The meaningful professional development (PD) collaboration between REACH and ICJA continues for the 2023-2024 school year with the formation of a new PD group to read and discuss Marc Brackett’s book, Permission to Feel. The response was overwhelming with 20 excited, eager ICJA teachers enrolling in the nine-session seminar.
The first session occurred last week, and discussion participation was 100 percent. Each teacher shared thoughts about an “Uncle Marvin” (a character in the book) in their life or a quote that resonated. The discussion was lively until the bell rang signaling the end of the period with several participants staying after to continue conversing about the book.
The group’s goal is to learn how to work with emotions that will help improve teaching skills and how to connect better with students.
ATT is excited to announce a pilot program that started after Pesach. Over the last two summers, ATT ran a very successful summer Kollel with Rabbeim from the day school community. In an attempt to build from that program and its success, the ATT partnered with Rabbi Steinmetz, Rav of Kehillas Meor Yisrael in West Rogers Park, to create an afternoon Mechanchim (Educators) Kollel. There are 10 Rabbeim learning each weekday afternoon, Monday – Thursday, 4:00-6:00pm.
In addition several times a month, the Rabbeim attend required professional development (PD) sessions providing them with skills and information enabling them to grow in their profession. ATT Superintendent, Rabbi Avrohom S. Moller, is overseeing the PD courses offered.
ATT looks forward to introducing more programs like these to positively impact the educators of our community.
REACH hosts over 40 educators, therapists, and administrators gathered for a 3-day intensive Collaborative Problem Solving (CPS) Tier 2 training hosted by REACH. Facilitated by Master Trainer Jordan Spikes of Think: Kids, this advanced concepts training course aims to further develop skills at all phases of the Collaborative Problem Solving® approach. It, additionally, enhances implementation in the real world.
Participants deepen their skills by learning strategies for using the approach in the most challenging situations using real-life examples from their experiences. Attendees, from across the spectrum of the Chicago Jewish community, engaged in meaningful learning and practice together.
Thanks to the generosity of the Chicago Jewish community, as well as supporters outside of Chicago, the REACH team raised an unprecedented amount of money in only 30 hours on a Causematch campaign. Nearly 400 donors, matched by several generous REACH donors raised $750K for REACH. We at REACH, as well as at the ATT staff are humbled and grateful for the generosity of the community that we serve.
REACH is Chicago’s coordinated effort to build Jewish day schools’ capacity to support students with a wide range of needs in an inclusive way. Our vision is to ensure that all Jewish students can attend the Jewish day school of their choice.
Executive Director Julie Gordon, MA says, “REACH has had unprecedented growth, and these funds will enable us to sustain the high quality services we provide.”
These services include the following:
Direct services to students
Partnering to develop best practice systems, strategies and protocols for the needs of each specific school
Professional development, training and coaching
Community collaboration
Thank you to the families who laid the foundation for the REACH program to grow and have such an impact on our day school community:
Oscar A. & Bernice Novick
Crain Maling foundation
The Walder foundation
Rabbi Morris Esformes
Gayle (z”l) and Eric Rothner
Robert and Debra Hartman
Robinson Family Foundation
The parent body that spearheaded the growth of REACH led by the Broner and Sheinfeld families.
One of the most exciting parts of running this online campaign was hearing the stories that came in from our teachers, parents and partner schools.
Thanks to the generosity of hundreds of donors, REACH has the ability to continue doing the important work of ensuring that every Jewish child has the opportunity and tools they need to succeed in the day school of their choice. When one child in our community is empowered, our whole community is lifted up.
REACH is an affiliate of the ATT and a partner with JUF in serving our community. Learn more about REACH here.
As a whole, the ATT’s REACH program ensures that all Jewish students can attend the Jewish day school of their choice. It’s impact, though, can be best understood on the individual level, by the students, families and teachers this program affects. For teachers, REACH staff offer training, resources and additional support so that students with different learning needs can succeed in their classrooms. All of the students as a whole benefit when their classmates can keep up with the classroom material. And most importantly, the individual students enrolled in REACH have the resources they need to thrive in a Jewish day school.
Watch one story of a Yeshivas Tiferes Tzvi student, Nechemia Marder, to understand the impact of REACH on one student’s education. His father, Rabbi Josh Marder, says, “When we heard that YTT was incorporating this new program, the REACH program, we were apprehensively excited! And we were very hopeful. And we were still worried. As the academics and the educational experiences become more serious, more rigorous, we watched the school adapt. We watched REACH adapt. We watched our son adapt and to shine in the ways that he does.”
And as our community has grown and educational standards have shifted, the ATT has evolved as well. Today, our leaders in Jewish education have risen to the challenge to create an educational environment that meets all children’s learning needs. It’s a vision that requires dedication, educational best practices and resources. Thanks to the generosity and leadership of this city, Chicago is rising to the challenge with REACH.
REACH is the first strategic and coordinated effort to address a system-wide need to be more inclusive, building the capacity of the Jewish day school system to teach and care for students with a wide range of needs. REACH gives Jewish day schools the tools to meet the needs of the whole student, including their academic, social- emotional, and physical health needs, so that students with a wide range of learning styles, abilities, challenges, and special needs can access a meaningful Jewish education that is reflective of their families’ values. REACH does this by weaving together existing resources and services, establishing new systems and protocols, and delivering a range of assessment and consultation services.
REACH partners with day schools in greater Chicago around four main service areas:
Direct services
Consultation
Professional development
Community collaboration.
Services
REACH services fall into four main categories: Direct Services, Consultation, Professional Development, and Community Collaboration. Specific audiences and activities are in the table on the following page.
Philosophy
REACH frames its approach as addressing neurodiversity in the classroom using a strengths-focused approach to the practice of differentiating instruction for the neuro-diverse brain. This approach can be used when working with all students but is especially useful for helping teachers and administrators approach students who have challenges. REACH’s philosophy is also influenced by the thoughts of Collaborative Problem Solving and the idea that students do well if they can and that success is based on skill, rather than will. Using research based methods, REACH delivers Professional Development founded on models of best practice and data driven information.
As a community with REACH, we are changing Jewish day schools, one child and one classroom at a time. Nechemia Marder says, “I’ve been in REACH since I was in first grade. I feel like my REACH teachers really care a lot about me so does my Rebbe. I really feel like I can walk from it and I can’t wait until I am an adult and you never know, I might be a REACH teacher myself.”
For more information about REACH, contact the ATT at attnews@att.org.
Nearly a century ago, visionaries of Chicago’s Jewish community came together to meet our community’s Jewish educational needs by forming the Associated Talmud Torahs. And as our community has grown and educational standards have shifted, the ATT has evolved as well. Today, our leaders in Jewish education have risen to the challenge to create an educational environment that meets all children’s learning needs. It’s a vision that requires dedication, educational best practices and resources. Thanks to the generosity and leadership of this city, Chicago is rising to the challenge with REACH.
REACH is built upon nearly four decades of educational programming to support day school students with different learning needs. The Oscar A. & Bernice Novick Ptach program was founded nearly 40 years ago to help children who learn differently. The Broner and Sheinfeld families stepped in as the parent body advocating for more services for our students. They were the pioneers that began this journey. They were followed by the Elan Diagnostic center program, thanks to the Mermelstein and Kahn families. Then came the JUF, who was instrumental in starting REACH in a partnership with ATT, initially administered by JCFS to bring all these services under one banner. The JUF brought others to the table as well including the Crown family and MRHT to broaden the support of REACH. A few communal leaders stepped up as well, including the lead gifts of the Esformes and Walder families, along with the Rothners, Hartmans, Robinsons, Davis and Meystels, who all gave us the jump start we needed. Hundreds of other community donors allowed us to expand and grow. We are grateful to those families, individuals and organizations in our Jewish community who laid the foundations for REACH that brings us to today. Thank you for investing and believing in our children.
This leads to today and the future of REACH. Thanks to NWHA/Park Plaza, the future of REACH is more secure than ever. ATT was selected among Chicago-area education organizations to receive multi-year grants from NWHA and Park Plaza, whose board has embarked on a groundbreaking, cross generational effort totaling $11 million to support and sustain Jewish day school education across the Chicago Jewish community. This unprecedented multi-year gift builds on NWHA’s ethos of service to the Chicago Jewish community for more than 75 years and its mission of providing high quality housing for Jewish seniors. NWHA’s flagship facility is Park Plaza, an independent living community located on the far north side of Chicago.
The members of this committee stepped forward and approached the ATT because their goal was to impact as many children in the Jewish community as possible. Rabbi Mordechai Raizman, ATT’s Executive Director of Operations, tells the following story: “We were asked initially to put in a proposal for a 3.5 million dollar endowment. After much preparation and a highly anticipated meeting with the REACH leadership team led by Julie Gordon, we felt relieved and hopeful for a positive outcome.
That evening just a few hours after we met, I received a phone call. We got the grant, but it isn’t $3.5 million. Okay, I am thinking at least we got something. I was told that they were so impressed with the dedicated professionals of the REACH team, they pledged $5 million.
These are a special group of people that truly exhibit the middos of our forefather Avrohom, the paragon of chesed. In the end of shemonehesrei we ask Hashem to bless us because He has given us Toras Chaim and Ahavas Chesed. What is the connection between the two? They seem to be two separate ideas, Torah as the guide for life and the love of chesed – yet they are lumped together?
The truth is they go hand in hand. Many people can give dollars, but most of the time it is after they are asked. I may add sometimes multiple times being asked until they come forward with a gift. To keep our values alive and have a Toras Chaim we need more than that. It needs to come with Ahavas Chesed. The love of chesed demands of us to come forward and give before even being asked. Stepping forward and recognizing the need and then going ahead to fill that need.
Not only did they look for us, asked us to aim high, they went even higher. I have asked other professionals in the field of fundraising and rarely have they heard a story like this. ‘They told you to ask for an amount and then gave you more?’ This is Ahavas chesed that keeps the Jewish people alive.”
Presenting the leadership of NWHA/Park Plaza with the Crain Maling Pillar of Education Award at the ATT dinner on December 8, Rabbi Raizman said, “We are forever grateful for this incredible generosity to impact the lives of hundreds and thousands of students for years to come. On behalf of the schools, administrations, educators, parents and students I thank you and applaud this committee for teaching us this valuable lesson.”
The ATT is one of three recipients to receive the NWHA board’s $11 million in funding over a five-year period. Solomon Schechter Day School of Metropolitan Chicago (SSDS) and Chicago Jewish Day School (CJDS) also received endowment gifts. This funding will maximize each institution’s impact and ensure their long-term sustainability. It will also enable each institution to build further capacity from their respective base of supporters. Like Park Plaza itself, these institutions serve Jewish families across the broad spectrum of the Chicago Jewish community.
“The Hebrew words l’dor v’dor are literally inscribed into the doors at Park Plaza,” says Alan Caplan, president of Northwest Home for the Aged. “From generation to generation; that’s what we believe in, as individuals and as part of the Jewish community, and that’s exactly what this gift is: a gift that gives from one generation to the next, and the next after that. We at NWHA/Park Plaza are thrilled to make these gifts to support Jewish education in and around our communities.”
The NWHA/Park Plaza grant will have a far-reaching impact on ATT’s REACH program. Rusi Sukenik, REACH’s director of student services, says, “This endowment enables us to provide support to schools and teachers to teach struggling learners in a manner that best fits the student and addresses the needs and learning styles and needs of each student.”
Rabbi Raizman adds, “An endowment of this magnitude impacts our day school community in a profound manner. It ensures that no parent will worry that their child is falling through the cracks. This grant gives everyone a chance to succeed. Programs such as REACH are very costly to sustain. This grant is visionary in its nature and will allow us to provide for children for many years to come.”
The cross-generational aspects of Park Plaza are obvious the moment one enters. “Local schoolkids, grandkids, great-grandkids … they’re here all the time,” said Elly Bauman, Executive Director of Park Plaza. “Kids are here to celebrate Shabbat and holidays, to visit relatives, and to volunteer. It’s part of what helps us fulfill our mission of providing Jewish seniors with a life that’s not just comfortable, but which has dignity and meaning.”
“It’s just really what Park Plaza and Northwest Home for the Aged are all about,” says Alan Caplan. “We put l’dor v’dor front and center, the first thing you see when you enter the building, whether you’re a resident or a first-time visitor. It’s what grounds the Jewish community. Northwest Home for the Aged couldn’t be more pleased to put our primary principle into action with these gifts. They are investments in the future of our community.”
Thank you, NWHA/Park Plaza for invest in all of the future – in our children and the next generations to come.
Some 325 educators, community members, friends and lay leaders gathered on Sunday, December 8 to make this year’s 90th ATT celebration in inspiring evening celebrating Jewish education in Chicago.
The dinner came on the heels of planning a new, three-year strategic plan and an unprecedented new endowment to the ATT. Rabbi Mordechai Raizman, Executive Director of Operations, says, “This is an exciting time as we concluded an extensive and thorough look to where we are as an organization and where we are going into the future. Led by our Consultant Debra Nathashon over the last 18 months, we have created and started the implementation of a strategic plan for the next few years to better serve the day school community.”
The ATT was humbled and grateful to recognize Northwest Home for the Aged (NWHA) and Park Plaza with the Crain Maling Pillar of Education Award. ATT was selected among Chicago-area education organizations to receive multi-year grants from NWHA and Park Plaza, whose board has embarked on a groundbreaking, cross generational effort totaling $11 million to support and sustain Jewish day school education across the Chicago Jewish community. This unprecedented multi-year gift builds on NWHA’s ethos of service to the Chicago Jewish community for more than 75 years and its mission of providing high quality housing for Jewish seniors. NWHA’s flagship facility is Park Plaza, an independent living community located on the far north side of Chicago.
After deep consideration, the NWHA board devised a plan to allocate $11 million in funding over a five-year period to three recipients: The Associated Talmud Torahs’ REACH program, Solomon Schechter Day School of Metropolitan Chicago (SSDS) and Chicago Jewish Day School (CJDS). This funding, structured as endowments, will maximize each institution’s impact and ensure their long-term sustainability.
A highlight of the evening’s program was honoring three winners of the the ATT’s 10th Annual Hartman Family Foundation Educator of the Year Awards: Mrs. Sari Kravitt (Hillel Torah North Suburban Day School) whose top award was sponsored in memory of Mrs. Gayle Anne Herwitz, Mrs. Betty Hainsfurther (Arie Crown Hebrew Day School), and Miss Breindy Miller (Joan Dachs Bais Yaakov Elementary School).
Rabbi Avrohom Moller introduced the awards saying, “Robert and Debbie Hartman’s noble intention is to express gratitude to those teachers who dedicate themselves with heart and soul to the most meaningful career one can choose; the passing of our heritage to the next generation and the building of young students into successful people.”
Mrs. Kravitt describes in the video how she once attended the dinner to support a colleague who won the award in a past year and was inspired to become the kind of educator who would one day win the same award. This was extraordinary proof of the importance of the power of this generous Hartman Award that inspires our community’s educators to strive for higher goals and to reward them when they do.
The award and selection process are designed to highlight the superlative and innovative efforts of our educators. The ATT and Hartman Family Foundation hope that through the awarding of this prize not only three of the most outstanding teachers in Chicago are recognized, but the award also further elevates and ennobles the entire profession in the eyes of our community.
Awards are selected by a committee of educational consultants and community members. Selection criteria for the Educator Award include exceptional instructional skills in a nurturing environment, commitment to one’s students’ success, superior communication skills with parents, students, and peers, commitment to continued professional development, and contributions to one’s school’s learning community.
Thank you to the ATT staff and lay leadership who made this year’s annual dinner such a success.
The ATT is proud and grateful to announce we have been selected among Chicago-area education organizations to receive multi-year grants from the Northwest Home for the Aged (NWHA) and Park Plaza. NWHA and Park Plaza have embarked on a groundbreaking, cross generational effort totaling $11 million to support and sustain Jewish day school education across the Chicago Jewish community. This unprecedented multi-year gift builds on NWHA’s ethos of service to the Chicago Jewish community for more than 75 years and its mission of providing high quality housing for Jewish seniors. NWHA’s flagship facility is Park Plaza, an independent living community located on the far north side of Chicago.
The ATT will be honoring NWHA with the Crain Maling Pillar of Education at its annual dinner on December 8.
The gift follows a strategic decision by NWHA to take advantage of the current robust real estate market and sell an investment property that, although valuable, was not part of its core mission. The sale and its proceeds ensured that two vital goals would be met. First, that Northwest Home for the Aged, at its key Park Plaza property, would continue to provide the highest quality independent living for Jewish seniors across metropolitan Chicago. Secondly, that other critical needs within the Jewish community – specifically, Jewish day school education – would receive vital support over an extended time horizon.
After deep consideration, the NWHA board devised a plan to allocate $11 million in funding over a five-year period to three recipients: The Associated Talmud Torahs’ REACH program, Solomon Schechter Day School of Metropolitan Chicago (SSDS) and Chicago Jewish Day School (CJDS). This funding, structured as endowments, will maximize each institution’s impact and ensure their long-term sustainability. It will also enable each institution to build further capacity from their respective base of supporters. Like Park Plaza itself, these institutions serve Jewish families and school children across the broad spectrum of the Chicago Jewish community.
“The Hebrew words l’dor v’dor are literally inscribed into the doors at Park Plaza,” says Alan Caplan, president of Northwest Home for the Aged. “From generation to generation; that’s what we believe in, as individuals and as part of the Jewish community, and that’s exactly what this gift is: a gift that gives from one generation to the next, and the next after that. We at NWHA/Park Plaza are thrilled to make these gifts to support Jewish education in and around our communities.”
The grantees fill important roles in Jewish education across the Chicago area. The Associated Talmud Torahs (ATT), founded in 1929, is the central agency dedicated exclusively to Torah education. Chicago is the only Jewish community in North America that has such a resource. ATT’s REACH program focuses specifically on services for children who learn differently, building the capacity of the Chicagoland Jewish day school system to effectively teach students with a wide range of needs, allowing those students access not only to a meaningful general education, but one which incorporates Jewish learning. The other grantees, Solomon Schechter Day School, in Northbrook, founded in 1962, and Chicago Jewish Day School, in Chicago, founded in 2003, are both pre-school through grade eighth grade Jewish day schools. (CJDS begins with a junior kindergarten program). Both schools serve a diverse Jewish population.
Judy Finkelstein-Taff, CJDS Head of School, said of the NWHA/Park Plaza gift, “It seems very poignant to me as we look at the cycle of our lives and think about how we stand on the shoulders of the ones who came before us. We educate our students to celebrate the diversity of their present, and our students become the next generation of shoulders for their children to stand on. This gift will not only ensure the future of our school, but in a sense, it is ensuring the future of the Jewish people.”
Lena Kushnir, SSDS Head of School, also reflected on the importance of the Park Plaza grant to Schechter. “Both my husband and I are Schechter alumni and are parents of two alumni. As a former Schechter teacher and current Head of School, I can say with great certainty that a Schechter education is invaluable. The foundation that Schechter provides is the bedrock upon which we live our lives. It is simply the best gift I’ve ever received or given. Yet, while the Schechter experience is invaluable, there is a real cost to being able to provide this strong and critical foundation to students and families. The gift from NWHA/Park Plaza to our endowment fund will enable us to provide vital tuition assistance and ensure that more parents will be able to provide their children with a strong Jewish educationalfoundation. We are deeply grateful to NWHA/Park Plaza for this tremendous gift.”
The NWHA/Park Plaza grant will have a far-reaching impact on ATT’s REACH program. Rusi Sukenik, REACH’s director of student services noted, “This endowment enables us to provide support to schools and teachers to teach struggling learners in a manner that best fits the student and addresses the needs and learning styles and needs of each student.” Rabbi Mordechai Raizman, ATT’s Executive Director of Operations added, “An endowment of this magnitude impacts our day school community in a profound manner. It ensures that no parent will worry that their child is falling through the cracks. This grant gives everyone a chance to succeed. Programs such as REACH are very costly to sustain. This grant is visionary in its nature and will allow us to provide for children for many years to come.”
Jewish diversity, inclusion, and acceptance are the hallmarks of NWHA/Park Plaza. The community’s residents span the spectrum of Jewish observance and experience. Many are lifelong Chicagoans. Others have moved to Chicago to be close to adult children and to enjoy a secure, supportive, and fully modern and updated facility. Park Plaza provides a rich Jewish life that includes broad based programming as well as kosher meal service. Park Plaza recently completed a major renovation to allow it to continue to provide a high quality of life to its residents.
The cross-generational aspects of Park Plaza are obvious the moment one enters. “Local schoolkids, grandkids, great-grandkids … they’re here all the time,” said Elly Bauman, Executive Director of Park Plaza. “Kids are here to celebrate Shabbat and holidays, to visit relatives, and to volunteer. It’s part of what helps us fulfill our mission of providing Jewish seniors with a life that’s not just comfortable, but which has dignity and meaning.”
“It’s just really what Park Plaza and Northwest Home for the Aged are all about,” added Alan Caplan. “We put ‘l’dor v’dor’ front and center, the first thing you see when you enter the building, whether you’re a resident or a first-time visitor. It’s what grounds the Jewish community. Northwest Home for the Aged couldn’t be more pleased to put our primary principle into action with these gifts. They are investments in the future of our community.”
