Volume 33 Issue 3

The Lion’s Tale

New Schedule Changes pg. 2

Alan Gross Interview pg. 8

Senior Columns pg. 12-14

Volume 33 Issue 3

January 19, 2016

CESJDS

the lion’s tale

02 news

the lion’s tale

Schedule changes coming soon gabe krantz reporter Upper School students might need to get ready to say goodbye to A, B and C days. The administration will make major changes to the Upper School schedule next year that will likely involve the elimination of the current block schedule system.

The changes, which have not been finalized, were partially spurred by a need to accommodate the arrival of the sixth-graders to the Upper School next year, and are also being made in response to research

and community feedback.

According to Dean of Students and Interim Upper School principal Roz Landy, the schedule changes will be different for the middle school and high school. Both schedules will still involve some rotation, but the high school schedule will have more rotation than the middle school schedule.

After the administration announced that the sixth grade would be moving into the Upper School, a committee was formed to redesign the schedules.

According to Director of Instruc-

tional Technology Ginger Thornton, who led the committee, the many special schedules that the current system includes were a source of frustration among teachers and students. Thornton also said that the new schedules, specifically the middle school schedule, are being created based on research suggesting that shorter classes that meet more frequently are more beneficial to students than longer classes that meet less frequently.

Landy agreed that the current schedule was not ideal, especially for the middle school.

“We needed to develop a new schedule for middle school students that was more developmentally approprate for them,” Landy said.

According to Thornton, the changes are also part of an effort to create a greater distinction between the middle and high schools and to address the problem that the middle school runs “more like a junior high school.” The hope is that the middle school and the high school will function more independently, so that each section becomes more specifically tailored to the needs of its students.

“The fact of the matter is middle schoolers need more consistency, and high schoolers don’t,” Thornton said.

Thornton said nothing is official yet and most likely won’t be until students register for classes in about a month.

“Once we have an idea of how registration shakes out, we will have a better idea of what the models will look like,” Thornton said.

Senior Daphne Lerner reaches scoring milestone josh paretzky managing editor, web The game was far from over, but that did not stop the girls varsity basketball team from storming the court. On Jan. 11, in a game against McLean High School, senior Daphne Lerner scored the 1,000th point of her CESJDS basketball career, an impressive and rare accomplishment in the Lion’s basketball program and even in the Potomac Valley Athletic Conference (PVAC).

Only one JDS player, alumnus Daniel Kravitz (‘14), was able to do so in the six years that director of athletics Mike Riley has been at the school, and Riley can only remember other schools having players score 1,000 points four or five times in that span.

Although Lerner was aware that she was nearing 1,000 points, she made sure that her attention was on the game itself.

“My focus is usually for the team,” Lerner said. “I would rather be a team player than just worry about the individual stats. So if it happened, it happened. If it didn’t, it would happen later.”

Lerner credits the many teammates and coaches she has had over the years for her accomplishment, but Becky Silberman, who coached the girls varsity basketball team un-

til last year, especially stands out.

According to Lerner, the two years that Silberman coached her were the most successful years for both Lerner individually and for the team as a whole.

Co-captain and fellow senior Evie Kraner has been playing basketball with Lerner since the two were in middle school and said that Lerner significantly elevates the team’s level of play.

“Daphne just provides a great character for the team,” Kraner said.

“She’s really motivational and she knows a lot about basketball so she is always able to help out other players … she is incredible to play with because she is so quick and always gets steals and incredible breakaway layups.”

Not only is Lerner one of the best players on the JDS team, but according to Kraner and Riley, she is one of the best in the PVAC. Riley has pushed for Lerner to be voted the Most Valuable Player in the conference for the past two seasons, and Lerner won the award during the 2013-2014 season.

Basketball has not come easily for Lerner. At only five feet tall, Lerner is on the shorter side for girls varsity basketball players. She has had to work extra-hard on her ball handling and jump shots in order to make up for her height.

Lerner has led the team to many victories in the past, making multiple deep playoff runs and winning the PVAC championship during the 2013-2014 season. Riley hopes that Lerner’s skill and leadership will continue to help the team throughout this season.

“With the leadership of our seniors, I think the team is getting a little better each week,” Riley said.

Although Lerner is averaging 18.5 points per game, she admits there have been some “bumps in the road” throughout the current season due to the team’s inexperience together. The team currently has 8 wins and 3 losses, but both captains have confidence in the team’s future.

“We’ve lost a few games, but I don’t think there’s any team in the league that we can’t beat if we all focus and play our best,” Kraner said.

This is Lerner’s last year playing JDS basketball and most likely her last year ever playing for a varsity team. While Lerner could likely play Division III basketball in college, she only wants to play basketball at the club level in order to get a more “traditional college experience.”

photo courtesty of Mollie Milchberg

Lerner shoots a free throw in a game against Berman Hebrew Academy.

photo courtesty of Sophie Handloff

The girls varsity basketball team celebrates Lerner’s 1,000th point.

news

03

Civil rights panel sheds light on black-Jewish relations miriam minsk news editor There are hidden heroes everywhere: at home, in the classroom and in the greater Jewish community. For film director Aviva Kempner, Julius Rosenwald stood out.

In an effort to provide the community with educational programs for the school’s 50th anniversary, CESJDS co-hosted a social justice panel at Adas Israel Congregation on Jan. 14. Kempner spoke on the panel along with Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Clarence Page and Rabbi David Saperstein, who is famous for his social justice advocacy work as director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism.

Kempner released her film “Rosenwald” on Aug. 14, uncovering stories of the Rosenwald schools that provided black students in the South with an education during the early 20th century. While Rosenwald was a Jewish executive at Sears Roebuck, he donated money to build more than 5,000 schools for blacks in the South. The schools were built before the Supreme Court’s ruling in 1954 that struck down segregation in school, and were therefore crucial for the black communities they served. It is estimated that one in three blacks who went to school in the South did so at a Rosenwald school.

On Nov. 30, Upper School students learned about the Rosenwald schools in k’hilah, and the following week Kempner spoke to them about her film.

“I think that Rosenwald was a hero to many and can still serve in that way,” Director of Jewish Life Stephanie Hoffman said. “[Rosenwald] looked at a way to help the larger community, help those who are in need and do it in a way that they are also able to help themselves.”

Rosenwald’s story is one of many moments in American history where the black and Jewish communities allied together.

Avi Edelman is the Program Director of Operation Understanding D.C. (OUDC), a cross-cultural lead-

ership and dialogue program for black and Jewish high school students in the D.C. area. According to Edelman, the World War II time period was also significant for blacks and Jews as many Jewish refugees were recruited by blacks to teach at Southern universities when it was difficult for them to find jobs elsewhere. During the Civil Rights Movement, many Jews from the North eagerly participated in blacks’ fight for equal rights; Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, who taught at the Jewish Theological Seminary, marched with Martin Luther King Jr. on several occasions.

As the alliance during the Civil Rights Movement faded into the past, tensions between the groups grew. Many Jews were troubled by the anti-Semitic Louis Farrakhan, leader of the Nation of Islam, and were also concerned that black advocacy of affirmative action programs would lead to the exclusion of Jews from college. These tensions were punctuated by the Crown Heights riots of 1991, a three-day riot between blacks and Orthodox Jews in the Crown Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn.

JDS was founded during the Civil Rights Movement, and Director of Development Sharon Metro Roll hopes the Adas panel will spark conversations about the relationship between JDS, blacks and other minority groups. For Edelman, repairing relationships within the Jewish community itself is also important.

“There are many African American Jews, there are many Latino Jews, and something the Jewish community needs to do within itself, I think, is be more inclusive with the many different types of Jews there are,” Edelman said.

According to Jewish History teacher Rachel Bergstein, it is relatively common for American Jews to say that they empathize with the black experience in the U.S. because they see themselves as sharing a history of persecution with blacks.

Nevertheless, Bergstein said that this narrative might be a bit factually tenuous and pointed out that

blacks largely do not feel as connected to Jews as Jews feel connected to blacks.

“Even though Jews participated in civil rights ... it wasn’t enough to really see a kinship, I think, from the black perspective,” Bergstein said.

“So if the separation was whites versus blacks, Jews are going to fall on the white side of the color line from a black perspective.”

In her American Jewish History through Film and Literature course, Bergstein and her students have been discussing comparisons between Jews and blacks in the context of social equality. Bergstein taught her class about the Jews living in the South during the Civil Rights Movement. Her students watched “Driving Miss Daisy,” a movie about the unconventional relationship between an older Jewish woman and her black chauffeur. The question of to what extent Miss Daisy, the affluent Jewish woman, actually becomes “best friends” with Hoke, the black chauffeur, is central to the movie and black-Jewish relations in general.

Nevertheless, junior Daniel Baumstein, who is interested in Jewish and black relations and will be participating in OUDC, remains inspired by the alliance between blacks and Jews during the Civil Rights Movement and believes that JDS could do more to teach students about it.

“I think there’s a lack of education on the Civil Rights Movement and issues outside of the Jewish community,” Baumstein said. “Especially with Martin Luther King Jr. and with all of the rabbis and the Jews involved ... I feel like there could be more done to talk about what happened so that their legacy, and what they were trying to do, can continue on through us because we are the next generation. ”

An exterior view of the Cadentown School in Lexington, Ky.

Julius Rosenwald pictured outside a Rosenwald school in 1929.

An interior view of the Cadentown School, which operated from 1879 to 1922.

the lion’s tale

04 news

the lion’s tale

Increased Islamophobia triggers discussion, concern ari feuer reporter During their time at CESJDS, students have studied their fair share of anti-Semitism throughout history. Jews, however, are not the only group of people who have faced faith-based prejudice. Currently, another kind of intolerance is striking the U.S. in response to the Islamic State’s radical agenda: Islamophobia.

Junior Caleb Gershengorn believes he witnessed discrimination against Muslims at the Baltimore-Washington International Airport, where he was boarding a plane with a group of teenage Pakistanis while on a summer program.

“In the airport there were 12 Pakistani boys, a brigadier general [in regular clothes] and two teachers,” Gershengorn said. “Eight of the 12 students, both teachers and the general, all Pakistani, were selected for additional screening.”

Since none of the American students accompanying the Pakistani group were taken for additional screening, Gershengorn doubted

that their selection was a coincidence.

While Gershengorn never thoroughly discussed the incident with the other boys, there are plenty of conversations about religion and extremism at JDS, especially in Jewish History teacher Sara Coxe’s Comparative Religion class.

In her class, Coxe makes a point to mention that extremism is not unique to Islam and that extremist factions exist in all religions. She does this “so students intellectually understand that Islamophobia is discrimination.”

Nevertheless, junior Jared Bauman believes that fear of Islamophobia can go too far. In a class last year, Bauman said that he thought the U.S. should declare war on the Islamic State and that “we need to try harder to enforce ‘see something, say something’ policies.” A student in the class accused Bauman of being Islamophobic, which Bauman thought was unjustified.

Coxe understands that dealing with Islamophobia can be tricky, especially since it can be hard to define. She does not think that Is-

lamophobia is more prevalent at JDS than any other school or that a formal school-wide program against Islamophobia is necessary. If more serious issues surrounding Islamophobia arise, Coxe believes that discussing it in individual classes would be most effective.

Bauman also agrees that a program against Islamophobia would be unnecessary. He believes that JDS is an “open environment” in terms of discussion about Islam and mentioned classes he has taken, such as Arabic and Comparative Religion, as ones that have taught him about Islam and Muslim culture.

“I fear that when we have too much sensitivity training ... any political belief that people don’t agree with can be demonized as being racist or Islamophobic, which is false, name-calling and just inaccurate,” Bauman said.

JDS is not the only community discussing Islamophobia. Imam Talib Shareef is the president of the Masjid Muhammad mosque in Washington, D.C. and takes deliberate actions to prevent people from viewing Islam as connected

to terror. After several attacks perpetrated by Islamic terrorists, his mosque responded by condemning the violence and “presenting the true position of Islam which is consistent with all the heavenly faiths,” Shareef wrote in an email.

Shareef said that students should see Islam as “an Abrahamic faith, as a faith that shares the principles and prophets of the Christians

Is CESJDS’ marketing undermining a sense of community?

Is·lam·o·pho·bi·a | noun

According to 57 percent of Muslims, the West does not treat Muslims as equal citizens.

52 percent of Americans agree that Muslim societies are disrespected in the West.

Two thirds of Jewish Americans believe there is prejudice against Muslim Americans. statistics provided by Gallup

No

Yes

gaby pilarsky style editor

Islamophobia outside JDS

05

To Tweet or Not to Tweet

and Jews, and others.”

He added that according to his interpretation of the Quran, radicalism is forbidden.

“It is a sin, and in some cases, depending on how it’s manifested, it’s a crime,” Shareef wrote. “Peace is the dominant principle.”

Local interfaith leaders, including Imam Talib Shareef (third from right), meet to discuss religious tolerance in Washington, D.C.

opinion

I believe that it is JDS’ right and responsibility to try to sell themselves to prospective students and parents. We’re a small private school, so naturally we want and need new students in order to ensure that the school can continue to exist. However, I start having problems with this marketing when it interferes with the students.

Until recently I hadn’t noticed any real problems with JDS marketing. I don’t mind people taking non-intrusive photos and I don’t mind the change in logo advertising the school’s 50th annivirsary, but then social media got involved. A Facebook post announced to the school’s 1,721 followers the 12th grade’s average SAT and ACT scores. A twitter

post bragged to their 488 followers about the school’s “3 for 3” acceptances to Princeton. I understand why they do this— to make the school look good. They’re saying, “Look at how our kids get into Ivy League schools! Look at how our students’ standardized test scores are higher than public schools! You should send your kids here!” These are things that prospective parents care about, no matter the age of their kids. They are hard and fast facts and numbers. It makes sense to advertise them.

However, the unforeseen consequence is how uncomfortable this makes students, particularly seniors, by causing them to feel lacking in comparison to their peers. Scoring the grade’s average standardized test scores can already make students feel stupid by comparison and the school’s bragging only makes it worse. The way JDS takes pride in getting students into Princeton, but seemingly ignores students getting into other colleges kind of belittles the amazing achievement of getting into college. Students already beat themselves up over their test scores and getting into their dream school. The way the school broadcasts

these posts to students, their families and friends can make students feel a lot worse.

The school cares a lot about trying to keep students happy and sane during the college process.

If the school cares so much about not announcing class ranks or the highest GPAs, then maybe they should try to maintain this attitude in their social media posts.

Even if it’s not on purpose, this social media marketing makes it look like the school cares more about scores than students, and in doing so, it adds unnecessary stress and discomfort to the students. The school should not be telling students that standardized tests don’t define them while simultaneously selling the image of the school to parents as those very statistics.

I’m not saying that the school should stop marketing. I mean, this marketing is probably helping. But it should not cause students to feel uncomfortable as a consequence.

Have an opinion about anything in this edition of The Lion’s Tale?

Find the article on our website, and add your opinion in the comments section. Or visit lionstale.org/opinion and submit a letter to the editor.

jonathan foldi in-depth editor A few weeks ago, the JDS twitter account tweeted “We are ‘3 for 3’ on #collegeacceptances to @Princeton!

Mazal Tov to our students!”

I, for one, thought this was fantastic news. Little did I know that many students would see the tweet as the latest offense in an insensitive and harmful marketing campaign. I would like to disagree with this view for a few reasons.

First off, the school’s marketing department engages in several other forms of advertising other than those based on students’ academic achievements, including several wholisitic aspects of tde whole school.

Secondly, the marketing department’s target audience is not students but rather prospective parents.

Regardless of what any student may think of the marketing department’s strategies, we are not their target audience. Prospective parents want to see why they should make the large financial commitment to send their children to our school. Students doing very well on standardized tests

and college applications is understandably a major incentive for parents to send their children to our school and is therefore an effective tool for the marketing department to utilize. There are many other intangible benefits of going to JDS, but there must be some sort of objective evaluation to aid prospective parents in assessing our school.

Lastly, students doing well in our school is something we should be proud of, not something which we should try to hide.

This was an issue recently at Pomona College when it was ranked #1 on Forbes magazine’s 2015 Best Colleges List. But instead of being proud that they attended an award-winning college, students at Pomona claimed that there were now unfair expectations placed upon them.

There is a strong parallel between this reaction and the one here at JDS. While I understand that some students feel extra pressure on themselves due to the advertised success of their peers on standardized tests or college admissions, this should not be something that we refrain from stating when such impressive achievements are reached. It is a misguided idea to sacrifice effective marketing in order to prevent a minimal increase in student stress.

The marketed statistics are not representative of each individual student, but they are representative of the student body and we cannot ignore that. The fact

that the average SAT score at JDS is higher than that of nearby public schools is something which we should not shy away from stating. If our school is more high-achieving than other schools around us, this is not something that we should be ashamed of.

I believe that the problem with the Princeton tweet revolves around the fact that, at the time, this was the first time the school had acknowledged college acceptances, even though many others had occured beforehand. As long as tweets are posted for every acceptance, as has now been done, no one should feel bad about how they are doing based on their peers. The idea of personal achievement is unfortunately lost at times at JDS, yet it is one of the messages which I find to be the most important.

Having not yet been through the college application process I know that I may not be in the best place to talk about this, but as a student body we should be there to celebrate with those of us who are accepted and comfort those of us who have not yet been. One of the core values at our school is kehillah, which involves the inclusion of every and all members of the school community. By not acknowledging the achievements of some students for the sake of creating a slightly less stressful environment, we are going against the very nature of our school.

the lion’s tale

06 opinion the

lion’s tale

the lion’s tale

Staff editorial

editors editors-in-chief

malka himelhoch, carol silber managing editor, copy

yonatan greenberg managing editor, design

alysse weinberg managing editor, web

joshua paretzky opinion

jonah shrock news

miriam minsk, arielle weinstein chadashot

ariella kulp, mark reichel features

talia horowitz, hannah nechin style

mijal altmann, gaby pilarski in-depth

jonathan foldi, margalit zimand sports

aaron schonfeld, jeremy schooler & joel vardon photo

dahlia lehman ads manager

michael berkowitz editorial cartoonist

beyla bass

reporters bennett bramson, emily cohen,ilan cohen, talia denicoff, ari feuer, izzy friedland, noah green, gabe krantz, aaron robinson, joey shoyer, isaac silber, rina torchinsky, rani zimand

Students deserve freedom of the press We at The Lion’s Tale are very lucky to have journalistic independence and to be free of censorship from our school’s administration.

Unfortunately, not all schools in the United States are as lucky. As our school’s eighth graders learn, ever since the landmark Supreme Court case Hazelwood cartoon by beyla bass v. Kuhlmeier, public school legal. administrations have had the legal Recently, however, there has right to censor school newspapers. been hope that this will start to At San Gabriel High School in change.

A number of states are California, the school paper, The enacting legislation to give student Matador, tried to fight their school journalists more rights. In March, administration’s attempts to censor the North Dakota Senate unanian article about the dismissal of a mously passed a bill that would alteacher. The administration fired low administrators to censor only in their journalism adviser and shut situations of possible libel. This is down their website without prior a significant improvement from the notice.

Hazelwood precedent, which only This type of thing happens all had the vague requirment that centoo frequently in the United States sorship be for a pedagogical reason. and unfortunately it is perfectly

In practice, that standard allowed administrations to do whatever they want. Legislators also said that they wished to use the momentum to push for increased free speech at private universities and high schools like CESJDS. In our state, state Senator Jamie Raskin (D- Montgomery) has agreed to introduce a similar bill in the Maryland legislature.

The Lion’s Tale fully supports his efforts. Raskin is one of the nation’s foremost experts on the rights of

student journalists in the country, and we could not have asked for a better representative of student journalists in our state Senate.

The rights of students to publish a newspaper without censorship by the school is essential.

Just like the national media has a role to play in educating the public, so too do student newspapers provide important information to their readers. Just as The Washington Post is the watch dog of the federal government so are student publications the watch dogs of the school.

We are lucky to attend a private school with a paper that is granted independence from the administration. But not all private school newspapers have this privilege. We encourage Maryland legislators to look out for the rights of private school journalists as well as public school journalists. We strongly encourage Sen. Raskin and his colleagues to pursue rules and regulations that protect all student journalists.

-The Lion’s Tale

If you will it, it is no dream: my choice to make Aliyah staff adviser jessica nassau

adviser emerita susan zuckerman The Lion’s Tale Editorial and Ethics Policy As the student newspaper of the Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School, The Lion’s Tale is a public forum for student opinion and expression. All content is determined by students. Its purpose is to inform the CESJDS community and to express the views of its staff and readers. The staff has made every effort to ensure the accuracy and objectivity of its news.

Signed columns reflect the opinion of the writer; staff editorials reflect the opinion of the majority of The Lion’s Tale editorial board. The Lion’s Tale staff welcomes letters to the editor and guest columns, all of which must be signed. The staff reserves the right to refuse any material and may edit letters or columns for length, clarity, libel, obscenity and/or disruptiveness.

Some material courtesy of American Society of News Editors/ TNS Campus School Newspaper Service. All other contents copyright of The Lion’s Tale. All rights reserved.

Submissions may be emailed to jdslionstale@gmail.com, mailed to The Lion’s Tale, or brought to room 328.

The Lion’s Tale is funded by The Simon Hirshman Endowment for the Upper School Newspaper and The Kuttner-Levenson Endowment for the Upper School Cultural Arts and Student Publications, and community advertisement. The Lion’s Tale reserves the right to refuse advertisement for any reason.

The staff will adhere to the ethics policies of The Society of Professional Journalists and the National Scholastic Press Association. The adviser will be held to the Journalism Education Association’s Adviser Code of Ethics.

Corrections: A Nov. 24 article about mixed advanced and ECP classes incorrectly labeled the World Languages Department as the Romance Languages Department. This article also incorrectly reported that English and Hebrew courses never combine advance and ECP students in their classes.

by ariela diamond guest columnist

Ever since my junior year, I have seen the stress placed on myself and my peers. Crying in the bathrooms, the alcoves, the guidance offices and all the breakdowns I didn’t see when my friends went home to their parents and cried to them as well. Gosh, there’s even a senior superlative titled “Most Stressed.”

I wondered why all this pressure was being placed on us as young adults, a pivotal point in our lives for growth and self-understanding.

A moment I had almost six years ago changed the way I thought about the system we are accustomed to. It was seventh grade and I was in Israel for my cousin’s wedding. Like normal American tourists do, my family and I had gone into the Old City to see the Kotel and get ripped off whilst buying chachkies to bring home

to friends and family. After a long day, I was tired and begged my dad to let me go back to our apartment.

My father probably shouldn’t have let his 12-year-old daughter wander around Jerusalem by herself, but had he not given me that independence, I wouldn’t be the same girl I am today.

The walk home I took on that mid-November day changed my life. As I walked past the beautiful faces and ancient walls, I realized the connection between past and present. I realized the everlasting feeling of community that embraced me just because I was born to Jewish parents. Throughout the wars and violence, the Jewish state continued to offer me, and Jews around the world, a home where we could feel safe and proud.

I then felt a responsibility to protect that home which promised so much. I knew that I wanted to move to Israel and become a soldier in the Israeli Defense Forces.

Now I know what you’re think-

ing, how could I know what I wanted for myself, for the rest of my life, at the age of 12? I agree. Even then I knew I was naive, so after I went home, I made myself a promise. If I continued to feel the same way I felt during that day for the next five years up until my graduation, I would make my dream a reality and move to Israel.

Since then, Israel has been the forefront of my thoughts. For that reason, I have chosen to move to Israel and enlist into the army in order to protect and defend the country I call home. The feeling of obligation was something that I could not let go of. I refused to abandon my ambitions just because they deviate from the norm.

For me it was simple, but I understand that a choice of that magnitude could be difficult for others.

Often the society that we live in sets certain expectations for us as young people. It’s how we choose to react to those expectations that make us who we are.

My story is not unique. Many people choose other paths in life that differ from the norm, whether it’s taking a year off before college because they don’t feel ready enough, or trying out for the school musical because they love theater, even though all their friends think it’s lame.

The message I leave you with is this: there will always be people encouraging you on to a certain path and it’s up to you to decide when to listen to them and when to listen to yourself. Maybe you want to pursue your dream of music, but you continue to be told you must go to school first, and worry about your personal interests later. Or maybe you’ve dreamed of becoming a lawyer, but your familial traditions have binded you into thinking you must become a doctor. Whatever it may be, I challenge you to find out what your passion is, what you truly love most in the world, and don’t stop until you feel as though you’ve fulfilled that craving.

opinion

07

Including all Jews It’s time to consider creating a program at JDS for special needs students bronya lechtman guest columnist One of the things that I appreciate the most about CESJDS is how strongly it subscribes to the principle of community.

JDS has done a phenomenal job of establishing a close-knit community that represents a diverse set of Jews. But a certain part of the Jewish community is missing.

JDS does provide resources for students with mild learning, behavioral, attention or social challenges. There is a structured study hall program and the school has been extremely supportive of students who need extra time or other special accommodations on tests. While I am very appreciative that JDS offers these services, I have always been surprised that JDS has no inclusion program to accommodate Jewish kids with greater challenges.

If this were a different school with different core values, I might not feel as strongly about the creation of an inclusion program.

However, with core values such as kehillah and derekh eretz, ensuring that we include as much of the Jewish community as possible should be one of our strongest priorities. It should be viewed as our next step, not as something that will happen at some point down the road, which is what I’ve heard stated over and over again.

Creating an inclusion program is extremely expensive and challenging. The school would have to hire many new teachers and therapists, create personalized curricula, purchase sensory equipment and much more. In order to accommodate children with special needs, the school would most likely have to drastically increase tuition for those students who would be participating in the special needs program.

Before dismissing this possibility, we need to realize that many parents with special needs children in this area are already sending their children to incredibly expensive specialized schools.

Some examples of tuitions of special needs schools in our area would be the Auburn School, which is $39,850, the Katherine Thomas School, which ranges from $31,295 to $59,204 depending on the program that the child is enrolled in and the Ivymount School, which depending on the program can be well over $60,000. Not included in these tuitions are the additional therapy costs. The typical tuition for the Berman Hebrew Academy starts at $14,850 and increases to $21,700 by high school. The tuition of their inclusion program, Sulam, ranges from $35,000 to $43,000 depending on the program.

With a Lower School tuition of $23,860 and an Upper School tuition of $30,600, the tuition of an inclusion program at JDS would be in the same price range as these other schools if it were to be double that of Upper or Lower School tuition. Therefore, before coming to conclusions, the administration should be reaching out to the JDS and the larger Jewish community to get a sense of how many people would be interested in attending an inclusion program at JDS if it were to be offered. Also, in order to make the tuition less astronomical, JDS could reach out to the community to see if there would be willing donors to help start up this program, which is what the Hebrew Academy does.

According to Sulam director Lianne Heller, the tuition amount “does not even cover what it costs to educate a child who needs special supports that allow him or her to be included in a Jewish school. However, we are very fortunate to live in a Jewish community that is extremely moral and generous, and one that believes in our mission. Donations from our community result in significant scholarships that allow children in need to attend Sulam.”

If the Berman Hebrew Academy can can get such money from the Jewish community, why can’t we? Why can’t JDS apply for a grant just like they did recently to reboot the middle school?

These would be great first steps in working towards creating a broader inclusion program in the near future.

courtesy of Bronya Lechtman

Lechtman’s younger brother Gabe, pictured at right, used to be in the inclusion program at the Berman Hebrew Academy. Her family would like to send him to JDS. I personally know many Jewish parents who pay for these special needs private schools and would be willing to pay the tuition for an inclusion program at JDS. There are so many families who want their children to receive a pluralistic Jewish education and to be in an inclusive environment with neuro-typical peers, where they are embraced as part of the community. This includes my own family, even though it would be a massive economic strain. I have a 13-year-old brother with special needs who cannot now attend to JDS but has always wanted to.

Ever since my brother started learning for his bar mitzvah, his interest in Judaism has escalated and he wants to learn as much as he can about it. He frequently asks me about definitions of Hebrew words, Jewish traditions, Jewish history and even difficult questions about the Holocaust. I have done my best to take as much of JDS home as I can, but it’s no substitute for actually attending JDS. We have tried to find other solutions for my brother to be able to receive a Jewish education. He actually attended Beman Hebrew Academy for three years, where

he was part of Sulam. My family, however, is not Modern Orthodox and would have preferred for him to receive a pluralistic Jewish education. Even so, we were extremely appreciative of Sulam’s beliefs, which, according to their website, are that “every student has the right to a rigorous Jewish education alongside his/her peers,” and that “every student can be a contributing member of the Jewish community and society at large.”

I do want to emphasize that JDS does recognize the value of spending time with members of the Jewish community who have special needs. For example, many students work with kids with special needs in organizations such as Friendship Circle, and JDS held an assembly this year about Friendship Circle to encourage students to volunteer with the organization.

I’m extremely proud of the JDS community’s involvement in such an amazing program; however, encouraging students to hang out with kids with special needs for an hour a week outside of school, or work with them at a summer camp, is not the same as integrating them into our community.

While a broad inclusion

program would benefit the lives of Jewish kids with special needs, it would also benefit the entire JDS community. Many of these kids and teens have incredibly important contributions to make, whether it’s through their kindness, athleticism, intelligence, sense of humor or perspective. These kids deserve much more than an activity that we do on the side for community service hours. They should be welcomed as equally valuable members of the JDS community just as the rest of us are.

QA

the lion’s tale

08 features

&

with Alan Gross

No. Never. I had a Tanakh with me, I had a siddur with me. I didn’t consult it on a daily basis but I did use it on a regular basis. I’ll tell you something, this is interesting, when people started sending me these cans of salmon from Costco and I started accumulating these cans, they’re really well packaged, you know I had a stack of them and I would share them with my cellmates as they would share these things with me from their families. But we would only eat the canned salmon on Fri-

3. Do you consider yourself a hero?

You know, I have a problem with that. No, I don’t. I don’t think I did anything extraordinary aside from surviving with everything intact. I think that what we need is for more people to have commitments to Jewish community, to kehillah, and I don’t know necessarily that my expectation is for everyone to do what I do, or that I should do what everyone else does but I think it’s really important that we remain engaged with our community. I had this epiphany that the financial support and the activity support were just like insurance policies. Pay premiums on insurance policies, like you know you pay insurance for life insurance or your car or whatever and you never think you’re gonna need it, so you pay into this and you’re betting against the odds that you’re going to need it and I never knew that I would need the help from my community, the kind of help that I received. It was ironic, here I was, or there I was trying to connect Cubans to the rest of the world, and then I became totally disconnected from the rest of the world. Here I spent a better part of my adolescent and adult life working on activities for the Jewish community so that our beneficiary agencies can provide direct service, and BAM! I became a beneficiary myself, and it was an epiphany. I went to the State of the Union. My wife and I sat in the First Lady’s box, in the gallery, and there were 22 people there. I was there with 21 other people and 21 of the 22

people were there because of something they intentionally did. I wasn’t there because I intentionally went to Cuba and got arrested. I went to Cuba intentionally, yes, but I didn’t intentionally become imprisoned to go through this ordeal. That does not make me a hero.

4. Regarding social action work, what do you believe is the role of young American Jews today?

social action of members of my own community.

5. Do you think that young American Jews should be taking risks similar to what you did?

I think that when people make decisions they need to make sure that they have enough information to make the right decisions. That helps mitigate risks. Would I do it again knowing what I know now? No. I wouldn’t have done it. If I had all of the information that I should have had that was withheld from me by my government and their contractor, I would not have done this. But have I taken risks? Maybe we need to define what it means to take a risk.

Have I engaged in activities that are more risky than the norm in various countries around the world? Yes I have. Has it always involved the Jewish community? No it hasn’t. Has it involved the Jewish community more often than not? When it comes

to risk, yes it has. Would I encourage other people to do what I’ve done? I think it’s more important for people to decide what they want to do, not what I’ve done. When it comes to taking risks, there’s an expression, “no risk, no reward.” I don’t like that expression. I think that it does not consider variables. It’s not that easy.

If people believe in something and they’re committed to something, sometimes demonstrating that commitment involves risk and I can’t speak for anyone else. I really can’t.

Well, I think that’s a really relevant question because I asked myself 6. You just mentioned the often what tipped the scales in the government withholding inright direction, so that the president formation. Are you still mad could make a very courageous and at the U.S. government for historic decision to bring me home. that?

He was the only one who could make that decision and with all of I was really angry with both govthe activity taking place, with my ernments and I think that I’m much lawyer, with the Justice Department, more interested in the next five years State Department, National Security than the last five years.

Council, State Department to a much lesser extent, and some very, very tenacious members of Congress, from both houses and from both parties, I have to ask myself, what tipped the scales in the right direction?

And the answer is everyone, especially the Jewish community who led a grassroots effort to bring me home. I can’t say who is the most responsible for my being here today, other than everybody, and the social action from my community, from our community, our Kehillah, was an incredibly important aspect of my redemption, of my freedom and I don’t know that I would be photo by ilan cohen sitting here to- Standing in Adas Israel Congregation’s sanctuary in Washington, D.C., Alan Gross recounts his story. day if not for the

Seventh-grader Gavin Rakkit emily cohen reporter Not many students can say that their morning routine includes a pet horse, but seventh-grader Gavin Rakkit’s routine includes two.

Rakkit adores his pet horses, Millie and Addison, but the thought never occurred to his family to own the animals until 2011 when Rakkit’s family bought their new house in Potomac.

“When we bought our house, we didn’t really buy it because we had horses,” Rakkit said. “We bought the house because we liked the house, but we also had a barn there, so we thought that we should try out riding horses. Then I just fell in love with the animal and so did my mom, so we just kept riding them.”

Every morning at 6 a.m. and every evening around 7:30 p.m., Rakkit and his family feed Millie and Addison, and turn them out to the field. This responsibility does not affect Rakkit’s schedule too drastically, beyond waking up early.

Rakkit’s family owns two acres of land, one acre for the horses and one acre for their home. So, Millie and Addison have plenty of room to graze.

Rakkit used to have three horses, but in December, his family had to put their horse, Forest, to sleep. This was very tough on Rakkit and his family because they felt that Forest was a “companion” to them.

Rakkit still does have a very close relationship with his two remaining horses, and appreciates their individual personalities and quirks.

“My horses have great personalities,” Rakkit said.

“Millie is really energetic and Addison is happy and fat.”

Although to some, taking care of a farm animal might be seen as an inconvenience, Rakkit does not think so.

“Not when you like them,” Rakkit said. “Not when you love them.”

Senior Eli Davis emily cohen reporter When many think of a pet, the image of a cat curled up on a couch or a dog playing fetch will come to mind, but not for senior Eli Davis. Davis owns a pet guinea pig, two pet frogs and almost a dozen pigeons.

Davis owns his guinea pig because he thought it was a nice animal to have as a pet, and his frogs because he “wants a piece of the rainforest in [his] room.”

The pigeons were not originally a part of his plan.

“Someone had a pigeon that was in a race, and he lost it, and I found it, and I managed to get in touch with the guy that owned it, and he was really happy that I was able to get it back to him so he gave me two little baby ones,” Davis said. “Then, I raised those and then I got more from other people.”

Davis cares for his pigeons by feeding them daily and keeping them in a shed outside his house. He has trained them to return home from flying distances up to 20 miles away, and at times they will follow Davis’ father to and from his office. Davis trained them by taking them out each day. Every day he would take them a little further from his house, and then have them fly home to food waiting for them. Gradually, they learned to fly home on their own.

Although these pigeons are Davis’ pets, he does not experience a strong feeling of affection for them.

They are simply birds that live in his backyard.

“I like to have them because I think they’re interesting,” Davis said. “I don’t have an attachment to them like one would with a dog or a cat, but they’re interesting animals and I can give them a good life, so they’re happy.”

gould

2. At any point when you were there did you question your beliefs?

day night and so one day, one of my cellmates asked me, “Why, how come we only have this on Friday nights?” and I said, “We need something to separate one week from the next.” Every day was the same.

Every day was the same thing, but Friday night we had salmon and that made one week different from the next, and if that’s not Shabbat, I don’t know what is, and I said, “This is what we call Shabbat.” And my cellmates said, “Oh, American night!” And I said, “No, it’s Shabbat,” and they understood.

ill by j oto ph

I think that from a religious perspective, no. It was a matter of expectations. Expectations changed and I had no expectations that anyone would come to my aid, and I was wrong, because the Jewish community and the United States came to my aid. So, in that context what I worked towards for the better part of my adult life, in supporting the Jewish community through financial commitments, through activity commitments, it was almost as though that became the premium payment on an insurance policy that I didn’t know I needed, and then thank goodness I was able to take advantage of that insurance policy when I needed it, because literally tens of thousands of members of the American Jewish community sent emails to the White House, to the President, to the Chief of Staff, so many people took place in the weekly vigils across from the Cuban intersection in Washington, organized by the Jewush Community Relationsh Council of Greater Washington (JCRC) and so many things across the country organized nationally through JCRC, Federations, Synagogues and various organizations.

I appreciated that. I’ve been very thankful for that.

To read the full interview, visit lionstale.org

Fantastic pets and where to find them arah davis by s oto ph

1. In the five years that you were a captive, did your personal religious beliefs change at all?

It was six years ago that Alan Gross, a subcontractor for the U.S., was arrested in Cuba for transporting communications devices without the proper permit.

His sentence? 15 years.

It took the combined efforts of the U.S. government and his community to secure his release from Cuban imprisonment ... but only after five years of captivity.

Following his return, he has become a nationally recognized figure.

In December, reporter Ilan Cohen sat down with Gross to hear his story.

f rakkit fam rtesy o ily cou oto ph

ilan cohen reporter

features

the lion’s tale

Senior Shira Gould emily cohen reporter Every morning when her alarm goes off, senior Shira Gould wakes up to see her dog, Tandi, staring at her clock, patiently waiting for the snooze button to be pressed. This experience is one of the many interactions Gould has adored with her dog of ten years.

While Tandi may show Gould the affection of a typical loving pet, Tandi is anything but average. Tandi’s hind legs are paralyzed as a result of a back surgery she had around six years ago. While Tandi’s disability does not impact Gould’s view of her, Gould acknowledges the challenges of owning a dog in Tandi’s situation.

“It definitely makes things a little more complicated, like she can’t go to the bathroom on her own and we can’t play with her without putting her in a wheelchair, we can’t walk her without a stroller,” Gould said. “She’s still a very happy dog and she’s still a huge pleasure to be around.”

Despite the extra responsibility that caring for Tandi requires, Gould and her family found that the time immediately before Tandi’s paralysis proved to be the most difficult. Tandi had been experiencing sporadic back pain for years when Gould and her family finally decided to take her to the vet. At the time, Gould was in sixth grade. The vet found a disease in Tandi’s back, the correction of which required surgery. The vet told Gould and her family that Tandi would be fully cured after her surgery, but complications arose, paralyzing Tandi’s hind legs.

Gould feels a special bond with Tandi. Gould has another dog and feels closer with Tandi, but does not know whether this is because of Tandi’s disability or simply her love for the dog.

“Her disability has never detracted from how much I love her, but it does make it easier to get her to cuddle with me,” Gould said.

09

10

the lion’s tale

in depth

the lion’s tale

in depth

11

Since the 1960s, the rate of intermarriage has risen steadily in the American Jewish community.

Interfaith families make up a small but significant portion of the CESJDS population. Here are their stories.

IN ERM RRI GE malka himelhoch and carol silber editors-in-chief

Would You Consider Marrying a Non-Jew?

60% 40% No

Yes

Of 256 JDS students surveyed

Would Your Parents Be Upset If You Married a Non-Jew?

28% 72% No

Yes

Of 256 JDS students surveyed

Are JDS Alumni Married to Jewish Partners?

14% 86% No

Yes

Of 230 JDS alumni surveyed

If you walk into many houses off of Seven Locks Road on Friday night, you’ll see families lighting candles, reciting blessings over wine and sitting down for Shabbat dinner. Junior Natalie Morgan and freshman Daniel Morgan’s family is no different. Every Friday night, they too practice the traditional Shabbat rituals. The only difference between them and their neighbors is that the Morgans’ father, Randy, is Episcopalian and has no plans to convert.

In 1997, when the Morgans moved to Potomac, they were just looking for an appealing house in Montgomery County. They only realized that they had moved into a modern-Orthodox neighborhood when, after a long Friday full of moving boxes and setting up furniture, one of their new neighbors knocked on their door and invited them for Shabbat dinner.

Lynn Morgan explained that that invitation, and the many invitations that followed, “made a really big difference in how far we took our Judaism.”

As the Morgans became more involved in their mostly Jewish neighborhood, the prospect of Jewish day school became increasingly attractive. After attending a JDS open house and speaking to JDS families, the Morgans were impressed with the school and enticed by the possibility of enrolling Natalie there. Before making a final decision, Lynn met with former Head of School Jonathan Cannon to ensure that her husband’s religion would not exclude him from school activities and ceremonies.

Eleven years later, Lynn and

Randy co-chair the local American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) committee for synagogue outreach. All three of their children attend JDS and Lynn was honored by Jewish Women’s International as a ‘Woman to Watch’ in December. Last April, Lynn finished her eight-year term of service on the board of JDS. Randy has learned Hebrew and said that he is as comfortable in an Orthodox service as he is in a Reform one.

“Most people think I am able to be a part of the community because I don’t have strong religious values or faith of my own. But it’s really the opposite. I am a religious person,” Randy said. “It’s not hard for me to feel a part of this community because the values that are honored in JDS are the same as the values in my own religion.”

Despite the presence of the Morgans and other interfaith families at JDS, the school does not talk openly about interfaith couples or families, according to Lynn.

“The interfaith thing is completely ignored by the school, which is fine,” she said.

This silence has been noticed by teachers as well. Jewish Text teacher Rabbi Derek Rosenbaum often faces awkward moments when a text his class is studying clearly opposes intermarriage.

“A student will raise his or her hand and say, ‘Oh, so what does that mean for me since my dad’s not Jewish?’” Rosenbaum said.

Rosenbaum has noticed that after these types of comments are made, another student will turn around and say, “Oh, I didn’t know that your parent isn’t Jewish.”

When these moments occur, Rosenbaum invites students to discuss how the text is and is not rel-

evant based on society today, and to talk about personal opinions and experiences with interfaith marriages or families. He is glad that his classroom offers a space for students to “voice these aspects of their identity,” but wishes that there could be more formal discussion.

“These moments kind of pop up here and there, but in terms of there being organization, and some place of support, some sort of interfaith family something here at JDS, that doesn’t exist,” Rosenbaum said.

The general view of intermarriage in the JDS student body seems to range from ambivalent to negative. While 40 percent of 256 high school students surveyed reported that they would consider marrying a non-Jew who did not convert to Judaism, only eight percent reported that they believe that interfaith marriages have a positive impact on the American Jewish community.

Out of 230 married alumni surveyed last year, only 14 percent were married to a non-Jew. Senior Eitan Cohen can’t imagine himself becoming part of this group. He believes that the only reliable way to pass down Jewish tradition and Halakhic obligation is by marrying a Jewish partner.

“It’s really hard to think of the Jewish faith as something important or a tying value if you’ve undermined that by marrying out of the religion,” Cohen said.

People like Cohen who are concerned about the impact of intermarriage on the Jewish community often point to studies like the one

by Brandeis University this past October. The study reported that 40 percent of all millennial children of intermarriage had a bar or

bat mitzvah, while 84 percent of all millennial children with two Jewish parents had a bar or bat mitzvah.

Additionally, the study reported that 56 percent of all millennial children of intermarriage received no formal Jewish education, while only 14 percent of all millennial children with two Jewish parents received no formal Jewish education.

Head of School Rabbi Mitchel Malkus said that the goal of JDS is to teach students to lead committed Jewish lives, no matter their parents’ religious identities.

“If a student from an intermarried family comes to JDS, I feel that the school can make a difference for that student and that family in terms of leading a Jewish life,” Malkus said.

In 2013, JDS ran a spotlight profile of alumna Lila Shapiro-Cyr (‘91), whose husband is not Jewish, on the school website. In the profile, Shapiro-Cyr, who is the co-president of Kol HaLev synagogue in Baltimore, was quoted saying, “I am so proud to be leading a growing congregation that meets the needs of interfaith families and those who want to explore their Judaism in new and meaningful ways.”

Malkus explained that after the school posted this profile, multiple alumni reached out to him to voice their concerns about the school highlighting an individual who was intermarried and involved in welcoming other interfaith families into the Jewish community. In response, Malkus told them, “If this isn’t what we are educating people to do at JDS, we have a problem.”

Judaism, like many other religions, has a biblical prohibition against intermarriage. In reference to non-Jews, Deuteronomy 7:3

reads, “You shall not marry them, you shall not give your daughter to their son and you shall not take his daughter for your son.” Some, like Jewish Text teacher Rabbi Reuven Slater, who was ordained by an Orthodox yeshivah, find this verse binding.

“My personal view is that it is forbidden under any circumstance,” Slater wrote in an email. “Having said that, every situation is different and how each situation should be handled is something that falls under the purview of a competent and knowledgeable rabbi.”

For Rosenbaum, who was ordained by a Reconstructionist institution, this text is not reflective of the way that Judaism should treat interfaith marriage today. His viewpoint mirrors the approach that some American Jewish communities have embraced: that as interfaith marriage becomes more prevalent, Jewish communities must welcome the couples and families that now constitute such a large portion of the American Jewish population.

Jewish History teacher Rachel Bergstein explained that this approach was heightened when the 2000 - 2001 National Jewish Population survey reported that almost 50 percent of American Jews were married to non-Jewish individuals. On the other hand, Bergstein explained, these results alarmed many traditional American Jews, who feared that American Judaism would slowly disappear as more families became increasingly assimilated and less traditionally Jewish.

As a result, many Jewish philanthropists poured money into Jewish summer camps, day schools and youth movements, with the hope that this would halt the high rates of

intermarriage.

While Bergstein believes that most Jewish communities have learned to tolerate interfaith marriage, she does not perceive this tolerance to be genuine and thinks that many still find it “embarrassing.”

“I think that people tend to not talk about it as much. They might not refuse to go to the wedding but they might not invite all their friends,” Bergstein said.

Eighth-grader Reilly Lowell, whose mother is Catholic, has experienced this. Lowell underwent a Jewish conversion as a baby. She described herself as observant and said that she prays every day and keeps kosher. Yet, at multiple points in her life, she’s experienced uncomfortable moments because she converted as a child.

Lowell recalled a time in elementary school when she brought up her conversion while presenting the weekly Torah portion to her class. When she told her classmates that she had converted to Judaism, her teacher tried to silence her.

“The assistant teacher said, ‘You should never say that, keep that quiet, don’t let people know that,’” Lowell said.

Conversion is a tricky matter in Judaism, where proselytizing is discouraged. When someone expresses interest in converting, the traditional practice is to turn the potential convert away three times to test their commitment. Leisha Self, the mother of junior Aaron Weiss, experienced this when she underwent her Orthodox conversion.

Since her conversion, Self has felt “mostly accepted” into the Jewish community.

One area where Self often feels left out is in Jewish cultural practic-

es.

“This seems silly, but I feel a little bit left out when people sing around the table after a Shabbat meal,” Self wrote in an email. “I think many Jews learned these songs growing up, either in their homes or at Jewish camps. I don’t know them.”

While synagogues and other Jewish institutions offer classes about prayer and Torah, Self wishes that there were classes offered to educate new members of the Jewish community about cultural elements of Judaism like Shabbat songs or emotional attachment to Israel.

“Most of the people in my life have a great and abiding love for Israel,” Self wrote. “I don’t have those kinds of deep feelings, but would like to.”

According to Bergstein, this idea of “shared culture” is often an obstacle for couples where one party was not born Jewish. But historically, she added, even if Jewish people wanted to bridge the cultural gap and marry a non-Jewish partner this was not always an option.

“For intermarriage to take place you need Jews who want to marry non-Jews, but the other part is almost as important if not more important — non-Jews who want to marry Jews,” Bergstein said.

According to Bergstein, “social anti-Semitism” and “ethnic separateness” contributed to an intermarriage rate of almost zero within the American Jewish community until the 1960s.

By 1974, the intermarriage rate had increased to 35 percent. Bergstein explained that as Jews came to be seen as desirable in the larger American society, and intermarriage rates increased, the mainstream Jewish community did not welcome

this new trend.

“It used to be that you were really pushed out if you married a non-Jew and you weren’t allowed to do anything,” Bergstein said.

In Bergstein’s classes, when interfaith marriage comes up, she finds that the attitude towards the subject is welcoming, and that most students say that love conquers religious boundaries.

Alumna Eden Katz (‘12) always held this to be true, even when she attended JDS and was not confronted with the potential of dating a non-Jewish person.

“My mindset has always been that I plan to end up with someone who makes me happy, regardless of what religion they are,” Katz wrote in an email interview.

For over a year, Katz has been dating Bennett Garner who was raised Mormon, though he no longer identifies as such. While the fact that Garner is not Jewish is something that Katz has thought about, this concern has never made her consider ending their relationship.

In fact, Katz described interfaith relationships as being “really valuable to both parties, as well as to the future children.”

Katz celebrated this past Christmas with Garner’s family.

She brought challah as a gift for his parents which sparked many discussions about Judaism over the holiday weekend. This experience has helped shape her perception of what a future with a non-Jewish spouse could look like.

“I feel like interfaith families get a bad rep for ‘confusing’ the children, but I think it should be looked at from the other perspective,” Katz wrote. “Children of interfaith couples will grow up from the

get-go with open minds. They will think about the difficult questions, instead of blindly accepting a faith.

They will see and understand that there is more than one side to every story.”

Katz, whose mother converted to Judaism, said that she plans to raise her children in a Jewish household with a Jewish education regardless of her spouse’s religion.

“I grew up with Shabbat dinners every Friday night, Saturday mornings at Beth Shalom and all of my weekdays at JDS,” Katz wrote.

“My parents raised me with the values of Tikkun Olam and Tzedakah, and these are ideals I plan to devote my life to.”

Rosenbaum hopes that tikkun olam will be the basis for the American Jewish community’s future approach towards these families.

“I hope it’s a Jewish world that becomes much more aware that this is the reality we live in, and is just trying to be sensitive, positive and welcoming to interfaith families,” Rosenbaum said. “One can value every life and every person …. but what happens when your friend, or brother or sister falls in love with someone who’s non-Jewish, and is faced now with OK, what happens?

Are they gone? Do we just cast them off for fear of them diluting Judaism? Or, do we reach out to them by providing them with a community to have a Jewish wedding and raise kids, and schools, and have a bris or baby naming, and create these positive Jewish experiences?”

12

the lion’s tale

chadashot

the lion’s tale

Life as a rabbi’s child

Mincha cards draw full house

alysse weinberg managing editor, design

Old tactic reinvents the minyan

jonathan foldi in-depth editor During almost every lunch period and after school ends, Educational Support Specialist Brett Kugler can be seen handing out “mincha cards” to students throughout the school.

Kugler has been involved with mincha, the traditional Jewish afternoon service, since he first came to JDS ten years ago and immediately noticed that there was a lack of attention being paid to the service. He designed fliers to put up around the school to get students to come to the service, but then decided to create more personalized mincha cards to incentivize attendance.

The success of this advertising was immense, with an estimated average of 50 students coming to mincha each day at that time. However, after two or three years of handing out cards, Kugler began teaching after school at Kol Shalom Talmud Torah in Gaithersburg, MD and had to stop attending mincha at JDS. When Kugler stopped going to mincha, the mincha cards disappeared from JDS as well, and the service continued, but with diminishing attendance.

Last year, Kugler became the youth director at Young Israel Shmorai Emunah in Silver Spring, MD and was able to resume attending mincha services at school. Since Kugler was disappointed with the low student turnout, he decided to resume the mincha card system in attempt to boost attendance. Still, the service occasionally struggles to meet the ten male requirement in order to form a minyan. Kugler, however, is optimistic that the direct approach of minyan cards will eventually boost student attendance.

“The ability to invite someone personally makes people feel like they really are needed and have more of a connection to the service and an opportunity to be a part of something,” Kugler said.

The importance of inviting all students is reflected in the makeup of the group of people who attend mincha services. There are students from many different Zmanei Kodesh, and several faculty members attend as well. This diversity of students at mincha is something in which Kugler takes great pride.

“Something I really enjoy about it and look forward to getting to see: who’s gonna come today, who’s gonna step up and be a part of something and who’s gonna experience it on a daily basis and who’s gonna experience it for the first time and say ‘You know, wow, that wasn’t what I thought it was and that was awesome,’” Kugler said.

One student who had this type of experience was senior Yoav Margolis. Margolis did not want to go to mincha at first but was persuaded to come one day when they needed to make a minyan. He went the next day and it soon became a routine for him.

“I grew to love going to mincha because I really enjoy the group dynamics and how I got to see some friends of mine before I left the school,” Margolis said.

In addition to the opportunity to participate in a mincha service, Margolis enjoys the welcoming atmosphere at mincha services. The respect shown by the students towards one another is what Margolis believes creates the open environment and community.

“At mincha, if you participate, it’s not because you’re forced to but because you want to,” Margolis said.

“It creates an environment where people can stand up.”

Eighth-grader Ellie Schwartz also appreciates the inviting nature of the mincha service.

Schwartz first came to mincha this year after hearing Kugler call out in the hall for people to join, and she has since come almost every day.

Schwartz, who attends the Masorti minyan, has enjoyed the

chadashot

For some kids, ‘bring your child to work day’ happens at the doctor’s office or the bank. For others, ‘bring your child to work day’ happens every Saturday.

Junior Nadav Kalendar, whose father is a pulpit Rabbi at Congregation Olam Tikvah in Virginia, says that his home life revolves around Judaism because of his father’s position.

“At home my family talks a lot about Judaism and I grew up learning all about it,” Kalendar said. “[I] have gone to Israel every year of my life, which definitely helps me learn more and more.”

But Kalendar still cannot see himself choosing the same career path as his father.

“I definitely won’t follow my dad’s footsteps, even though I love that he’s a rabbi,” Kalendar said.

Just like Kalendar, senior Mikhael Hammer-Bleich does not want to be a rabbi. When Hammer-Bleich goes to graduate school instead of rabbinical school, he will be breaking out of three generations instead of one.

“My dad is a rabbi, my granddad is a rabbi and my great granddad was a rabbi,” Hammer-Bleichleich said. “In many ways I will and in many ways I won’t follow in their footsteps. One way that I will copy my parents is that I will be open with my kids and allow them to make their own choices when it comes to religion.”

Though Hammer-Bleich appreciated that his parents allowed him

extra opportunity to pray during mincha. For her, however, one main difference between her morning minyan and the mincha service is that she tends to be one of the few female students in attendance at mincha.

Schwartz had hoped that her coming to mincha would encourage more girls to come, yet does not view the lack of females as a major problem.

“I think no matter what, the experience is my experience and shouldn’t have to do with the people around me,” Schwartz said.

Jewish Text teacher Paul Blank is one of several faculty members who try to come to mincha every day. In the past he came to mincha only occasionally, but he has begun to attend regularly to say the mourner’s kaddish since his mother passed away in October.

The community at mincha has helped Blank greatly during this time and he is very grateful to those who give up their time to come to mincha so that he is able to say kaddish every day.

“It’s very important for me to say kaddish and I probably wouldn’t be saying it three times a day if it weren’t for this minyan here,” Blank said. ”I want to say it three times a day so it works out great.”

While the original goal of the mincha service was not to provide such an opportunity for teachers, it is an example of the various benefits which have come about from the presence of mincha at JDS. “Something is special about mincha,” Kugler said. “Everybody has to pick something during the morning, here’s an opportunity where it is one’s choice. Not everybody in the mincha is coming from an orthodox background, but they come together and find a way to connect.”

to view Judaism more open-endedly, he sometimes felt that Judaism presented a “my way or the highway” attitude, which ultimately caused his “less religious” lifestyle.

For Hammer-Bleich, that lifestyle meant realizing that “there is more to Judaism than just extreme religion and obsessive Halakhic following.” He even screamed that he was the rabbi’s son during a service because his sister dared him to.

“When I was 12 my father applied to be rabbi of the local shul,” Hammer-Bleich said. “After he did not get the position I was tremendously relieved. How would I have been able to express my anti-religious ideas with him as rabbi? How would I have been able to not go to Shul?”

Kalendar also acknowledged this level of expectation that comes with being the child of a rabbi, but explained that he did not blame anyone for thinking he should behave a certain way because of his upbringing.

This pressure surfaced both at synagogue and at school. Kalendar expressed that he felt an expectation to be a “perfect goodie goodie Jewish boy” and know the answers in his classes because of his father’s position.

Senior Manny Bass, whose mother is a rabbi and father is a cantor, echoed Kalendar’s feelings of pressure, but added that he felt more like a messenger than anything else.

“Both at shul and at school I feel like I am the way that a person could communicate to my parents,” Bass said.

photos provided by manny bass, mikhael hammer-bleich and nadav kalendar

To see the full collection of mincha cards, check out the board by the gym

1. Senior Mikhael Hammer-Bleich (bottom right) has mixed feelings about his religious upbringing.

“In the B’nai Mitzvah circuit, every one of my friends would ask me to ask my dad to go easy on them, and countless people have asked me to tell my mother to give them good grades,” Bass said.

Jewish Text teacher Janet Ozur Bass, who is also Bass’ mother, alluded to the challenge of always being “in [her] kid’s space” as well.

“I think the hardest part for our kids is that they can’t escape from us,” Ozur Bass said. “I’m here in the school and my husband is there at shul. If there is a guest speaker at their youth group, it is going to be their dad. So I think that’s the flip side of it and I think different kids who are clergy kids will react very differently to that.”

All in all though, Ozur Bass feels that she has a responsibility to contribute to her children’s Jewish education on a more personal level, regardless of their decisions to follow in her footsteps or not.

“I think what we do here at school is much more teaching about Judaism, not teaching about how to live Judaism”, Ozur Bass said. “At home, we teach them this is how you live.”

2. Junior Nadav Kalendar relates to Judaism through his strong connection with his father.

Grappling with the question of whether to follow in their parents footsteps

2.

1.

3.

3. Senior Manny Bass and his mother, Jewish Text teacher Janet Ozur Bass, pray daily in the same Zman Kodesh.

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the lion’s tale

style

the lion’s tale

style

15

Too Cold Gang: Jamal Hall’s record label is too hot to handle The logo for Hall’s record label, Too Cold Gang

dahlia lehman photo editor While most CESJDS employees are finished with their workday at 3:45 p.m., Security Guard Jamal Hall is only halfway there. After Hall leaves school every evening, he spends four to five hours on his developing record label, Too Cold Gang (TCG).

Hall began his label in October, with the hope that it would provide both children and adults with enjoyable music, and has poured significant effort into the music ever since. Since Hall started his label, he has gotten an official license to provide protection and legitimacy to his music. The label is still getting off the ground and it does not currently bring in any money, but Hall is going to have a photoshoot for the label soon and start a website soon after that. Hall hopes the label could eventually become a real business venture.

As the producer of the record label, Hall composes tracks, chooses artists to sing and rap over those tracks and then finishes “mixing and mastering” at a local studio.

Hall currently oversees six artists, and guides the singers and rappers by honing in on several specific

To hear Too Cold Gang’s song “Mitch,” produced

by Jay & Redz, visit lionstale.org

genres of music.

“Right now I want to focus on hip-hop and R&B, but I also want to get into the pop side and a little bit of jazz,” Hall said. “I like to try to use each genre and fuse them together and create my own unique sound.”

Music teacher Charles Ostle listened to Hall’s recording and said that most of the songs had elements of “southern style hip-hop” music, specifically the drum patterns, and “call-and-response” vocal samples that Hall programs into his tracks. Ostle also said that Hall incorporates “Central American style rhythms” into the hip-hop music.

“I think he’s on the right track to making some really interesting stuff,” Ostle said.

Hall hopes to make his music accessible to the world through both free online music outlets and profitable albums in the future, but is currently mostly focused on getting his name known.

Music has been a strong influence in Hall’s life since childhood.

His father, uncles and older brothers were all musicians, and Hall would often perform musical pieces with his sister at family gatherings.

Hall’s family did not only play the role of laying a musical groundwork. One of the main artists on Hall’s label is his 23-year-old nephew, who is a rapper, and many of the other artists working on the label are

friends of his nephew who also have experience in the field of music.

Hall said he was partially inspired to start his label by JDS students and teachers. He is very impressed by JDS’ a capella group and musical productions. Hall also occasionally shares and discusses his music with Ostle and Jewish Text teacher Paul Blank.

“They inspired me to get back into it and focus on making and creating more music,” Hall said of Ostle and Blank.

Just as Hall was influenced by JDS student musicians, Hall has influenced many students in return with his new business. Ostle believes that student recognition of Hall’s new endeavor will strengthen the JDS community, shedding light on the diverse interests of the school’s faculty.

“I think it would be great that there would be some appreciation of the people who work in the building that the student body might not know anything about,” Ostle said. “This is sort of his personal side-project.

People know him as just an employee here,

but he’s also a very talented guy in different areas, so I think it would be interesting for the students to be aware of that.”

Beyond just listening to his music and seeing that “personal” side of him, many students have fostered close relationships with Hall throughout his time at JDS. Hall deeply appreciates these relationships, and was especially moved when alumni Daphna Hoffman (‘15), Danny Waksman (‘15) and Cameron Yolles (‘15) honored him at a Hanukkah Heroes assembly last year.

“I tried to be strong and not cry but, you know, it really touched me,” Hall said.

Because of the close relationships Hall has formed with several students, many hope that H a l l

continues to work at JDS even as his record label grows.

“Right now it’s not going to affect anything,” Hall said, addressing this issue. “I’m still going to be here Monday through Friday because I love being here. But even if [the label] does take off, I’m never going to leave JDS. I’m always going to be around.”

photo by noy dahan

Jamal Hall holds up the business card for his new record label.

lindsey miller clocks in at the 9:30 club arielle weinstein news editor Where most see beat drops, strobe lights and fist pumps, junior Lindsey Miller now sees work and responsibility. The avid music lover recently scored an internship at the 9:30 Club, a popular concert venue in Washington, D.C. After finding out about the opportunity from an old blog post on the 9:30 Club’s website, Miller reached out to alumnus Benny Berger (‘15), who interned at the club two summers ago. Berger told Miller to send in a resume and cover letter to an email address he gave her, and Miller promptly began writing the material. It took her nearly a month to perfect and submit, and another to receive a response.

Miller was asked to come in for a group interview with the other prospective interns, where she was asked questions about everything from her musical taste to her ideas about improving the club’s marketing strategies. As the only high school student in the room, Miller was intimidated by the more experienced candidates.

“One girl worked at Merriweather Post Pavilion, which is a huge concert venue, and another girl was a college graduate who worked at a radio station,” Miller said. “Everyone was just really, really qualified, but I guess they saw something in me.”

Much to her surprise, Miller

was soon contacted and told she was one of six who had earned the internship. The club management told her that she was “very charismatic,” had “obvious passion” for the job and a “fresh mind” that she could bring to the team.

“That was really exciting,” Miller said. “I was not expecting it because as a 16-year-old high school junior, I’m not really supposed to be the one taking on big jobs in the music industry.”

While interns typically work from noon until 5 p.m., an exception had to be made for Miller because of her school day. Beginning in January, Miller will leave school early on C days to make a 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. shift at the club. Part of the reason she chose this specific internship was because it did not require her to sacrifice her education.

“I really wanted to do something this year that would enhance my knowledge of the music industry but still be able to attend school,” Miller said.

Although only there for three hours at a time, Miller will have plenty to do. She will be engaging in “hands-on work” by helping put up concert flyers while also collaborating with the venue’s staff. Most importantly, she will act as spokeswoman for the club.

“I get to write a blog post for the website,” Miller said. “I get to go to shows and sit at a table and talk to people about music and about the venue.”

Miller is not only looking forward to working with concertgoers and club staff, but also to seeing how the internship will affect her own music preferences. While her taste “changes every day,” some of her current favorites include R&B rapper Blackbear as well as indie pop artists Lolawolf and Marina and the Diamonds.

“I think it will make me more diverse because some metal bands come and I’m not really into that,” Miller said.

Junior Talia Levi, a close friend of Miller’s, agrees that the internship will broaden her horizons in terms of new artists.

“Ever since Lindsey became interested in music production, she’s really expanded her music tastes,” Levi said. “This internship will open her up to new things.”

Other than discovering more bands, Miller is looking forward to exploring concert management as a career path. Miller is specifically interested in management rather than other jobs in the industry because it allows her to balance her two passions.

“I’m less of a musician and more of a business person, but I don’t want to sacrifice music in my career,” Miller said. “I feel like con-

cert management is a perfect blend of my love for business and organization and my love for music.”

For Miller, the internship has the added benefit of providing a background in the music industry for upcoming college applications.

“Having this experience, especially as someone who is going to be

“For high school, it’s something that is going to look really good on a student’s resume,” Rexford said.

“Whether that internship is a paid or a volunteer internship isn’t so important as it is that a student is showing that there’s something they’re passionate about.”

Not only are internships good on paper, but Rexford believes they can act as strong character builders and preparation for actual employment.

“It’s teaching you a different level of responsibility and there’s a maturity piece that comes with it,” Rexford said.

“For example, you have to get up every morning and report some place, you have to work for somebody, you have to work with other people, so there are skills you’re developing that are going to hold you in really good status for the rest of your life.”

For now, Miller is not planning too far into the future. She is eager to begin the internship and excited to see where it leaves her in terms of experience in the music industry.

“To be in the music business you don’t have to be a musician, you just have to be someone who has a passion for music and who wants to promote up and coming artists,” Miller said.

to be in the music business, you don’t have to be a musician, you just have to be someone who has a passion for music and who wants to promote up and coming artists.” •junior lindsey miller

“

applying to college next year and for someone who has big dreams in this industry, it will really give me a lot of experience that I need,” Miller said.

Levi also recognizes that the internship will give Miller a step up when it comes time to looking for other opportunities.

“I know she wants to work in music production, so this will really give her the experience and set her ahead of everyone else,” Levi said.

In a broader context, Director of College Guidance Susan Rexford agrees that internships of all kinds can supplement a student’s interest area and help with college admissions.

16 senior section

the lion’s tale

the lion’s tale

Senior Columns Room 328: My home (literally) by jonah shrock outgoing opinion editor When I signed up for Journalism I in ninth grade I didn’t really know what I was getting into. When I walked into Ms. Burke’s class in room 328 I had no idea that this was the room that would become my home, literally.

It turned out to be one of the most interesting classes that I took at JDS and it made me excited to join The Lion’s Tale and soon I was a reporter.

I started writing stories and going to production nights in my future home. During production it seemed like I was spending more time in room 328 than I was at my home, and Lion’s Tale work took precedence over school work. I remember being frustrated about finishing up with production at 8 p.m. and having to drive 20 minutes

home and start all of my homework for the night and thinking “I just can’t do this anymore” (I think all staff members can relate haha).

But because of my love of journalism, I decided to continue but eventually the demands of production became too much. So I decided to move in . . .

That’s right, just photo by mayan beroukhim like dozens of the staff members who have After a restful night of sleep in room 328, Opinion editor Jonah written senior columns Shrock wakes up ready for another day of work on The Lion’s Tale. before me, I actually realized that it was necessary for the sake of made room 328 my living the Lion’s Tale. I have a couple of plants, a space. murphy bed that comes out of the wall for I went into my closet, found my sleeping guests and this year I even got a couple of bag, packed up my clothes and toiletries and pets. brought them to school with me and that I’d like to thank the Lion’s Tale for all night, I didn’t go home. I didn’t have to waste that it has given me over the years. I have time driving home but rather started doing learned invaluable life lessons from my time my homework right after production ended as a student journalist and most importantly and went to bed in my cozy nook under the I’ve gotten to live in my own rent-free computers. apartment for the past two years.

My parents were hesitant at first but they

by mijal altmann outgoing style editor At the beginning of every school year, I look at my schedule and what I see is a list of teachers I’d like to friend. In all of my years at JDS, the one thing that I know has been invaluable is the role models that I have been able to learn from.

So without further ado, here is Mijal’s Declassified Teacher Survival Guide.

Argentinian family. Wait. That might just apply to me. Sorry; in that case, just do the homework.

For the Modern Jewish History teacher who was recently pregnant, take a strong interest in her family. Don’t believe me? I am the godmother of Matan Wilkenfeld. You think that’s a joke but it’s not. Ask anyone.

For any Hebrew teacher, if you forget a word while speaking, don’t worry. Just put “Atziah” at the end of any English word and it will sound like Hebrew. If you don’t do this then you’re just a foolatziah.

For the FAT teacher (function analysis and trigonometry. I’m not completely savage), literally just be yourself. She loves everyone and everyone loves her. #Ballin’ For the Anatomy teacher, take a strong interest in dissecting cats.

For the Genetics teacher, do NOT under ANY circumstances, take a strong interest in

17

Valuing the journey by alysse weinberg outgoing managing editor, design High school has its fair share of stereotypes. There’s your athletes, your mathletes, your hipsters, your prepsters and the list goes on. Well, at least that’s what high school is supposed to be like.

JDS definitely has all of that. But for some reason that I just can’t quite figure out, none of those categories are mutually exclusive at our school. No one in our cafeteria sings “Stick to the Status Quo” from High School Musical, or only talks to three people who wear pink specifically on Wednesdays. Instead you’ll find athletes singing Nachamu and mathletes in your ceramics class.

I didn’t even realize how unique this was until I heard Jared Bauman say it to a bunch of prospective parents. In all honesty, I just

assumed that every school was like this. In fact, I’d never really taken the time to think about all of the things that are so special about this school.

Don’t get me wrong, I’ve had my fair share of ‘I-need-to-graduate’ moments, but lately, as the clock is winding down, it’s dawned on me how much I’ve disregarded and looked down upon the place that singlehandedly shaped who I am today.

The reality is that we are all extremely fortunate. No matter your background, financial situation, homelife, etc., you are outrageously lucky to go to a school that encourages diversity of thought. Hundreds of thousands of people around the world throughout time have been murdered or beaten for thinking things about religion that we discuss openly in our classrooms. We’re encouraged to question God and religion and we’re given opportunities that other high

school students wish they had. But most of the time it feels like we’re all waiting to be done.

And that is my biggest regret. I wish I had spent less time thinking about the end and more time thinking about the now.

The end of high school always seemed like such an abstract idea full of promise and anticipation, but now that it’s in front of me, I wish I could go back and tell myself to stop thinking so much about the future.

High school is by no means a race.

You shouldn’t be competing with everyone around you, and you definitely shouldn’t be rushing towards the finish line. The ending is great, but trust me, all the best parts are in the middle.

The author on the first day of kindergarten at the Lower School photo courtesy of alysse weinberg

Holding on to what we’ve learned

A shady guide to survivng high school For the sake of anonymity, I will not name the people that I based this off of. If you must know, however, I have scattered their names randomly throughout this column.

Good luck.

For the physics teacher who loves ChikFil-A, negotiate grades over food and Coke Zero. Trust me, it works. I once swapped my hot lunch (breakfast for lunch) for an A-. (JK) For the Arab-Israeli Conflict teacher, subtly change your tone over time to make it sound like his native Boston accent. If you need help, repeat “He parks the car at Harvard Yard” in the accent five times before every class. You’ll be speaking like his parents in no time, and he will subconsciously be unable to fail his parents.

You’re welcome :) For the Argentine Spanish teacher with just about five hundred different diplomas in Spanish Literature, constantly bring up your

senior section

dissecting cats.

For the Dean of Academics, ALWAYS wear both a kippah and a skirt in dress code.

It doesn’t matter what gender you are.

For any teacher, be kind, courteous and intuitive about what ways you can psychologically manipulate them for your benefit.

On a serious note, I want to say this.

At the end of ninth grade, I almost left JDS because I was unhappy with my experience.

I am confident that I made the right decision in staying in this school, because all of my teachers have helped mold me into the person that I am today and I doubt that I would have been able to get this experience anywhere else.

To all of the teachers that I have had here at JDS, I just want to say that you have changed my life, and for that I thank you.

by carol silber outgoing editor-in-chief If you’ve been in or around the senior alcove at 3:45 over the past several weeks, you’ve watched as the senior class gathers together, as 80 chanting voices count down from 10, as one selected senior jumps from the trash-strewn couches, grabs onto that day’s designated piece of paper and tears it down, much to the delight of their exhausted, excited classmates. Shouts, cheers and whoops mark the end of another day.

The exuberant nature of this tradition is thrilling. Only three more days of boring

classes! Only two more nights of dreaded homework! Each afternoon, we rip down these pieces of paper, casting away another day at this place.

But I’d rather think of it slightly differently. To me, the tearing down of these papers represents the packing up of the special lessons, memories and experiences that we have harbored during our time here.

Rather than seeing this ritual as a time when we cast away what has happened within the walls of our school, I hope we can take what we’ve gotten out of our years at JDS and hold onto it to use in each of our futures.

I hope that we can remember to continue asking the difficult questions, and to never shy away from challenge. From discussing whether Palestinian recognition of Israel as a Jewish state is necessary to achieve peace in Arab-Israeli conflict class, to debating if the death penalty is an effective means of deterring future crimes in a history course on American law, JDS is a space where my classmates and I have been pushed by our teachers and each other to formulate opinions about topics that are at the heart of national and international affairs. The world beyond high school will continue to confront

us with these intricate issues, and I hope that we will face them head-on as we have learned to do here at JDS. Another value that I hope my classmates and I will continue to cherish is taking care of the members of our community. A few months ago, I walked into the alcove and saw a huge card on one of the couches. Students from every grade surrounded the large piece of white cardstock writing condolences to a beloved teacher whose mother had passed away. I hope that this value of showing a deep love and concern for our fellow community members is something that we carry with us to the new communities in which we find ourselves in years to come.

Last week, JDS partnered with Adas Israel Congregation to sponsor a social justice event in honor of Martin Luther King day.

The Jewish people have had our fair share of tragic events, and it would be easy for us to wallow in our own sorrows without hesitation or consideration for the plight of other groups -- both religious and otherwise.

But our community does not do that. We continuously reach outside of ourselves and engage with and struggle for the issues that we see plaguing our world. On a large

scale, this is seen through events like the one held last week, but on a smaller scale, this is seen all the time, from student-run clubs like Hidden Gems to passionate editorials written by this very newspaper. I hope that my class never lets go of this value, and that we constantly push ourselves to work for communities besides our own.

So, to all my fellow seniors, I hope that we don’t get so caught up in the excitement of these last days that we let go of the incredible lessons we’ve learned here. This Friday, when we drive away from JDS, sleep-deprived from setting up our prank, covered in sweat from our senior run and hoarse from screaming throughout the day, we should be so thankful that we are ready. Not just ready to leave, but prepared for what’s next.

the lion’s tale

18 senior section

the lion’s tale

My relationship with the Israeli refugee crisis

malka himelhoch outgoing editor-in-chief This summer I was privileged to be a Fellow on the Bronfman Fellowship in Israel.

Along with 25 other 17 year olds, I spent the summer discussing Judaism and the role of Judaism in the modern world. Over the course of the summer, we had the opportunity to speak to many important people including A.B. Yehoshua, Aviva Zornberg and M.K. Michael Oren. But the speakers that resonated most deeply with me were the South Sudanese and Eritrean refugees who told us their stories.

I want to share the story of Abu Bakar.

A young man only a little older than me, 19 years old, from South Sudan. When he was 11 years old he fled the Sudan because of how dangerous it was. He left his country and his family and alone made the journey first to Egypt, and then to Israel. When he arrived six years later, he had no one, and he didn’t know the language. He needed help.

Bakar discuss his abandonment by the Israeli Israel is a very real place, besieged, beautiful government, I was shocked and confused. I and just as myopic as the rest of us. To call atlove Israel, I speak Hebrew fluently, I hope to tention to her failures as well as her triumphs move there one day. I know that these feelwill only serve to strengthen our relationship ings are shared by many JDS students. The with Israel.

JDS community spends a lot of time focused on Israel. We have a class devoted to the Arab-Israeli conflict. We followed the 2015 Israeli elections in Hebrew classes and read Israeli newspapers documenting terrorism.

But somehow after all this study, I knew nothing about people like Abu Bakar.

I believe that it is important for us, as students of a school that values ahavat yisrael, to be educated about the ways in which Israel fails in its humanitarian missions despite its many successes.

Perhaps in years to come we, as a school, can make a difference in the lives of people like Abu Bakar if we can speak frankly about Israel’s refugee crisis within the photo provided by bronfman youth fellowship context of the refugee Abu Bakar speaks in Arabic to Bronfman fellows after his precrisis confronted by the world as a whole. sentation this summer. He speaks Arabic, Hebrew and English.

What I’ve been waiting to say yonatan greenberg outgoing managing copy editor

I figure that the ultimate purpose of writing is to make some element of change, so since this is my last time writing for this paper, I am finally going to give it a shot. I haven’t been especially vocal about what I am about to say until now because I thought that doing so

would annoy people. In the name of not bothering people, in the name of being a friendly guy, I hardly spoke about it. Maybe if I had thought that I could actually convince people, I would have acted differently. But I figured that saying it would make people feel defensive, and that feeling defensive would make people feel annoyed, and that feeling annoyed would make people stop listening to me. I still feel that way, but for a brief moment, I am going to stop caring.

I think that humans have done plenty of horrendous things over the course of history, and I would be shocked if our contemporary

treatment of animals did not eventually come to be seen in the same way. It’s hard to imagine how we will explain to future generations the thought process that allowed us to walk through entire supermarkets filled with food that did not require killing animals and choose the one food that did.

It is worth remembering that the suffering of people who live far away from us, or who speak different languages than us, rarely conjures the same feelings of empathy that the suffering of a family member would. But when the voice of reason tells us that the suffering of all humans is real, that the

19

A rivalry extending beyond the court

It’s complicated: The Israeli government provided help for him, because when he arrived in Israel he was a minor, only 17 years old. He was placed in a youth village, learned in the school, worked in the kitchen. But when he turned 18, there was no more help for him. He became one of the 45,711 refugees currently in Israel for which no policies exist.

Israel is known for its welcoming of any Jew who wishes to find a home within the boundaries of the country. Israel is also famous for the humanitarian aid that it provides the world. Most recently, the country devoted entire field hospitals to assisting those in dire situations after the earthquakes in Nepal. Why were people like Abu Bakar who made their way into Israel and from within Israel’s borders exempt from the amazing humanitarian assistance that Israel provides the rest of the world?

One of JDS’ core values is tikkun olam, or the commitment to repair the world and make it more compassionate, just and peaceful. Over the past year we have watched the refugee crisis in Europe unfold on the front pages of all the major news organizations.

Images of the death by drowning of a threeyear-old Syrian child in the waters outside Hungary has broken all of our hearts. The world is confronting what happens when hundreds of thousands of refugees show up at your doorstep. Because they are there, knocking on your door, are you obligated to help them? There are more refugees currently in the world than there have been since World War II. This past summer, as I listened to Abu

sports

suffering of all humans matters, we know we have to listen. Should we not keep the same lesson in mind when it comes to eating animals?

Maybe we don’t want to. Maybe most people really do want to be ignorant about the atrocious conditions on factory farms, lest they be forced to choose between the taste of a juicy drumstick and their self perception as ethical people. I have to imagine it’s the reason no one would agree to watch a PETA video before each time that they ate meat.

I know what it’s like to be on the other end of this conversation.

Before I became a vegetarian, I would often argue with my vege-

tarian brother about the ethics of eating meat. I remember the terrible uneasiness I felt as I tried to find a moral justification for satisfying my cravings for steak. Sometimes I would make jokes to try to relieve the stress; other times I would just shout at my brother. But neither method worked. My brother convinced me, and I have been a vegetarian ever since. Is there a chance that I convinced you?

Lions and Cougars face off in roaring rivalry jeremy schooler sports editor What began in the early 1980s as a friendly soccer competition has turned into a heated and intense athletic rivalry between the CESJDS Lions and the Berman Hebrew Academy Cougars. With varsity basketball home games for each school drawing crowds of as many as 600 people, watching the Cougars and Lions play has become a yearly highlight for each school. But it was not always this way.

When JDS began its athletic program in 1974, hundreds of paying, screaming fans coming to see two Jewish day schools play a highly competitive varsity basketball game with potential college recruiters in the crowd was likely a far-fetched idea for even the most imaginative of fans. The Lions were just trying to get enough people to maintain a team, and did not even first play He-

brew Academy until 1976.

While there has been large fan support at recent basketball games between the rivals, JDS Dean of Students and Interim Upper School Principal Roslyn Landy said the fervor surrounding the games has actually gone down in recent years.

“We have won a majority of the games in recent years, and that may have affected the intensity surrounding the games,” Landy said. “In the ‘90s and early 2000s, every game was a close back-andforth game, which got the fan bases into it.”

Senior Tani Makovsky, who went to Hebrew Academy for 11 years before he transferred to JDS last year, feels that the rivalry is still riveting and exciting.

“I have been on both sides.

And there is still plenty of fanfare surrounding the games,” Makovsky

said. “If I had to choose though, I’d say Hebrew Academy has more passion during the games, and a wider fan base. At JDS, the majority of the students at the game seem to be se-

“

Makovsky also feels that, from a social perspective, the student bodies of JDS and Hebrew Academy don’t really understand each other.

“There’s definitely a social barrier because of the perceived denominational differences, and there’s a lot of judgments made on this basis,” Makovsky said. “This affects the rivalry, because you see students in the crowds using religious traditions to get in the head of the opposition.”

Makovsky does not see chants like “Where’s your kippah?” and “Hashem likes us better” as inhibiting postitive relationships between the two student bodies.

“Once these barriers are knocked down, I’ve seen many friendships that overlap between the schools,” Makovsky said.

At JDS, the majority of the students at the game seem to be seniors, but for Hebrew Academy it is more of a school-wide event.”

Senior Tani makovsky niors, but for Hebrew Academy it is more of a school-wide event.”

Unlike JDS, Hebrew Academy, which offers education for pre-K through 12th grade, only has one campus. This makes advertising and involving the whole school in games easier.

Other than the games played between the Cougars and Lions, there is not much going on between the two schools, academically or otherwise. However, Landy said this may soon change. According to Landy, the headmasters of the two schools, Hebrew Academy’s Joshua Levinsohn and JDS’ Mitchel Malkus, keeping in touch with one another and are currently hoping to have their schools coordinate an event together in support of Israel.

“The administrations will talk occasionally, about tickets for the games, for example,” Landy said.

“Currently, we are working with their Model U.N. team and we are hoping to coordinate an event with them, something that would benefit both schools.’’

Sports spotlight Danielle Bernstein aaron robinson reporter Most people who have played on a competitive sports team will have heard the saying, “defense wins championships” from their coaches.

In basketball specifically, the ability to provide a defensive presence is invaluable in a player.

During the girls varsity basketball season, sophomore Danielle Bernstein has consistently hounded opponents with her defense.

Averaging around six steals a game, Bernstein has started in every game thus far. She began playing basketball on a recreation team in 4th grade and has been playing basketball at CESJDS since middle school. Through it all she has always emphasized the same type of play.

“I like defense a lot more [than offense] … I like being tough and

competitive,” Bernstein said.

Her tough and competitive play has not gone unrecognized. Girls varsity basketball head coach Azhar Shamsudeen, in his first season as head coach of the team, shared high praise for his sophomore guard.

“Her disruptiveness on defense is key to us being able to win games so far,” Shamsudeen says.

In the girls varsity basketball game against the Berman Hebrew Academy on Jan. 9, Bernstein put on an impressive performance, scoring nine points with ten rebounds, four assists and eight steals. She helped lead the team to a victory, avenging their previous loss against their fiercest rival .

Senior captain Evie Kraner emphasized how Bernstein’s defensive awareness is key to her ability to get steals.

“Dani is super quick,” Kraner said. “She is incredible at anticipat-

ing the opponent’s moves and is a core piece of our defense.”

Already a serious threat on defense, both Bernstein and her coach agree that there is room for improvement on the other end. Bernstein hopes she can bring more confidence to her offensive play.

“Sometimes I focus so much on making the shot that I get nervous and psyche myself out,” Bernstein said.

Her coach sees great potential, and believes she is on her way to recording impressive statistics in games.

“It’s just a matter of time before her offensive game comes together and she might be averaging a double double,” Shamsudeen said.

With the team’s record at 8-3 going into mid season, a championship photo by alysse weinberg is a long ways away but the defensive Sophmore Danielle Bernstein keeps her eye on the ball during a home ability of Bernstein will certainly be game. a decisive factor.

the lion’s tale

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Training with a new squad Sophomore Daniel Weiss runs with Ethiopian refugees gabe krantz and isaac silber reporters

Above, sophomore Daniel Weiss poses with the Black Lions Athletics Club after an early morning run.

Below, Weiss stretches sore muscles after a long run with his fellow runners.

photos by isaac silber

While not much would entice anyone to wake up at 6 a.m. every Sunday, sophomore Daniel Weiss sees the opportunity to train with a team of Olympic-caliber runners as an exception.

Every Sunday, Weiss runs with the Black Lion Athletics Club, a team of elite Ethiopian runners who fled the country after being tortured by the Ethiopian government.

The runs, which are usually around seven to eight miles, are typically followed by stretching and then a snack. Weiss, who is a year round varsity runner at CESJDS, asks the runners both for strategies to improve his running and about their lives.

The team was initially formed just to help the runners keep up their fitness. But in mid-November, when Kate Sugarman, a JDS parent and physician for many of the runners, alerted the team that the International Olympic Committee ruled that stateless refugees would be able to compete in the upcoming Olympics, the team’s goal shifted.

Sugarman thought that the runners would be more likely to qualify for the Olmypics if they had weekly training sessions, so the Sunday morning practices began.

After speaking with Sugarman at a local 5K/10K race, Weiss was very excited by the opportunity to train with world class runners who have broken numerous records.

“At first I went because I had heard their stories and learned their background, but it has, additionally, turned into a way for me to improve my running,” Weiss said. “It’s not just like all of them and then this one kid, they treat me like part of the team.”

Every Sunday, Weiss runs with the Black Lions team as part of their training. At practices, Weiss asks the runners both for strategies to improve his running and about their lives.

She started running in Ethiopia

very important.

“If you work alone, you never improve your time; if you work with someone you will,” Emiru said.

Fleeing torture in their home country is only part of the story for the runners that Weiss is training with. According to Sugarman, many of the runners have struggled to find stable employment due to their immigration status. The runners reside in the U.S. legally, but many of them are still waiting for their asylum request to be granted and are not citizens. Those who are employed struggle to support themselves and have to work at least one or two jobs with “grueling, long hours” leaving them with minimal time to train.

Sugarman is glad that Weiss has built a relationship with these runners, and hopes that the larger community involves themselves with these athletes to understand their stories and struggles. The Washington D.C. area has the highest concentration of Ethiopians outside of Ethiopia, and many of the Ethiopian patients that Sugarman treats came to the U.S. fleeing torture.

“Having people know about the Black Lions and the plight of D.C. area torture survivors and torture treatment is critical,” Sugarman said.

Although his life is drastically different from the other runners, they share a passion for running.

“Running is really the only thing that connects me to them on a basic level,” Weiss said. “We all obviously have different backgrounds and unfortunately, they don’t have the same opportunities that I have. Running allows us to do something together, something that we all love.”

when she was only three years old, and has competed in junior world championships and African championships. Lire set the Ethiopian record for the 400 meter race last June with a time of 51.44 seconds.

According to a Washington Post article that was written about the runners, Lire was able to take refuge in the U.S. after competing in the World Junior Championships in Oregon. Lire faced great persecution in Ethiopia before coming to America.

When she was only 8 years old, Lire and her father were running from the authorities when she was hit with a spear in her right arm. To this day, she has a scar on her right arm from that spear.

Lire just missed the age cutoff to attend Wilson High School, but she does not work so she does not know many other people her age, which is why Weiss has become one of her close friends. Weiss gives her rides to and from practice, and they

talk on the phone frequently.

“The other guys take me seriously but they are much older, so for us it is like a friendship relationship,” Weiss said.

Weiss also runs with Mekonnen Emiru, 34, who is not running competitively anymore because of a multitude of injuries. He still runs with the team for the social aspect, and because it is good exercise. Although runners compete individually, Emiru thinks working as a team is