Warriors' Week in Review
Dear Parents,
It has been a truly amazing week at MDYHS! It is a pleasure for me to share a glimpse of some of the wonderful programs and events of the past few days with you.
On Wednesday, the eleventh grade was treated to their Career Breakfast, Part 2, under the organization and guidance of Mr. Daniel Zide, Career Counselor at MDYHS, and Mrs. Debbie Solomon, Director of the Department of College Guidance & Career Counseling. Students enjoyed a "power breakfast" with professionals representing the following career paths: Accounting, Asset Management, Design, Finance, Media Production, Medicine, Nursing, Nutrition, Occupational Therapy, Psychiatry, Real Estate, and Speech Pathology. Each student was able to hear presentations from three different career professionals on what the career entails, what education and training are necessary for success in the career path, and tips and strategies on how to advance. The career professionals included 3 MDYHS alumni, who spoke about their transition from high school to college to career. In addition, students learned of specific summer internship opportunities that are available in different career fields. (Please see the attached photos from this great program). Look out world - the MDYHS professionals are on their way!
The roots of success in career advancement begin with excellent high school and college education and achievement, and that includes proper guidance and training for the college entrance exam - the SAT. Toward that end, I am so pleased to announce the MDYHS SAT Workshop, led by Mrs. Sara Haleva, a professional SAT coach with an outstanding record of success. This program, which begins on February 19th and will be held at the MDY elementary school one evening per week, is free of charge to MDYHS students. It consists of 16 sessions - students can participate in any or all of the sessions as they see fit. The session topics include Critical Reading, Test Taking Tips & Strategies, Essay Writing, Geometry Review, Functions & Patterns, Grammar, Direct and Inverse Variation, Simultaneous Equations, and Quadratics, along with numerous practice exam exercises. Please feel free to be in touch with the school office for the full calendar of dates and topics. We are confident of the students' success as they continue to dedicate themselves passionately to their work.
And speaking of the students' success, I am proud to extend warm wishes of Mabrouk to the following seniors on their recent college admissions and merit scholarships:
Marie Betesh - John Jay College of Criminal Justice
Jacqueline Beyda - Baruch College, Brooklyn College, Hunter College
Elliot Cohen - Baruch College, Brooklyn College, College of Staten Island
Jackie Kassin - Baruch College
Mickey Kishk - Pace University, with an Honors Scholarship of $15,000 per year for 4 years, for a total of $60,000
Michael Mamiye - Brooklyn College
Sylvi Matalon - Baruch College, Brooklyn College, Queens College, City College of New York, College of Staten Island
Marc Saadia - Baruch College, Queens College, College of Staten Island
David Setton - Baruch College
Barry Sitt - Baruch College, College of Staten Island
Abraham Tobias - Baruch College, City College of New York, College of Staten Island
So far - with a great many of the college admissions decisions and awards not even announced yet - MDYHS seniors have earned an amazing $372,000 in merit based scholarships. We are so proud of your fantastic accomplishments!
Success in college admissions is achieved only by excellent education and diligent work. A great example of both excellence and diligence is to be found in the following EdTech project, designed by our own math teacher Mrs. Matya Mizrahi, and guided by our talented EdTech Director, Rabbi Michael Bitton - <http://mrsmizrahi.weebly.com/index.html>. In this "flipped classroom" format, students view a brief video lesson -designed and produced by Mrs. Mizrahi - as their homework. The lesson is clear, concise, and even entertaining. Students then complete a worksheet and questionnaire online about what parts of the lesson they may not fully understand, and the questionnaire is forwarded to the teacher, so that when the class meets the next day, students have a foundational knowledge in the area to be taught, and the teacher already knows in advance what areas will require greater focus and clearer explanation. The students have commented repeatedly on what a joy it is to learn this way! Try one of these video lessons to experience what the MDYHS students do - you'll be learning and loving it!
And while on the subject of exciting classes, Mrs. Frieda Cattan's Jewish history class was treated to a very special guest lecture by a student of Dr. Lawrence Shiffman, a world renowned professor whose expertise is the Dead Sea Scrolls. Our young 9th grade scholars have been learning about the Second Commonwealth Jewish communities. Through a PowerPoint presentation, the girls went on a journey from the first century BCE through the discovery of the scrolls in the Qumran area in 1947. Seeing multi-media educational presentations from guest lecturers helps bring the lessons of history alive to our students.
These experiences are not limited to the MDYHS classrooms alone. Today, our Forensic Science teacher, Ms. Laura Pritchard, took a group of juniors and seniors to the John Jay College of Criminal Justice. Ms. Pritchard prepared a scenario for the students to "solve" using the techniques that they learned during their visit to the college. Our sleuths and investigators were given a special tour of the Instrumental Lab and the Toxicology Lab, where they learned how to use stereo-microscopes, an ultraviolet spectrophotometer, and gas chromatography. With these tools, they analyzed the prepared "evidence" - petroleum products used to start fires, bullets, casings, and fingerprints. (Please see the attached photos from this exciting trip). CSI Brooklyn - look out - the MDYHS detectives are here!
Two days earlier, not too far far from John Jay College, a delegation of MDYHS students from all four grades visited theUnited Nations on a special trip led by Ms. Audrey Nasar and Ms. Sally Mishanieh. The program was designed by our own juniors Hannah Cohen and Yoni Hadar as part of their Stand With Us student leadership training program. The group visited the Security Council and the General Assembly, where they learned about the intricacies of the various programs run by the UN. (Please see the attached photos from this informative visit).
Our students go out not only to absorb lessons from others, but also to demonstrate and lead by example. On Wednesday, our Mock Trial Team, led by superstar attorney Ms. Gina Abadi, faced the team of the Brooklyn Secondary School of Law in the courtrooms of Cadman Plaza. Our legal experts were the plaintiffs in a civil case centered around the issue of false advertising. "Attorneys" Nissim Hazkour, Chaim Salameh, and Jamie Yatcha, along with "Witnesses" Frieda Kassab, Sally Shrem, and Marilyn Terzi, carried the day as the judge decided the case in favor of our legal team. The firm of Hazkour, Salameh, & Yatcha, Esq. goes on to its next case in two weeks, as we advance in the competition.
The various programs - academic and extra-curricular - at MDYHS have attracted the attention of other educational organizations. I am so proud to announce that in recognition of excellence in education, the Ronald & Ethel Gruen Endowed Fund for the Advancement of Secondary Jewish Education has bestowed a grant of $20,000 to MDYHS for the purpose of supporting scholarship programs at the school. A very proud Associate Principal Mrs. Sabrina Maleh and Assistant Principal Mrs. Esther Tokayer accepted the award on behalf of the school at the recentNorth American Jewish Day School Conference in Washington, DC.
Finally, in other areas of team competition, our Chess Club, under the expert direction of Mr. Daniel Kamelhar, hosted a regional Chess Tournament at MDYHS, with five schools participating. Chess grandmasters Albert Antar, Leo Esses, Joseph Kassin, Ralph Shamah, and Ely Tarzy were victorious in their games. (Please see the attached photo from this great tournament). And the Warriors teams continue toward the championships - the Boys Varsity Basketball team, under the leadership of coach Ikey Dweck defeated the team of MTA by a score of 69-38; Jeffrey Pardo and Morris Dweck were the high scorers with 20 points and 18 point respectively. Our team is #1 in the league, and as a result, we have been invited to compete in the prestigious 22nd Annual Red Sarachek High School Basketball Tournament in March at Yeshiva University! Our Junior Varsity Boys Hockey team, under the leadership of coach Eddie Elbaz, won against the team of Solomon Schechter High School by a score of 4-2, with Ezra Azizo scoring 2 goals. Our sports season is reaching its pinnacle as 3 of our teams are headed to the playoffs - Boys Varsity Basketball, Boys Varsity Hockey, and Girls Volleyball. The Warriors are unbeatable!
As always, please accept my warmest wishes for a Shabbat Shalom, an enjoyable Presidents' Day weekend, and for a great week ahead!
