Save the Date
Monday, June 8
Spring exams begin
Friday, June 12Year-End BBQ Monday, August 17
Staff Development
Thursday, August 20
Orientation
Monday, August 24
School begins
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Community News and Events
JTS Annual Awards Event
Honoring Michael Zaransky, Hazzan Larry Goller, and Rhoda Pomerantz (CJHS Board of Directors)
Thursday, June 18 at The Standard Club, Chicago IL
5:30 PM
Please call the JTS Midwest Office for more information: 312-606-9086
New at the BJE: Hebrew Lessons One-On-One!
Hebrew at your own pace, on your own schedule, with no pressure... for travel, business or aliyah! $40 per session; minimum 7 sessions.
Contact Alicia Gejman here or at 847.291.7788x1301.
Continuing Education at Melton
The Florence Melton Adult Mini-School is an outstanding two-year program which offers a comprehensive range of Jewish studies. Knowledge of Hebrew is not required. Melton students are a committed group of adult learners who represent a great diversity in background, prior level of learning, and affiliation, but are united by their desire to learn more about their Judaism.
Registration fills up fast! For further information, call or email Keith Kanter at kkanter@cfje.org or 847-410-3900 ext. 25.
Melton has received rave reviews from the CJHS members who have taken it; let it now be your turn! CFJE Ulpan: Summer and FallThe Community Foundation for Jewish Education of Metropolitan Chicago offers a first-class, exciting way for adult members of our community to learn Modern Hebrew. We are so pleased to now offer the Ulpan at four different sites. Click here for information about our summer and fall course offerings. JUF Teen ConnectionsJUF is planning a great deal of exciting events for teens in the near future. Click on http://www.juf.org/
teens/newsletter_web.aspx to read about all of the events. You can subscribe to the JUF Teen Connections newsletter via a link at the bottom of the website. Perlstein Family VacationsShare quality time with your family and get the benefits that only an all-inclusive Perlstein family vacation can provide. Vacation at JCC's Perlstein Resort & Conference Center in Lake Delton, WI, adjacent to Camp Chi and minutes from the Wisconsin Dells. August 17-23 & 24-30, 2009. · Day camp/day care for all age groups-infants to teens · Family activities and events · Nightly activities for adults and evening babysitting · Relax and leave all of the Shabbat preparation to us! · 3 Kosher meals a day with snacks Included Activities, no additional fee: waterskiing, sailing, swimming, boating, arts & crafts, outdoor & indoor play spaces, rock climbing, mountain biking, horseback riding, archery, sports, yoga, field trips and more! There's so much to do. For details visit www.gojcc.org/prcc, call 847.763.3603 or email prcc@gojcc.org. |
Sponsor Breakfast
What's better than a birthday celebration with friends? Celebrate your student's birthday or other milestone with a special breakfast at CJHS.
 For a donation of $162 (9x chai), bagels, cream cheese, and orange juice will be served to everyone. An announcement will be made in Tefillah and in the dining hall, and the occasion will also be listed in our weekly E-News.
If you have any questions, please call 847.324.3713 or email ialtman@cjhs.org. Order forms are available online here.
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Siyyum Sets the Tone for Graduation
 One of our most important graduation traditions took place last Wednesday, right after Tefillah, when seniors' families and friends were invited to a Siyyum--the ceremony held after completing a large body of Jewish text.
 One after another, each senior was called up to receive a certificate celebrating his work, each introduced by a different teacher. All the teachers knew their respective senior personally and tailored their goodbyes to the seniors' individual challenges and successes. Mr. Dale Griffith presented Yaakov Calamaro with the poem "God is a Swimmer"; to Brett Kopin, he quoted Scripture. Rabbi Barkan recalled fondly Hannah Rosenbaum's  attempts to teach him chemistry as they studied Torah. And Jeremy Hulkower was sent off with cheers and laughter by Mrs. Eliaser's parody of a Star Trek promotion speech, advancing him to the rank of captain and bidding him go where no CJHS student has gone before. No introduction was like any other; all were perfectly matched to the student, whose uniqueness we treasure and whose paths to success we remember fondly. 
Yasher koach to Victor Abecassis, Ellie Honan, Eden Noy, and Brett Kopin, our keynote graduation speakers, and to Rachel Binstock, who presented the class gift of a trophy case. As the class of 2009 journeys on, they leave behind them the directive to strive for victory and to fill that case with trophies!
We wish the graduates every blessing as they continue forward on their respective paths.
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CJHS Receives $55,680 Grant from Day School Trust Fund
The Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago has taken great strides forward in supporting Jewish day school education with an increase in funding from the Jewish Day School Guarantee Trust Fund (JDSGTF) to the 16 Federation-supported day schools. We are happy to announce that CJHS' portion of the $1,722,759 distribution, as determined by our student population, is $55,680, in addition to our annual allocation from the Federation.
  This increase highlights the success of the Federation's initiative, announced over three years ago, to reinvigorate community support for Jewish day school education. The Fund's endowment and commitments to it have reached almost $30 million. Distributions to the schools will continue in perpetuity, and as the Fund grows, the distributions will continue to grow. Gifts to the Trust Fund, which is part of the Federation's Centennial Campaign, are over and above the donors' annual gifts to the JUF and to the individual day schools. For more details on the Jewish Day School Guarantee Trust Fund program, contact the Federation at 312.357.4853 or email deborahsamuels@juf.org. 
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An exhibit titled "Batik'n' It" is up this week and for the following two weeks in the Gidwitz Place Art Gallery. Studio Art students had fun with Batik, an ancient cloth dying and waxing technique. All students, parents and staff are invited to visit the display. Some paintings done by Gidwitz residents are also part of the exhibit. Gidwitz Place is located just a few minutes west of CJHS at 1601 Lake Cook Road.
The residents had the chance to see the exhibit on Tuesday afternoon after Mrs. Snyder gave a brief introduction, and a beautiful reception was held afterwards for the residents and guests. This is one more example of the great outreach our school does in the community. A photography exhibit is being planned for November.
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Physics Expo
Nine student groups presented at this year's Physics Expo, the crowning project of Mrs. Eliaser's junior physics classes. Students presented five months' worth of independent research on the physics of swimming, music, black holes, juggling, and the movies. Victoria Aron, Lizzie Spicehandler, and Arianna Rozen built a "juicycle"--a bicycle-mounted blender that uses the kinetic energy of the rider to replace the more costly and environmentally detrimental energy from the local power lines. Not only did they make smoothies for the entire audience, but they burned some calories, too! A special yasher koach to Max Abecassis, Matt Levin, and Eli Mogul, who won the annual "Best of Show" award for their presentation on electric generators.
Hot Off the Presses... Literally!
 Congratulations to the all-star team of Chaya Moskovits, Ariel Stoltz, Ariel Ferri, and Leah Cardona for shattering all school records and taking first place in the annual physics Heat Transmission Contest. Students were given 20 minutes to construct a setup that would heat up a beaker of water using a common light bulb, a sheet of aluminum foil, and a piece of newspaper. Chaya's team put together an amazing convection cell with reflective sides that trapped the bulb's electromagnetic radiation around their beaker, with their bulb on the bottom to power the convection cycle. This team's water temperature shot up 21 degrees in 4 minutes and would have soon boiled had not the bell rung! |
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CJHS Bikes the Drive
Memorial Day was a great day for biking as students rode in Bike the Drive for Chai Lifeline. Our students pedaled all 28 miles along with 26,000 other bikers on a closed Lake Shore Drive. Adam Schneider and his father, Brad Schneider, Adam Seidenberg, Jeremy Hipps and his entire family, Esther Lowe, Avra Shapiro, Ron and Adam Schrag, and Dr. Gary Auslander, Bike Club advisor, all participated. Several hundred dollars were raised on behalf of Chai Lifeline. This fundraiser has become an annual event sponsored by the CJHS Bike Club. |
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Pathology For the People
Dr. Avi Handelsman, mother of AP Biology student Esther Bier, and pathologist, spent time with the AP Biology students. She explained the intricacy of her job and showed students actual human specimens exhibiting various pathology problems. The students were actively engaged in the diagnostic process. By the end of her presentation, Dr. Handelsman had students identifying the physical abnormalities of the various organs. The presentation was both enlightening and educational. The AP Bio class and Mr. Taylor thank Dr. Handelsman very much. |
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IFYC
Our interfaith partnership celebrated a wonderful year on Wednesday that began with a prayer session including prayers from all three traditions dedicated to the theme of peace and ended with food, conversation and an intense game of integrated basketball. Rachel Karp, alumna and past member of IFYC, attended this event after spending the semester abroad studying Arabic in Morocco.  Naseem Parsa will be the new president of the group in the coming year. She will also be attending a two week summer program, Face to Face / Faith to Faith dedicated to conflict resolution in an interfaith context. There will be representatives from four areas of the globe: Ireland, Palestinian territories/Israel, South Africa and United States. Aaron Miller will be interviewed on June 14 along with a Christian and Muslim student counterpart on the interfaith show "Different Drummers" which will be aired on the Greater Chicago Broadcast Ministries Website ( www.Gcbm.org). |
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JTS Ahavat Torah Award
Mazal tov to Noa Fleischacker, this year's CJHS recipient of the JTS Ahavat Torah Award, which recognizes excellence in Jewish learning and leadership in day school students. Noa received a signed copy of Chancellor Eisen's book, Taking Hold of Torah, and a congratulatory letter.
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Jewish Fella A Capella
Over lunch last Friday, CJHS students had the opportunity watch a performance by Jewish Fella A Cappella, Brandeis University's all-male Jewish a cappella group. JFA's performance was especially meaningful for CJHS students because its president, Eli Miller, graduated from CJHS in 2006.
Performances such as JFA's provide examples of what sort of Jewish life is available at college, so that our students can envision themselves doing the same thing only a few years from now. And of course, what could be better than seeing our own alumni?
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| Changing of the Guard:
Student Leadership
As the 2008-2009 school year draws to a close and the rising seniors take their rightful place as leaders of the school, the CJHS student body announced new leaders for all of its student-run initiatives. Recognition of student leaders and all of their hard work was given by Ms. Musin in tefillah today, as she compared their many gifts to those given by the tribal leaders in this week's parasha. Stay tuned next week for a special Student Leadership Edition highlighting our many incredible student initiatives.
 Kol hakavod to our Student Activities Director Caroline Musin, whose phenomenal efforts and unswerving leadership by example have revolutionized student leadership and programming this year. She is truly the Moses figure to our student elders, and to her we dedicate our school's many achievements in student government, social service, world politics, and many, many more. |
Sudanese Commnuity Center Visit
This past Sunday, nine CJHS students along with one staff member made the trek to Naperville to visit the Sudanese Community Center. There, the students saw where some of the money from the Youth United for Darfur rally was directed. Guest speakers and Lost Boys Peter Bul and David Deng explained the horrors of genocide and shared their personal stories. This was the final JWW/STAND event of the year, and was planned to congratulate Noa Fleischacker on a very successful term as chair, and transition into the newly designed board format for next year. Thank you to everyone who attended, especially our chaperone, Rabbi Barkan.
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 Dance Marathon
On Sunday, many CJHS students danced the afternoon away at the school's first Dance Marathon, which benefited the Make-a-Wish Foundation. Many thanks to Arianna Rozen and her committee for all of their hard work!
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Exam Schedule
Please note that despite the implication of the layout, Friday's BBQ starts at 11:45 a.m. |
Wolfgang Pachter:
Live From Jerusalem
 Avram Pachter ('06), student chef extraordinaire at the Jerusalem Culinary Institute, sends his greetings to this year's graduates, including Jenna Corush, soon to become our next kosher chef alumna! Avram has advanced to the quarterfinals in JCI's "Iron Chef"-style competition and is coaching baseball with the Jerusalem Firehawks. Read all about his adventures in Live From Jerusalem, a monthly feature at www.thecorejunction.com. The Core Junction is a sports, news, and political features blog published by our own Jacob and Michael Shapiro, CJHS '06 and '08. |
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Summer Torah Study
If you're in town this summer, why not do something with your Thursday nights? CJHS teacher Shira Eliaser and CJHS parent Dr. Elysa Barack Fisher are launching the LifeCenter Torah Network with the Summer Series 2009:
From Eve to Vashti:
Bad Girls Who Make Tanach Great
The series is composed of eight independent shiurim on various Biblical characters and is open both to men and women. Registration is quickly filling up, so click here for details and registration forms. |
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Calendar
Please note that the following changes have been made to next year's calendar:
- Freshman Parent Orientation will be moved to a new date and time, TBA.
- Tigerfest will run from November 19-25.
- The Homecoming Dance has been moved to November 21.
- College Planning Night for Juniors has been moved to December 9.
Trumba and the single-page calendar have been adjusted to reflect these changes. You can access the single-page calendar at www.cjhs.org/pdf/5770.pdf. |
| Baruch Dayan Emet
It is with sadness that we announce the passing of David Wolff, father of Nancy (Jeffrey) Schankerman and grandfather of sophomore Sara Schankerman. The funeral was held at Congregation Bnai Tikvah in Deerfield. In honor of his memory, donations may be directed towards the music program at CJHS.
Hamakom Yinachem Etchem B'toch Sh'ar Avalei Tziyon V'Yerushalayim.
May God's presence comfort Wolff and Schankerman families among the other mourners of Zion and Jerusalem. |
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Religious Life
 Yasher koach to Aaron Miller, Eliana Fisher, Ari Eisenstadt, Alex Krule, Shoshana Coven, Louis Shekhtman, Jacquie Zaluda, Daniel Eisenberg, Aaron Freeman, Rena Forester, and Benji Fleischacker for leading services these past two weeks; also to Jacquie Zaluda for reading Torah. A special yasher koach to Jeremy Hulkower and Elli Cohen for leading at the senior siyyum.
Yasher koach to Ms. Musin for giving this morning's Dvar Torah on the offerings of the chieftains of the tribes, comparing those gifts to the ones given by CJHS students on a daily basis. |
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Shabbat Shalom
Candlelighting is 8:04 p.m. this Friday. Shabbat shalom!
This ends the news edition for the 2008-09 school year. We wish to thank the four members of this year's editorial staff for all their hard work. To all our loyal readers, have a fulfilling and safe summer, come back refreshed in the fall, and... let's go learn a lot today! | |
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