Chicago Jewish Academy - Memoirs Yearbook (Chicago, IL)

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NIEMUIRS A - J ' 'Ist row Y Enchenstem D Brody D Merrm A Kwa wasser F Perl 2nd row A Cohen R Co en nc Schachfer S Greengus Academy Faculty of 1944 Torah Chapter National Honor Society lnducted May 22 1952 Twenty one l , . - siein h , F. R' h, R.

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MEMOIRS 1111 A Retrospect:ve V:ew of the Ch:cago Jew:sh cademy BY CYRIL RUBIN In the m:dst of the great ond thr:v:ng metropol:s of Ch:cago a c:tv teem:ng w:th huge steel skyscrapers lorge factorues and :nst:tut:ons of all types :s found the Ch: cogo Jew:sh Academy a school the fame and och:eve ments of wh:ch have been w:delv acclolmed Stond:ng erect among the numerous :nst:tut:ons of h:gher leorn:ng the Academy :n :ts relat:vely short ex:stence of ten years has r:sen to such lofty helghts that :t :s o source of honor ond prude to :ts students votor:es and the Jew:sh com munity of Ch:cago Just as Ch:cago :s o bustl:ng metro pol:s of bus:ness and :ndustry so :s the Academy o busy center of learn:ng lt has sent forth :ts beacon of l:ght over th:s vast land of ours and has :nsp:red Jew:sh youth :n other commun:t:es as well even outs:de the nat:onol borders to come w:th:n :ts portals to seek o Jew:sh educatlon :n the trod:t:onol atmosphere wh:ch the Academy offers As a wr:ter once Sdld The sp:r:t of Ch:cago huge great no:sv monster luke andthe sp:r:t of Jew:sh knowledge calm modest :nsp:red seem to Ive hormon:ousIy s:de by snde How the Academy has expanded and progressed through the years :s an :nterestmg story :n :tself Of greater :nterest and :mportance however :s the tale of courage ond struggle exper:ments and exper:ences :n th:s new field of reI:g:ous Jew:sh educatlon wh:ch g:ve the school :ts character and mot:vot:ng force Dur:ng the summer of T942 wh:le the fate of l:berty was be:ng determ:ned on the battlefield leaders from the Assoc:oted Talmud Torohs and the Hebrew Theolog:cal College Max Cohen Alex E:senste:n Robb: Ephronm Epste:n Robb: Jacob Greenberg Robb: Leonard C M:shk:n Robb: Menaham B Sacks Robb: Samuel S:egel and Robb: Soul S:lber met and formulated plans for a school wh:ch would offer o program of Jew:sh stud:es and practuces :n the trod:t:onal manner and also the secular sublects taught :n the publ:c h:gh schools of Ch:cago The advantages to be afforded the Jew:sh student were many The student would not be labormg under the burden of first attend:ng o publ:c school then hastenlng to o Hebrew school of the Yesh:va All of h:s stud:es would be g:ven :n the some bu:ld:ng w:th a well planned all :nclusuve program :n each department Also because of the smaller s:ze of the classes the student would ga:n from the :ncreased personal gu:dance ond :nd:v:duol asslstance of h:s :nstructors Hence he mnght be :nsp:red to seek more knowledge ond understand:ng :n h:s chosen field of endeavor Close assoc:ot:on w:th fr:ends and compan:ons of a common rel:g:ous back ground would tend to strengthen h:s Jewushness ond de velop h:s character and personal:tv But the all :mpor tant benefit for the Jew:sh boy and g:rl would be o basuc tra:n:ng :n the proct:ces ond trad:t:ons of our glorlous hentage o wonderful background for the future leaders and laymen of our commun:t:es At that t:me the prospects for the found:ng of such a school and mak:ng of :t a success were quest:onable snnce publ:c react:on to th:s expernment was on unknow factor and students were not yet convlnced of :ts poten t:ol:t:es However the enthusuosm and v:s:on of the founders overcame all obstacles and gave b:rth to th:s new baby th:s challenge to progress:ve Jew:sh educa t:on ln September 1942 the doors of the Academy were opened ond forty two students passed through :ts por tols Although the school was planned as o :umor and sen:or h:gh school w:th grades from seventh to twelfth the onlv grades orgamzed dur:ng the first year were the seventh elghth and nlnth compr:s:ng the lumor h:gh school d:v:s:on Dur:ng the next three success:ve years the sen:or grades were added At first the school was housed w:th:n the bu:ld:ng of the Hebrew Theolog:cal College Ten teachers composed the comb:ned faculty d:rector Dr Paul R P:erce gave the school the benefit of h:ghly valued exper:ence :n profess:onal school ad m:n:strot:on Robb: Herzl Kaplan was the head of the Jew:sh department Robb: Jacob Greenberg and Robb: Leonard C M:shk:n served as educot:onal consul lCIFIYS The Academy from :ts beg:nn:ng to the present day may be compared to o new born ch:ld exper:en c:ng all the aches and grow:ng pa:ns of ch:ldhood the tr:als of adolescence and the problems :nherent :n str:v :ng for matur:tv and self rel:ance The school remo:ned at the Yesh:va bu:ld:ng for five full years Dur:ng that t:me the enrollment :ncreased threefold to 125 students Because of th:s grotlfyng :ncrease :n the student body many defic:enc:es become evudent :n the school plant and also :n :ts educot:onal program Recogn:t:on by the occred:t:ng authormes was not forthcom:ng be cause of the phvslcal l:m:tat:ons of the bu:ld:ng The need to expand and to ga:n offic:al stand:ng as an accred:ted h:gh school was the dr:v:ng force :n the purchase of o large and spac:ous bu:ld:ng dur:ng the Spr:ng of 1945 These quarters of the CJA were remodeled and furmshed w:th all modern fac:l:t:es Almost all the expectotnons of the odm:n:strat:on and Continued on page 31 Twenty J I 1 T o o o o I . . I . - I , - . - ' i . G I f ' ..... I Q I T I I . . . A I . . . . H- ' ' ' . I . . . . I . I . I I ' I I I - I - . . 1, . . ' , I . . . . 1 I . I . I ' 1 1 1 , 1 ' 1 ' ' -. I I I . I I I I I I I I I I I ,I I 7 I 1 1 ' , ' I ' ' - The first pr:nc:pol, Glenn K. Kelly, and the consult:ng ' Q I I I n I I I ' I . I I I . ' l I I I . Q . . . - - I . . I . . ' ' I 1 I 1 - ' D , I . . l I ' - I A 11 ' -- 11 -I - I I , I . . I . I A - ' ' , . . . . , . . , . . . , ' , ' . . . . . . . I . ' I

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WIPMUIRS 4.4 wa 'pw up mm 'win mar' K g ww fr 'bv I ' Yf fd T IS THE PU12PosE ot our school to mtegrate secular studxes Wlth a thorough lGW1Sl1 edu catmon m order to foster rel1g1ous hvmg and learnmg among the rank and t1le of Amemcan lew1sh youth We the students proudly uphold and promote thls motto of our school and pledge ourselves to l1ve up to 1ts mdeals as symbol1zed by the torch and the Torah scroll f as we to com me Tow stu KI wtf some wok 91.1 occu afcon 2 I .' I7 ' ' 7 ' t 0 N Q Q H . N 1 X X N 'wil f I I u 'LJ N lllllllll ll ' ' ' ' '-m.,,,m ',,,,.l-vf ' ' I' ' ' --1'-.1 qvff' Hsu n.,- I tab? -'I A . . . .?4l ' I l 4 J min- i I. - I , . . .ll zulu' ' uyk-nfl ,:...,l.,, 4 '1'k ' ' ' .- M-A -f . '. .l, 'Tw-4' um ' , '- llllllllllllf' I A I K ' . 9 ' ll lv' L 9 . L l I P . u T ty-t