members, and isopen to all music students who met the criteria. Mr.Roothaan and I are very excited about this addi@on toour program and connec@ng our students to musicstudents all over the country."
Kashrut PanelStaff Members Field FAQ About Practice and Halacha
Last week, the en@re freshman class aaended a kashrut panel in the Beit Knesset. Ms.Frankel filled the role of the moderator; Dr. Schorsch, Mr. Eskin, Mrs. Steinberg, andMrs. Agbodza were courteous enough to reflect on their experiences with kashrut,fielding ques@ons wriaen by the freshman students. There was a broad variety ofanswers from whether or not they keep kosher, their reason for keeping kosher andthe connec@on between Kashrut and being part of the Jewish community.
Freshman Sammy Vayngart writes, "There were certain ideas that stood out to me. Afew of the panelists referred to the technical defini@on of Kashrut as meaning “fit” or“appropriate”. A common reason that the panelists kept kosher was because it is atradi@on kept by the Jewish people and by their families in par@cular. Keeping koshermade them feel connected to all other Jews. All four agreed that keeping kosher isdifferent for everybody. For some of the panelists, it is extremely difficult andchallenging to follow all the rules of kashrut, yet they do so; we all respected the staffmember who does not keep kosher at all. The most interes@ng comment that I heardwas that even though Dr. Schorsch doesn’t completely understand kashrut, shefollows it anyway, which displays great confidence in the tradi@on andcommandments of God for the Jewish people. The beau@ful thing about Jewishpeople is that there is always a constant connec@on and rela@onship. No maaerwhere the Jewish people are in the world, even without a temple, there is always afeeling of hope and love between the Jewish people."
Hour of CodeStudents and Staff Join Weeklong Computer Programming Jam
Rochelle Zell par@cipated in The Hour of Code lastweek, joining a global effort including tens ofmillions of students in over 180 countries increasingliteracy about computer programming. Here inDeerfield, student developers Max Gruenberg andGaby Ecanow were on hand to assist students withtheir Hour of Code. Par@cipants were able to choosefrom 9 different coding ac@vi@es, from building awebsite to crea@ng an iPhone App. The goal was to
"demys@fy" coding by providing a hands-‐on experience. Ms. Kime reports, "It went well for ourfirst event! We had 30 par@cipants from all grades, and a few teachers as well!"
DECA Stock Market ChallengeStudents Simulate Portfolios Trying to Beat the Market
Our DECA Stock Market Game has concluded! The game ran from October 15 through December11. Twenty-‐three teams of students were given $10,000 in a virtual stock market account withwhich to make trades in a simulated brokerage account. Students could buy and sell any stocksthey wanted. The only requirements were that they had invest their "money," and they had toinvest in at least three companies. To make the game realis@c, trades incurred a $10 commission. This year's winner is the team of Brian Silverstein and David Levin, earning approximately a 12.7%return during the game. Viktor Cin came in second with an 8.9% return, and Aitan Maeir was thirdwith a return of 3.1%.
During this week's DECA mee@ng, Mr. Baumstark and his devotees debriefed on the overallresults. Student observed that frequent trading hurts porsolio returns: the worst performingteams generally made a lot of trades. They noted that it's hard to beat the market: only seven ofthe 23 teams outperformed the S&P 500. Of course, some@mes you also just get lucky! Teams hada wide variety of trading strategies, which made for a very rich discussion over the course of thegame. Overall, the game was very effec@ve at exposing our students to inves@ng, how the stockmarket works and how to think about performance.
This Week in SportsWomen's Basketball Carries On
Despite star@ng the season with a 5-‐1 record theLady Tigers have cooled off a liale, recording hard-‐fought losses to Christ the King, Chicago Hope, andSt Benedict. “We'll be fine," Coach Forde reportswith enthusiasm. "We're exactly where I thought wewould be at this point of the season. We can dobeaer, but we have to take our lumps: it helps us getbeaer. This group is preay resilient, and they're
learning with every game.” This week, the team faced Cristo Rey Sunday, followed by ProvidenceSt. Mel on Monday, and Ida Crown for the second @me this season on Thursday. Well done, ladies!
Va'ad Israel Learns About Lone SoldiersDavid Pollack Speaks
Last Wednesday, students in Va’ad Israel met withformer Lone Soldier David Pollack through the LoneSoldier Connec@on organiza@on. This gave studentsthe opportunity to hear David’s life story. He grewup in the western suburbs of Chicago, with very fewJews in his community and found his Jewish iden@tyin college. This iden@ty led him to want to join theIsrael Defense Forces. He tried out for theparatroopers brigade and was in service for twoyears. He also discussed the hardships that all Lone
Soldiers face being far away from home. For example, while most soldiers get to go home for theweekend and sleep, David went home to an empty apartment and had to buy food, do laundry,and make sure everything was taken care of.
In Israel, Israeli families have the ability to adopt lone soldiers. Pollack was adopted by a familyhalfway through his service, along with three other American lone soldiers. Va’ad Israel would liketo thank the Lone Soldier Connec@on organiza@on and David Pollack for coming and we hope tosee them again in the near future.
Driver's EdSign-Up Forms Coming for Freshmen and Sophomores
Please be on the lookout for the Driver's Ed email for the Spring Semester. Adams School ofDriving will be holding classes at Rochelle Zell Jewish High School beginning on Thursday, January21, 2016 from 4:10 p.m. to 5:10 p.m. and on select dates. In order to enroll in these classes yourstudent must have been born on or before May 16, 2001. If you have any ques@ons regarding theclasses, please call Adams School of Driving at 847.965.6565 or email Janice Dlaa [email protected].
"We be-‐lieve that we will win!" Which redoubtable basketball starhelped make history against Mooseheart in 2013 and beat thebuzzer with the winning shot in our second back-‐to-‐back IHSAbasketball championship? Hint: the field is green, but this Jewishathlete has gone blue!
From the Parent Organization
Our Fall ac@vi@es were a huge success! Thank you to all of our co-‐chairs, volunteers and sponsors:to Amy Mishell and Maryl Dayan who co-‐chaired our Grade Get-‐togethers, to Liz Geifman whoorganized the Rosh Hashanah Faculty/Staff gig bags, to all who aaended the P.O. fall book club; toMar@ne Gorstein for chairing the Faculty/Staff Chanukah Gig Fund, and again, to our Chanukahlunch organizers and helpers. We couldn't have done it without the involvement of our fantas@cRochelle Zell community. Save the Date:We have some great events planned for the spring semester:Monday, February 22: Rochelle Zell P.O. movie nightSaturday evening, March 12: Rochelle Zell Parent and Alumni Parent EventTuesday, April 5: an evening with Mia Adler Ozair, author of Cook, Pray, Eat Kosher
Stay tuned for details about these events coming in early January. Have a healthy and happywinter break. Karen Ecanow and Debbie CopleyRochelle Zell P.O. Presidents
Renew Your Ventra Pass Today!Reduced Fare For Public Transportation
Students who use Ventra cards must RENEW REDUCED FARE RIDING PRIVILEGES EVERY SCHOOLYEAR. Fill out this form and email it to [email protected] for the school to place its official seal onthe form and send to Ventra Chicago.
Happy birthday, Livi! Thank you to Livi Moses's family forsponsoring breakfast. If you would like to sponsor breakfast inhonor of your favorite Tiger, contact Diane Zidman [email protected].
Community News and Events
Alumni in the NewsStudents Spotlighted in Crown Family Center for Jewish Studies
The brothers Licht are taking NU by storm! Iszy ('11), Aitan ('13),and Yadid ('14) Licht have formed the core of NorthwesternUniversity's new Talmud program. “This course helped us torealize that ‘ancient’ and ‘outdated’ are not synonymous,” [Aitan]explains. “The Talmud con@nues to act as the foremost basis formodern Jewish prac@ce. As we studied... we gained a new mode of
grasping the text that underlies current Jewish life.” Yadid con@nues, "The different approaches ofhigh school and university Talmud study are equally important. The religious, personalengagement with the text that we employed at CJHS is as vital as the cri@cal, analy@c study of theTalmud that was introduced at Northwestern.” Read all about their new program here.
Aluma Writes for Jewish Council on Urban AffairsAvra Shapiro ('08) is on the south side, campaigning for beaerhealth care for the vic@ms of violence! She reports, "For the pastyear, JCUA has been part of a coali@on organizing to expandtrauma care on the south side in the midst of a “trauma centerdesert”. The coali@on was started five years ago by FLY (FearlessLeading by the Youth) ager 18 year old community ac@vist DamianTurner was shot and had to travel 10 miles to the closest traumacenter at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. Damian died on theway. Appallingly, Damian was shot only three blocks away from theUniversity of Chicago Medical Center, one of the most wellresourced hospitals in the na@on. This tragedy was the star@ng
point of a campaign to bring comprehensive trauma care to the South Side, and to call upon theUniversity of Chicago to facilitate and sustain a trauma care center." Read all about her effort withJCUA here, and the thrilling news that their efforts are succeeding!
Jeremy Goodman ('14) is a sophomore at the University ofMichigan. He reports, "I have recently become a part of theSchool of Educa@on here, and am majoring in History. I amplanning to teach at the high school level when I graduate. In myfree @me, I have been working to bring Jewish life to studentsoutside of Hillel; I am actually working with Gita Karasov! I alsoteach at a Hebrew school and play on a Scout Team that prac@cesagainst the women's varsity basketball team, so I am keeping upwith sports. Everything is great here and this semester has beenincredible!"
A Taste of Torah: Vayigash
Joseph says it best when he explains that it wasn’t his brothers who sent him into slavery, but God– all so that he could eventually save his family years later. This line of thinking sounds a lot like thethinking of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, who submit wholeheartedly to God’s will. But there isanother side to Joseph. As Rabbi Jonathan Sacks has pointed out, the scene in which Josephreveals himself to his brothers is the first recorded example of forgiveness in human history. Un@lthat point, no person – not even God, according to the p’shat of the Torah – had everacknowledged that someone had commiaed a wrong and forgiven that person nonetheless.Forgiveness is not a mo@f which typifies the lives of the forefathers. Does Isaac forgive Abrahamfor the Akedah, or does he keep that pain within him for the rest of his life? Does Jacob forgiveIsaac for loving his brother more than him, or does he pass that same favori@sm onto the nextgenera@on? Joseph steps out of the paaern of his fathers and forgives; forgiveness is a humanchoice. And ul@mately, it is forgiveness which brings Joseph and his family happiness andfulfillment. READ MORE>>
Mr. Joseph Eskin
1095 Lake Cook Road Deerfield, IL 60015 | [email protected] | 847.470.6700
