Weinbaum Yeshiva High School
The Weekly E-mail Newsletter of the Weinbaum Yeshiva High School
Friday, September 24, 2004 / Erev Yom Kippur 5765

From the desk of
Rabbi Perry Tirschwell

The spirit of the yamim noraim pervaded our yeshiva this week as we focused on Teshuva,Tefila and Tzedaka. May the entire WYHS family be inscribed in the Book of Life in the merit of the students' powerful prayers and added learning.

Students and parents who have not activated Ed- line accounts should do so ASAP. Need help? Click here to e-mail our Director of Technology, Claudia Cohen.

Israeli seminary recruitment season begins this week, with our Israel Night for Senior Girls and Their Parents. Seven seminaries and yeshivot have already scheduled visits in October and November. We'll see you Monday at 7:30 p.m.!

Don't forget that we make a decision about closing school at 6:30 a.m. on that day. Check out the Protocols for Closing School link below, and may Jeanne make a right turn.

Mazel tov to Mr. & Mrs. Yosef Rotenberg on the birth of a grandson, and to aunt Yael, '02, and uncles Aryeh, '01, Meir, '04 and freshman Yonaton. Condolences to Mrs. Amy Buzaglo on the passing of her mother before Rosh Hashanah and to granddaughter Sarah, a junior.

Yeshiva High-lites will next appear on Friday, October 15, Erev Shabbat Parshat Lech L'cha. Wishing you and yours a Gmar Chatima Tova, Chag Sameach, and an enjoyable vacation.

Rabbi Perry Tirschwell
Principal

Click below for...

The Chodesh Chidush Torah Publication

Protocols for Closing School

Revised September and October Calendars

WYHS' Exciting New Parenting Series

Rabbi Brander's Hurricane Halachot

Jewish Federation of South Palm Beach County


Two Truly Inspirational Weeks

The past two weeks at WYHS have focused on the special significance of this time of year as a time for teshuva, tefilah, and tzedakah.

To introduce that focus, sophomores, juniors, and seniors participated in a special Saturday night selichot program on September 11th (pictured at top). Students and teachers gathered in Hollywood to see and hear a presentation by Rabbi Mordechai Smolarcik, director of Project Chazak, who wove together the tragedy of September 11th with the message of chesed. This led into selichot, which were beautifully introduced by Rabbi Nightingale of the Aish Center in Hollywood.

Although it was not a typical way to spend a Saturday night, it was a very meaningful beginning to the selichot season. Thank you to Rabbis Smolarcik and Nightingale for hosting and presenting this wonderful program.

For the past two weeks, the morning davening has included the daily recitation of selichot, along with a brief d'var torah each day given by one of the WYHS rebbeim. In addition, students have flocked to the Beit Midrash during the extended mid-morning break to hear optional shiurim given by the rebbeim and teachers (lower picture above).

For the tzedakah part of the program, students have been busy filling the tzedakah boxes belonging to their individual grades. A chart graphing the contributions of each grade has been posted in the hallway to motivate students to keep on giving! The grade that raises the most money by Succot will have the privilege of deciding where all the tzedakah will be donated.

Last night kicked off the Thursday mishmar season at WYHS. Boys had the special opportunity to hear words of inspiration from BRS Associate Rabbi Efrem Goldberg.

By popular demand, last night WYHS inaugurated an optional Girls Mishmar Program, which will take place each Thursday after school. Rabbanit Avigayil Rock of the Boca Raton Community Kollel, whose fame as a brilliant teacher of Torah in Jerusalem preceded her recent move to Boca Raton, gave the first shiur.

On a lighter note, American Idol returned to WYHS on Thursday after school! All student musicians were invited to audition for the new WYHS school band in front of the very humorous and highly qualified panel of judges! The new band will begin practicing together after the Succot vacation.


A Ferocious Storm Hits Boca

More feared than Bonnie, Francis, Ivan and Jeanne combined, the Yeshiva Storm's athletes continue to play their hardest as they compete against tough teams from around the district

Congratulations to the boys soccer team on their 3-0 shutout win over Wellington on Thursday! Goals were scored by senior Jake Singer and by juniors Dov Lieber and Jordan Lieber. Congratulations also to freshman Aryeh Genet, who scored the Storm's only goal in their loss on Tuesday.

The girls volleyball team keeps getting better and better, on the hunt for their first win of the season. Kudos to sophomores Shira Borzak, Jennifer Fisher, and Stephanie Trachtenberg for their powerful serves, which earned several points for the Storm.

All Storm fans are encouraged to attend next Tuesday's games. Click on the Quick Link to the September and October calendars for an updated sports schedule!


Pre Sukkot Vacation News

Next week, there is school on Monday and Tuesday only! There will be no school from Wednesday, September 29 through Sunday, October 10 in celebration of Succot.

A reminder to all senior girls and their parents! Monday, September 27 at 7:30 p.m. is Israel Night. This is a rare opportunity to hear about the Israel seminaries from the perspective of their alumni. Don't miss this chance to find out everything you've ever wanted to know about the seminaries, from daily schedules to dorm life to quality of the food!

The boys schools are not being addressed that evening due to the fact that the recruitment season for boys yeshivot is later in the year.


Time To Shift Into High Gear

The Week After Succot

Ninth, tenth, and eleventh graders will have the opportunity to prepare for the new format of the PSAT on Tuesday, October 12 during the school day. Students can check the daily announcements for specific times and locations.

The PSAT will be given to all 9th-11th graders on Wednesday, October 13 in the morning.

After the exam, freshmen will participate in a fun program with their "big brothers and sisters", including bowling, dinner, and a chance to learn Torah together! The freshmen will also have student council elections that afternoon.

Friday, October 15 is Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan. Davening will be followed by a special breakfast, lively dancing, and words of wisdom from WYHS founder Rabbi Kenneth Brander.

Mark your calendars! Sunday mishmar for boys will begin on October 17 in a community near you!

On the Radar Screen

The annual WYHS Shabbat in Hollywood will take place on October 22-23. The Judaic Studies faculty members and their families will join the WYHS families of Hollywood for Friday night dinner and an Oneg Shabbat. Stay tuned for more information coming soon!

To enable parents to vote on Election Day and to maintain our practice of running conferences on two different nights of the week so everyone can attend, the fall Parent Teacher Conferences have been moved to Monday, November 1 (A-K) and Tuesday, November 9 (L-Z), as opposed to November 2 and 10. There will be a Friday schedule on Monday, November 1 with a 2:30 p.m. dismissal, and a regular schedule on Tuesday, November 9.

On Sunday, November 7 at 7:00 p.m., bestselling author Naomi Ragen will be speaking at the South Palm Beach County Federation, in Zinman Hall, to benefit WYHS. Watch your mailbox for more information!


Fantastic AP Scores

Each year, many WYHS students in grades 10-12 choose to take Advanced Placement classes, adding a larger workload to their already busy schedules! Not only is the amount of work a challenge, but the AP classes themselves are more rigorous and move at a faster pace than other courses.

WYHS students have continually risen to the challenge and have excelled on their AP exams! Last year, for example, all 14 sophomores who took the European History exam passed, and over half will receive college credit for the course!

Every student who took the English AP exam earned a "5"- the highest possible score! Eleven of the 15 students who took the AP Psychology exam earned a four or better, as did all five students who took the AP Physics test!

With phenomenal results like these, WYHS continues to offer a wide variety of AP courses each year, expanding the number of courses offered whenever possible to allow interested students to achieve their academic goals.



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Rabbi Perry Tirschwell Principal   Mrs.Amy Horowitz Correspondent
Shimmie Kaminetsky Executive Director   Mrs.Melissa Pereira Coordinator
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