Warriors' Week in Review

Dear Parents,

I hope this finds everyone well - safe and warm in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy.  The hurricane has produced stories of tragedy and loss, but also stories of hope and inspiration.  I have heard of numerous occurrences of MDYHS students coming to the rescue - stories like that of Albert Mizrahi, who - right after all the electricity had gone off - went in the dark to his grandmother's apartment to get her out of the house, to safety.  And stories like that of Elliot Shrem, who provided physical support in helping to clear debris and damage from houses on his block, and provided emotional support in the form of encouragement to the families.  These stories, which are examples of many, give hope for the future - and they are a wonderful testament to the middot of our students.

And speaking of the middot and hessed of our students, I was so proud to hear that three of our juniors, under the great guidance of our Director of Hessed Programs, Ms. Elyse Nadjar, have mobilized the MDYHS community to help others recover from the hurricane.  Dennis Dweck, Julia Greenstein, and Ikey Shuster, through social media, are seeking those who needs assistance with moving, clean-up, and material goods, and are organizing student groups to help in each of these endeavors.  (Please see the attached photo of these great student leaders).  In addition, our students will be collecting blankets, clothing, and canned goods to distribute to various agencies for delivery to those in need.  This is the heart and soul of MDYHS!

While our school week was significantly shortened due to the storm, there still were a host of activities at MDYHS over the past two days, and I am privileged to share a glimpse of some of them with you.  Yesterday, I had the extreme pleasure of visiting one of our wonderful elective classes - Forensic Sciences, taught by the talented Ms. Laura Pritchard.  The class, who had already learned about physical evidence, classifying and formulating theories from clues, and processing crime scenes, were shown clips of Hurricane Sandy, and were then tasked with determining why the electrical power was lost in certain areas, based upon clues they could observe in the video clips.  After our scholarly sleuths analyzed the evidence, they turned to a clip of a Sherlock Holmes film, and dissected the evidence and the crime scene.  Stephanie Laoui, a member of the class, summed up the experience very succinctly - "This class is awesome!"  Our future CSI experts are well on their way!

Today, the first edition of our student newspaper, The Flame, was published and distributed, under the supervision of our wonderful English Department Chairperson, Mrs. Rachel Harari.  Led by senior editor-in-chief Abraham Tobias and junior editor-in-chief Paulette Gindi, the newspaper staff have put together a fantastic inaugural issue.  The 8 page edition features editorials, a "Student of the Week" column, a student point-counterpoint debate, humor, fashion, sports, advertisements, and an advice column.  I was particularly moved and inspired by the words of Paulette - in analyzing the name of all of the MDYHS teams, the Warriors, she wrote, "A warrior isn't one who fights because he hates the people in front of him; it is one who fights because he loves those behind him."  Paulette's words are inspiring, and reflect a maturity well beyond her years!

I had the chance to meet this morning with Rabbi Michael Bitton, our creative Director of Educational Technology.  Rabbi Bitton told me that the word of MDYHS's EdTech program has spread throughout the network of yeshivah day schools in the greater metropolitan area.  Our curricula utilizing podcasts and webinars, blended classroom instructional models, and flipped classroom formats - all designed by Rabbi Bitton (who is training the faculty in these exciting developments) is serving as a model for other schools.  Rabbi Bitton has been invited by other yeshivot to present the MDYHS paradigm for these other schools to emulate.

And in another example of MDYHS taking a leadership role in the community of schools, the first meeting of the inter-yeshivah college guidance counselors association this year will be hosted by our school.  The college guidance counselors of 20 different yeshivot will be gathering at MDYHS next month to share best practices and news regarding this year's college application procedures.  Kudos to our Director of College Guidance & Career Counseling Services, Mrs. Debbie Solomon, for coordinating this important event.

This past weekend, three of our students participated in the YACHAD Leadership Shabbaton.  Alison Cohen, Janice Mizrahi, and Michelle Wahba were joined by MDYHS alumna Joyce Mosery in Stamford, CT - where they participated, along with students from many schools in the NY - NJ area, in sessions on how to help one's self and how to help others.  They joined the developmentally disabled youth of YACHAD, singing and dancing with them over Shabbat.  The students told me that they received so much more from the experience than anything that they could possibly have provided to others.  (Please see the attached photos from this meaningful event).

As we begin the return to "normal" after the storm, it was heartwarming to receive numerous messages from Gilad Shalit's army unit, with whom MDYHS has established a special, close relationship - they had seen footage of the hurricane, and told us that now it was our turn to be gibborim.  It is these relationships - with each other and with communities across the globe that help to make MDYHS such a special place.  Please continue to stay safe and warm, and as always, please accept my warmest wishes for a Shabbat Shalom and for a great week ahead!


Sincerely yours,

Rabbi Saul Zucker