SKAppenings
Erev Rosh Hashannah
28 Elul 5769
September 17, 2009 |
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A Message from Mrs. Spirn
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Baruch Hashem,
we have begun our 17th year at SKA and once again, the sense of enthusiasm is
palpable. There's a feeling of excitement in the hallways and
classrooms....about friends, learning, teachers, activities, classes, programs,
team tryouts and of course, the upcoming Yomim Noraim!
We are so pleased to welcome our new Freshman Class of 82, the SKA Class of 2013.
It was a pleasure and chavaya to spend last Shabbos with all of our freshmen at
our 2nd Freshman Shabbaton retreat, held at Camp Lavi!
We all had an amazing Shabbos filled with fantastic ruach, strengthened and new
friendships and a growing feeling of achdut. It was so special to recite a
meaningful and inspiring selichot together at midnight on motsei Shabbos. We
know our Freshmen will continuously make their mark at SKA over the next four
years! Bruchot habaot to a powerful grade!
"Tryout fever" is definitely in the air! So many girls are opting to
try out for our Sports Teams (Basketball,Volleyball, Hockey, Softball and
Tennis), Production Casts (Band, Choir, Dance and Drama), Torah Bowl,
College Bowl, Math, Debating and Mock Trial teams. We wish everyone mazel
as we await the posting of the various teams with great anticipation.
Hatzlacha rabba!
It was a zechut to welcome the parents of our 9th grade at Freshman Parent
Orientation Night and once again, together with all of our parents at Meet Your
Teachers Night. How wonderful it was to welcome more than 40 moms and
graduates at our opening Lilmod Ule'lamed lecture! We look forward to
welcoming many more women, graduates and students at our opening Community Wide
Lecture, this coming Tuesday night, featuring Rabbi Heshy Kleinman. We
anticipate a wonderful year of parent partnership and engagement under the
leadership of our new dedicated Parent Council Heads, Yocheved Goldberg, Carol
Krauss and Heshie Schertz.
Welcome aboard to all of our new office staff members: Ms. Sima Baron and Ms. Rivka
Rosenblatt.
I want to take
this opportunity to welcome our Alumnae Staff; you are important role
models for our students and they know that you understand what it's like to be
an SKA student! We are so proud to have you come back to SKA; know that you are
a tremendous source of nachat to us! A special welcome to our new Alumnae
Staff: Chabura leaders and Madrichot: Ms. Jessica Cohen, Ms. Atara Feinberg, Ms. Yakira Fuchs, Ms. Yardana Galler, Ms. Shayna Gottesman, Ms. Yael Herring, Ms. Shana Naiman, Ms. Simone Nussbaum, Ms. Jamie Sokolow, Ms. Rena Thalheim, Ms. Jordana Wertheimer, and Ms. Aliza Zombek. We also
would like to welcome Kelly Levy '07, Elisheva Nelson Taitz '06, and Faigy
Weintraub '06, Assistants to Mrs. Taib, our Learning Specialist, and Yael Wienerkur Schwechter, Assistant to Rabbi Zak, Director of Student
Activities. Brucha habaa to Rivki Pianko '01 our new Basketball Coach and
Sarah Gross '07 and Elizabeth Konigsberg '07 our new Varsity Volleyball co-Coaches.
Tzeitchen L'Shalom to the many members of the Class of 2009 who are studying
Torah in Eretz Yisrael. May you be zoche to grow in your learning and avodas
Hashem. I look forward to seeing you all in January at our SKA reunion.
Mazel tov to
our many graduates who celebrated smachot and accomplishments during the summer
months! We tried our best to include the smachot we were aware of, but
inevitably, there are smachot we may have omitted or not known about. If
we did so, please be sure to email us at mazaltov@skahalb.org, so that we can
list your simcha in our next SKAppenings!
May this New Year continue to be filled with personal growth as we prepare for
Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur! Here's to a wonderful year of friendship,
religious growth and academic success!
Ketiva V'Chatima
Tova!
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Freshmen Shabbaton
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Freshmen Shabbaton took place at Camp Lavi
on a rainy weekend! But the rain could not dispel the ruach and
power of the freshmen class. The Shabbaton was great and gave the girls time to
bond with their teachers, peers and SKA alumnae. From relay races to "Family
Ties," to the Newlywed Game featuring administration and staff, to the
wonderful spirited dancing and singing, the Shabbos was fabulous. Tova Hammer, Aleeza Hirt, and Talya
Gottesman shared words of divrei torah and as a grade, the girls learned lots
of new songs at their kumsitz. Motzei Shabbas was jam-packed; starting with a
scavenger hunt around the camp, a melava malka, a self-awareness workshop in
anticipation of Rosh Hashanah, and finally, beautiful and inspiring Selichot.
Thank you to the administration, Rabbi Zak, Mrs. Storch and the G.O. for
planning such a great weekend. Thank you to Rabbi and Mrs. Gelernter, Mr. and
Mrs. Leibtag, Rabbi and Mrs. Menchel, Rabbi and Mrs. Segal, Chaim Hollander,
Michael Nadada and to the madrichot and alumnae, Atara Feinberg, Yardana
Galler, Elana Stavsky and Ally Willig for joining. The girls can't wait for the school-wide
Shabbaton in November!
By: Rebecca Alenick and Esti Hirt
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Freshmen Orientation
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On Wednesday, September 3rd, the Class of 2013 entered SKA for their "first"
orientation. The students had plenty of
time to meet each other, to familiarize themselves with the school while being
involved in exciting ice breakers and games
and to finally get lockers and
schedules! The girls heard beautiful divrei Torah from Jamie Simon and Jessica
Rogelberg and anticipated using the creative bookmarks they made with Mrs.
Libin. During bowling, they were able to
get to know new friends as well as their Grade Level Advisors. The day allowed
for a smooth transition for the first day of school and the girls received a
small glimpse of the exciting year to come!
By: Tova Hammer
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Middle States Accreditation
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SKA recently completed its second Middle States self study.
This two year effort culminated in a visit by the Validation Team of the Middle
States Association of Colleges and Schools. The Team has recommended to the
Commission on Secondary Schools that it grant re-accreditation to the Stella K
Abraham High Schools for Girls.
The visit by the Validation Team, headed by Mr. C. Steven
Heft, took place on March 23, 24, 25 and 26, 2009.
The
Team was "struck by the passion, level of sophistication and engagement
and deep devotion to the school [ by all involved], by her professional
leadership and most of all, the impressive young ladies that are served by
SKA and the larger HALB educational community."
They
noted that " SKA students appear very happy and are very welcoming. It was
so easy to read the look of joy on their faces. As newcomers to SKA, the
Team was made to feel as if it also was an integral part of the
school........The healthy environment provided by SKA is conducive to the
development of women of value. The word family is used very often at SKA
...and the familial association was very much in evidence." In fact, by the end of their visit, the
group felt that they too were "part
of the family."
The
Team concluded that SKA , "under
the direction of your founding leader, has built and maintained an
institution which promotes
educational achievement, personal growth, Jewish values and
traditions and a commitment to both the local and extended community."
Many thanks to Mrs. Sandi Pomerantz for coordinating this
herculean event, to all the faculty members, staff members, and parents whose
input was invaluable and to the students of course, who are the heart of our
school. We are so proud of all of you!
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John Collins Writing Program
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Type I Writing ! 10%
Summary ! FCAs!
What's going on in SKA?
It is the Collins Writing Program which has been introduced
to the school as part of the SKA commitment made during the Middle States
Visitation to introduce writing in all classes "across the curriculum." The
goal of the program, which will be eased into the curriculum department by
department, is to improve writing and raise the level of comprehension and
achievement of our students.
The faculty spent three days last year with Dr. Collins
learning his program. The students heard about it during their orientations and
are now experiencing it in the classrooms. Look for the posters around the
building.....and keep writing!
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Mrs. Sara Taib Wins the Grinspoon Award
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Mazal Tov to Mrs. Sara Taib, the
SKA Learning Specialist, who is the fifth SKA teacher to be awarded the coveted
Grinspoon Award. The award sponsored by
the Harold Grinspoon Foundation and the Steinhardt Foundation for Jewish Life,
in partnership with JESNA, is designed to recognize outstanding Jewish
educators who make lasting impressions on the lives of children.
But of course we already knew
that Mrs. Taib impacts and is so devoted to our students!
We are so honored to have her as
part of the SKA Team and wish her Mazal Tov on the birth of twin boys this
summer.
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AP Scholars
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SKA is
proud to announce the AP Scholars
for the year 2008-2009. These
students earned this recognition on the basis of their outstanding academic
performance with the AP courses and exams.
Seven students qualified for the AP Scholar with Distinction Award by earning an average grade
of at least 3.5 on all AP exams taken and grades of 3 or higher on five or more
of these exams.
Four students
qualified for the AP Scholar with Honor
Award by earning an average grade of at least 3.25 on all AP exams taken
and grades of 3 0r higher on four or more of these exams.
Twelve students qualified for the AP Scholar Award by completing three or
more AP Examinations with grades of 3 or higher.
We
congratulate the following students and their families:
AP
Scholar with Distinction:
Marci Bayer
Shaindel
Schiffmiller
Sarah
Schnoll
Samantha
Selesny
Sara Snow
Julie
Stahler
Daniella
Stein
AP
Scholar with Honor:
Adi Fried
Nicole
Goldstein
Esther
Halpern
Daniella
Nussbaum
AP
Scholar:
Judith
Aidelson
Chaya Leba
Berger
Rachel
Ehrlich
Mati Engel
Elisheva
Fogel
Chavi Glatt
Kimberly
Hay
Leah
Khukhashvili
Miriam
Khukhashvili
Julia
Levine
Daniella
Mael
Jennifer
Moskowitz
Rebecca
Najjar
Shayna
Nordlicht
Penina
Schneider
Aliza
Schwartzblatt
Alex Spitz
Rhonda Steinmetz
Fraida
Streiter
Penina Wein
Elana
Wiesel
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Freshmen Sign Language
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This year, the 9th grade
has been given the privilege to choose between Spanish and Sign Language, a
course never before offered to the Freshmen at SKA. The ninth graders are so
excited to be given this new opportunity and can be seen signing all throughout
the day! We hope to see them participate in the Sign Language portion of this
year's SKA Production as well!
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We would like to express a warm
welcome to the new interns joining us for the school year of 2009-1010: Miss
Miriam Leifer and Mrs. Malka Schwarzmer. Hatzlacha Rabba this year!
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Rabbi Feiner Speaks at SKA
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In anticipation of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, the
students, faculty, and mothers of SKA were privileged to hear from Rabbi Eytan
Feiner , Rabbi of the White Shul in Far Rockaway and by the way, also a HALB
graduate. Rabbi Feiner highlighted the importance of our free will and our
ability to change our names, the name being the essence of whole person. He spoke with passion about the teshuva
process and truly established the proper
mood for the Yamim Noraim. Thank you to Rabbi Feiner for his beautiful words of
Torah and for making the Teshuva process more meaningful.
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Teacher Workshops
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Summertime is a time for teachers
to relax, reflect, prepare and "reboot" for the coming academic year. This past
summer, a number of our teachers attended workshops to continue to "hone" their
skills, attesting to their commitment to being "lifelong learners."
Mrs. Helen Spirn is part of Columbia
University Business School Management program sponsored by the UJA for Day
School Principals, a program which will continue throughout the year. Ms. Adina
Borg attended the Ivriyon, a program devoted to Hebrew immersion. Mrs. Sandi
Pomerantz and Mrs. Sheila Leibtag both attended SMART Board workshops. Mrs.
Elisheva Kaminetsky and Mrs. Sarah Rotenstein attended the Herzog College/
Gush Tanach Yom Iyun in Israel.
Mrs. Ellen Lavner participated in three separate Economics workshops. Mrs.
Deena Kobre and Mrs. Ronit Haber are new mentees in the Lookstein ELAI
leadership training program where Dr. Tzipora Meier continues as a mentor.
We are proud of our staff's
commitment to continued self growth and learning.
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Meet Your Teachers Night
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The first SKA "evening hallway
buzz" of the year was created by parents on Tuesday evening, September 15,
2009, at Meet Your Teachers Night. Mrs. Spirn's welcome, highlighting all that
is available for parents at SKA, and Dr. Meier's Power Point presentation on the
Collins Writing Program, set the tone for the evening. And then the parents,
equipped with individual schedules reflecting their daughters' daily routines,
went from room to room, listening to the teachers and sharing in their
excitement for the coming year. We were glad to see new and familiar faces and
we all look forward to wonderful learning at SKA!
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Freshmen Outing
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This past Wednesday, the Freshmen enjoyed lunch on the
beautiful SKA grounds. The girls enjoyed beautiful weather, a fun kickball
game. And an ice cream surprise, building on their already standing achdus with
their teachers and classmates. They look forward to more exciting events to
make their Freshmen year the best ever!
By: Nicole Bodek, Raquel Glickman, and Tamar Kwestel
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Sophomore Outing
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The 10th graders spent their annual Sophomore outing at the Rubin
house for an awesome pool party! They were greeted by a beautiful cake,
lemonade, and delicious cherry ices. There was swimming, volleyball, a
trampoline and all types of fun games on what was a most beautiful day - the
perfect time to catch up with the girls they hadn't seen all summer. A big
thanks to Dina and Aliza Rubin and their family for hosting such a fun filled
day! Hakarat hatov to Grade Level
Advisors, Mrs. Elana Jacobs and Ms. Miriam Leifer for planning the outing.
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Junior Outing
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Straight to Shoshana Schneider's house in West
Hempstead! That's where the 11th grade went for the
annual Junior outing. The girls enjoyed a scrumptious lunch, played many games
and made delicious ice cream sundaes. It was a great afternoon filled with
achdut and treats! A special thanks to the Schneider family for hosting
the Junior grade for lunch and more! Hakarat hatov to Grade Level Advisors Mrs.
Avi Shmulewitz and Mrs. Jaclyn Sova.
By: Esti
Chesner and Elana Krauss
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Senior Outing
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It was a beautiful day for the
beach and that is where the Senior class
went on September 15th. The girls set up their towels and enjoyed
their delicious lunches, bonding, playing
Frisbee, and relaxing. Special thank you to Mrs. Kobre and Mrs. Ralbag
for providing the girls with iced coffee and doughnuts. To end off a great
afternoon, the Seniors took a grade picture in the shape of "10." It was the
perfect start to the school year for the Seniors of 2010!
By: Emily Feldman
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Summer Alumnae Shiur
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If you thought that come June, July and August, SKA closes it's doors, and
doesn't reopen them until September, you are quite mistaken. In contrast to
silent halls and classrooms, all the Administrators are still hard at work, and
Caesar and Willy continue to maintain the building. And learning? That certainly
never stops, thanks to Rabbi Eisenbach's Friday Morning Alumnae Shiurim. Though
you may have assumed that alumnae were busy working or had gone away for Shabbas,
time and again the circles in the library were full as the shiur became the
highlight of our week. Focusing on the parsha, haftaros and the chagim of the
summer months, Rabbi Eisenbach taught us with his unique style and wisdom, and
kept us informed and updated with weekly emails. It was wonderful having this
dose of spirituality in our summer months! We can't wait until next summer.
Thank you Rabbi Eisenbach!
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Cooper Union Visits SKA
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College thoughts have begun at SKA.
This week, the juniors and seniors attended a presentation
given by the Cooper Union representative Mr. John Falls, who spoke about the
various programs and opportunities offered at Cooper Union, followed by the
requirements for applying to the college. The students learned about the
school's three main focuses: art, architecture, and engineering and were then
given "Cooper Union" pens.
Other colleges will be visiting soon and remember College
Night on October 13th, right after Sukkot vacation!
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Senior Seminar
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This year, a new and exciting program has begun at SKA. The
Senior Seminar program occurs once a week, and is an opportunity for the Seniors
to be exposed to speakers and workshops which will help them as they think of their lives beyond high school.
The opening speaker was Rebbitzen Aviva Feiner who spoke to
the girls about new beginnings in connection with Rosh Hashanah. This week's
seminar was about making Viduy more
personal and more applicable to the students' individual lives. Thanks to Mrs.
Kaminetsky for working tirelessly to arrange this new program - a great new
addition at SKA!
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Lilmod Ule'Lamed
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Our
Lilmod Ule'lamed Program for HALB mothers and SKA alumnae will continue at SKA this
Tuesday, September 22, at 12:30 P.M. in Room 110 with the second in a three
part series lecture by Mrs. Elisheva Kaminetsky. Mrs. Kaminetsky, Director of
Religious Guidance at SKA and beloved
teacher of Tanach, will help us prepare for Yom Kippur with her shiur on "Viduy:
Taking Responsibility for Our Actions."
This
first series is being sponsored by Chana and Jay Fenster and Family l'zecher
nishmat Dovid Aryeh ben Yehoshua.
Rabbi Danny Eisenbach, SKA
Mashgiach Ruchani, will continue his popular classes on Chovot Halevavot
(Duties of the Heart), a classic mussar sefer written by R' Bachya ben Joseph
ibn Paquda. His shiur on Themes of Teshuva will precede the Lilmod Ule'lamed
class and will start at 11:30 AM on Tuesday in Room 110. Rabbi Eisenbach's
shiur will conclude in time for those who would also like to attend Mrs.
Kaminetsky's class.
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Parent Council Update
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Welcome back everyone from your
summer break!
So much has been going on at SKA! We
enjoyed welcoming our freshmen, getting to know all the new faces at lice
check/orientation and seeing how excited they were to become part of our SKA
family
The Parent Council has been working
on several new programs for the coming year which we will be announcing shortly
after Sukkot. Our goal is to enhance the
SKA experience for our girls while they are in high school. We look forward to your participation this
year and should you have any concerns or ideas for programs, do not hesitate to
contact anyone on the Parent Council.
Wishing you all a Shana Tova
U'metuka, a year of health, happiness and an opportunity for new beginnings.
Yocheved Goldberg
Carol Krauss
Heshie Schertz
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G.O. Corner
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To kick-off the 2009-2010 school year, the G.O., also known
as "REDETA", prepared a slide show to pump everyone up for the exciting things
that will be happening throughout the school year. "REDETA" also had the
privilege of joining the Freshmen on their Shabbaton in Camp Lavi,
where they enjoyed spending time with the 9th graders and getting to
know them. The G.O. has started "Muffin Monday" this week and provided the
girls with apple-bobbing and snacks in honor of Rosh Hashana. "REDETA" wishes
everyone a Shana Tova U'Metuka!
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Kinus Teshuva Lecture for Women
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Mrs. Tamar Bindiger on the engagement of her daughter Ayala '05
Mrs. Phyllis Brenner on the engagement of her son
Mrs. Rivka Gross on the birth of a baby girl
Ms. Rivkah Rosenblatt on her engagement to Jonathan
Bernstein
Mrs. Sara Taib on the birth of twin boys
Rivky Bell '07 on her engagement to Daniel Keebler
Ayala Bindiger '05 on her engagement to Avi Adler
Tamar Gafni '05 on her engagement to David Simon
Gila Glikman '05 on her engagement to Shmuli Labell
Lisa Golombeck '06 on her engagement to Ben Lowy
Sarah Gross '07 on her engagement to Yossi Faber
Arianna Mazurek '04 on her engagement to Adam Muskatt
Shira Pasternak '04 on her engagement to Sammy Moer
Lakey Seidenwar '03 on her engagement to Josh Silverman
Evie Smulevitz '05 on her engagement to Philip Hoffman
Alyse Stein '05 on her engagement to Michael Applebaum
Orly English '07 on her marriage to Shlomo Glowitz
Robyn Fenster '04 on her marriage to David Rackman
Penina Gold '05 on her marriage to Avi Sipzner
Meira Klein '03 on her marriage
Michal Leibowitz '06 on her marriage to Noah Zisquit
Frumee Pelcovitz '07 on her marriage to Raphi Taubenfeld
Abby Rosenblatt '04 on her marriage to Elie Klein
Aviva Schiffmiller '06 on her marriage to Yoni Weinberg
Shanie Schulman '05 on her marriage to Dovid Warman
Adina Snow '06 on her marriage to Sean Sinnereich
Arielle Weinberg '06 on her marriage to Moshe Spern
Aviva Minkoff Blumstein '01 on the birth of a baby girl
Shari Gross Lauer '03 on the birth of a baby boy
Chaya Sosnowik Maza '04 on the birth of a baby girl
Zahava Feinerman Moss '97 on the birth of a baby girl, Gavriella Ahuva and on her recent Alyiya to Eretz Yisrael
Rebecca Simon Packer '06 on the birth of a baby boy, Yosef Nissim
Leah Minkoff Schutz '04 on the birth of a baby boy
Rachel Diamond Snyder '05 on the birth of a baby boy
Lauren Rosenberg
'99 on the birt of a baby boy
Jessica '04 and Nina '07 on the loss of their father Joel
Cohen a"h
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SKAppenings Staff
Writing Editors:
Erica Leibman
Shayna Nordlicht
Michal Schulman
Tova Hammer
Technology Editors:
Mrs. Estie Bryk
Ariella Bortz
Shoshana Kaminetsky
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