Kudos to Dani Lent and Emily Levine on becoming Semifinalists in the Siemens Westinghouse Science and Technology Competition. They spent this past summer at Stony Brook University researching an alternative method of recycling plastics using supercritical carbon dioxide. They submitted their paper in early October and were the only team from an all girls Yeshiva High School to be selected as semi-finalists. They hope to contend for the National Siemens Competition where they are eligible to win from $10,000 to $100,000 in scholarship prizes.

Congratulations on a superb job!

On Thursday, October 26th, SKA was excited to go to the first college bowl meet of the year. Junior Varsity and Varsity each did really well, winning four games overall. They had a lot of fun showing their diverse knowledge in such broad categories as literature, sports and current events. Wish the SKA College Bowl team luck on Tuesday, November 14th as they compete on the Long Island Challenge, a televised regional college bowl meet!

Soup Kitchen Trips...Homework Helping... Kulanu Mentoring...Hospital Visits...With the myriad of Chesed opportunities available at SKA, a new student could get confused about how to get involved and how to choose what’s best suited for her. In an effort to acclimate the 9th grade to what they soon discover is an essential part of their high school experience, every year we host an annual Chesed Fair that introduces them to the general importance of helping others and to the specific programs offered at SKA.

At this year’s Chesed Fair we were honored to hear from Mrs. Nicole Gleitman, a true model of Chesed in our community. She inspired us with stories of how she and her husband created the store, Claire’s Treasures, and with her many illustrations of how one good deed causes another. We then watched a video that demonstrated, in an amusing and entertaining way, how good it feels to perform random acts of kindness to others.

Finally, we were led from room to room and treated to brief presentations by the seniors and juniors who head the various Chesed committees. They gave us all the information necessary to get involved and they got us excited about their programs – Tzedaka Collection, Soup Kitchen, Yachad, Homework Helpers, Clothing Gamach, Kulanu, Intergenerational Programs and Hospital Visits. Thank you so much to all the Chesed Heads whose effort and creativity made the night such a success and to Mrs. Gleitman for taking time out of her busy schedule and for generously offering to sponsor the evening.

SKA is proud to have begun hosting the Hewlett chapter of JEP Long Island for the third consecutive year. Each Monday night, SKA girls volunteer to stay after school to learn one-on-one with public school students, providing them with their only exposure to Torah and Judaism. A big thank you to Jamie Beitler for the tremendous effort she puts in to make this weekly event possible.

On Thursday, the eleventh graders went on their annual trip to help the Hebrew Free Burial Association clean up its cemetery and perform a chesed shel emet. Rabbi Dovid Weinberger delivered an inspiring shiur before our departure, emphasizing the importance of kavod hamet and the appropriate kedusha at a cemetery. The Hebrew Free Burial Association is an organization that was founded in 1888 that has facilitated the burial of more than 50,000 people. They raise money and care for Jewish people who cannot afford the expenses of a proper Jewish burial, as well as people who don’t have relatives or friends to handle their affairs when they pass away. Because they are a nonprofit organization they rely on volunteers, like us, to help with the upkeep of their cemetery. We did various jobs to help honor the deceased including, pruning, raking, weeding and cleaning garbage or graffiti from the graves. We are proud that as a result of our continued support for the Hebrew Free Burial Association, so many other schools have volunteered their time on behalf of this worthy cause.

Also on Thursday, the Sophomores set off on their annual Chesed Trip to Brooklyn. They were given a choice of four chessed opportunities and were able to choose which they preferred. Part of the grade went to help at Bobby's Place, a gamach set up as a regular store with racks of clothing and a cash register, when in fact there is no charge for any of the merchandise. Others went to the Bnai Refael Chesed Store where we offered much needed help in sorting and hanging donated clothing. Still others opted to help special needs children and we brought projects to make together with the children at HASC and at Otzar. We sang, made projects and even danced – it was a lot of fun and very rewarding!

We wish much luck to the many SKA students who have begun volunteering their Sunday mornings to work in the Kulanu Shadow Program and to the 30 girls who will be attending the annual Yachad Leadership Shabbaton next Shabbos. Thank you very much to Nava Dworetsky for her hard work.

Last Monday, October 23, we—freshmen—went all the way up to Ring Homestead, where, despite the cold weather, everyone had a blast, both on the bus and in the actual place. We loved learning how to climb up a tree with a harness, jump off the board, and then swing down on the zip line. It was a lesson of trust and overcoming fears as well; having to place all your confidence in a stranger that he wouldn’t let you fall and overcoming the overwhelming fear when you jumped from such great heights. The bus was an amazing experience; everyone bonded over the movies that we watched together, the food we shared, and the lively conversations that went on. I’m sure I can say that this was one of the best 9th grade trips EVER!!

On Monday, everyone participated in an Israel program, designed by our own Mrs. Feinberg. Each class received an individual map of Israel, and each student participated by learning about a city in Israel. Then, with the help of the rest of the class, each city was located and together, the class assembled a floor puzzle of the State of Israel. The objective of the game was to familiarize the students with the map of Israel in a way that is fun and informative. We look forward to our next program during the week of Parshat Chaya Sarah!

The SKA Math Team boarded the buses on Tuesday, October 17, and headed all the way to DRS to compete in the first of many math competitions. Eagerly, with pencils poised, the girls answered a total of six math questions that encouraged them to “think outside of the box” by utilizing different math concepts they learned to figure out the problems. The Math Team attends a weekly club run by their advisor, Mrs. Budne, where the girls learn new and exciting math tips that help train them for these monthly “math meets.” We wish the girls much hatzlacha in future competitions!

Elections rolled around this year for the freshman class, leaving the entire grade in suspense wondering who would win. Both girls were equally capable, both campaigns were very impressive, and both speeches were lots of fun to listen to. Congratulations to the winner, Beth Weinstein!

Many of the SKA Alumnae learning in Israel were treated to a little home cooking this Sukkot. Our own, Mrs. Feinberg spent Sukkot in Israel visiting her daughter, Atara, who is learning in Michlalah. So many of Mrs. Feinberg's students came to visit, shmooze, and enjoy a little home cooked food!

SKA/DRS Shown in this Week's Issue of Israel Highway

On the Wednesday after vacation, students enjoyed the festivities and fun of an SKA Student Appreciation Day, compliments of the G.O.

Students felt appreciated all day, and were especially excited to receive 400 zepolies and soda during the mincha break. They also had fun dancing to “L’Gabei” and catching large brightly colored beach balls from the G.O members who were onstage.

“Student Appreciation Day was really exciting and fun” said Danielle Orner, SKA senior. SKA junior Leora Niderberg agrees. “My friends and I had a blast” she said. “The G.O this year is really amazing.”

If you can't "come back" to SKA on Friday mornings, you can still have the opportunity to learn with Rabbi Eisenbach.

Click on the link below and you will be able to hear Rabbi Eisenbach's first three Friday morning shiurim this year for our graduates.

Sophomore Substance Abuse Program Tuesday Evening, October 31st at 7:30pm for girls and their parents


Honor's Society Induction
The Honor Society Induction Program will take place on Monday, November 6th will be held at 8:00 p.m