After losing four members of the teaching staff and the head of school last year, NYHS has a new set of teachers and staff this year.
The new staff includes a college counselor, head of Beit Midrash, programming coordinator, a head of school and many teachers replacing the entire Judaics staff that left.
Rabbi Yonatan and Eliana Himelstein were hired and moved to Seattle from Israel with their three kids. Rabbi Himelstein is taking over for Rabbi Rothstein as the head of the Judaics Studies, meaning he is in charge of the Judaic curriculum and making sure there is a Jewish atmosphere. This year Rabbi Himelstein is teaching Halacha, Gemara, and Parasha.
“My main goal is that people will be able to connect Judaism to Israel,” Rabbi Himelstein says. “A lot of times we miss that, which is [a major part of] learning, and that’s why it’s important to have a special kind of learning between us on Friday [in Parasha class].”
Elianna Himelstein teaches Tanakh for 9th and 10th grade as well as a Judaics elective class, but her favorite subject to teach is Nevi’im (prophets) because of the stories.
“It’s better than any fiction movie,” she said.“It’s really interesting with just the twists and turns and there are really good characters.”
In Israel, she was a midwife, and it still shapes her today.
“You need to be there with [the patients], and be empathetic, and just be there for them 100 percent even though you’re not them,” she said. “That’s something that I take with me into the classroom.”
Another rabbi NYHS had to say goodbye to was head of school Rabbi Yehudah Gabay. This year, one of the school’s alumni has taken charge as the new head of school. Rabbi Ben Aaronson was the main candidate for the head of school because of his strong ties to Seattle and his reputation as a professional teacher and rabbi, you can find more about this in the Mane Idea editorial staff’s article Judaic staff take off.
Another teacher who teaches Tanakh this year is Ms. Shimona Davidoff. She started last year in the second semester substituting for Ms. Sarale Rivkin, who is currently on maternity leave. In addition to teaching, Davidoff has a custom cake business.
“I decided that I was going to make a cake for [my brother’s] bar mitzvah, and it was far from amazing, but I love the whole process,” she said. “I always found cake decorating really fascinating.”
Rav Justin Eichel is the new programming coordinator, meaning he is in charge of all events at the school. In addition to being the programming coordinator, he teaches Parasha, Halacha, and Talmud.
“This year, my goal is to expose students to different ways to think and also to challenge them to think,” Eichel said. “Also to develop a real connection to Judaism not just inside of the school but outside too.”
During this summer, one of the school’s math teachers, Melinda McCartney, left NYHS to go to another school. Ms. Rivkah Singh filled her position. Singh was a college algebra math professor at Miami Dade College in Florida; later on, her husband convinced her to enter the tech world. With her new job they later relocated her to Seattle. Singh wanted to go back into teaching so once she saw the job, she applied. She loves math and to inspire kids.
“When I first started, I wasn’t a math major, and I was not smart and that was confusing for me,” Singh said. “Then I learned that math can be beautiful.”
For example, Singh says, the golden ratio, which equals approximately 1.68, can be seen in many different ways at a fundamental level. One example of the golden ratio is a flower, with all the patterns in the proportions of the flower.
NYHS added another part time teacher and new faculty member , Mr. Jay Schreiber, who teaches Jewish history to juniors and seniors.
Ms. Kimberly Frankwick is the school’s new college counselor. She has worked in different education programs across the world, including Education USA, based in Russia, the College Prep Club for Ukraine, and the International Rescue Committee. With the previous experiences, Frankwick has expanded the college guidance folder to add more resources to it, including videos for each step of the application process. Her goal for this year is to help establish a long-term post-secondary planning program, the College and Career Readiness Program.
“It is talking with students from their first year here at NYHS and discussing with them what their passions are, where their skills lie, and figuring out where those things intersect,” she said.
Aaronson’s goal for the year is to learn with and get to know all of his students. Beyond the school gates, he hopes to share more information about NYHS with more people.
“I want to show people the school first hand,” he said.
Each staff member has a different set of goals. One goal that they all share is to get to know all the students and continue to build the community of NYHS. Rav Eichel wants to encourage thoughtful, lasting engagement with Jewish life. Aaronson wants to share the school with the world. Rabbi Himelstein and Mrs. Himelstein want to deepen student’s connection to Israel and Judaism.
“I would love to get to know you guys better and be there for you. [I can] help you guys in any way that I can help you, whether it’s in school or in general,” Mrs. Himelstein said.
