From the Head of School

Shabbat Shalom

Yom Hashoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day) carries sacred meaning for us at Yavneh, as our senior class participates in the March of the Living, and our underclassmen mark the day with special reverence and personal maturity. Our deepest appreciation for leading the March goes to Pam Fine, Rabbi Meir Tannenbaum, Holocaust Survivor and Yavneh grandparent Max Glauben, and Emily Rohan '12 for their care and expertise during this experience of a lifetime.

Educators often ask themselves about the lasting impact of a learning experience. Here are a few Facebook posts from our alumni this week:

"On this day, I remember those who were murdered for being Jewish, and I vow never to judge or punish anyone based on their identity. This I must never forget." (Dalya Romaner '14)

"Reflections on the Eve of Yom HaShoah: A day doesn't go by that I don't think about March of the Living. Tonight, I remember the 6 million Jews who perished in the Holocaust." (Samantha Harris '15)

Here on campus, we were honored to have Cantor Zhrebker, together with Rabbi Grebenau, Rabbi Yaakov Tannenbaum and Rabbi Lomner and a group of students, lead us in a meaningful program and service.

Special thanks to Morah Bracha and Brennen Bliss '18 for planning and working this terrific program. The students read passages from wartime diaries and struck an appropriately solemn note as we, as the Yavneh community, vowed together, "Never forget - never again!"

It is indeed good to be back together following Pesach break. Our students and faculty are back to the serious work of academics and participation in Jewish Life, and we appreciate your support of our students and programs.

Shabbat Shalom,

Dr. David A. Portnoy, Head of School

There is a well-known clause in Jewish law that states that if one is preoccupied with the fulfillment of one Mitzvah, he is exempt from fulfilling any other positive commandment. For example if one is busy helping feed his elderly parents and a friend asks him to join him in visiting several sick patients in the hospital, he would not be expected to visit the sick patients because he is already busy fulfilling the commandment of honoring his parents. Although, there are many details and minutiae to this law, this is the general principle that governs our potential Mitzvot dilemmas or conflicts. There are many reasons given to explain the rationale behind this legal principle, however the Gerrer Rebbe, R. Yitzchak Meir Alter, offers a unique explanation based on the words of the verse in this week's Parsha.

The Torah tells us (18,5) "You shall watch my laws and my statutes to fulfill them, VeChay Bahem, and you shall live by them." The classic Chassidic explanation of this verse is that the Torah is telling us that the proper fulfillment of Mitzvot is with a sense of life and passion. Mitzvot cannot be done without feeling and vibrancy, they must be done with Chay, life and feeling. However, the Gerrer Rebbe sees a much greater obligation in this verse, not just must the Mitzvot be performed with a sense of life, but they must be performed literally with one's life. The Mitzvah should be completed even to the extent that it literally drains one of his life. However, the fact that the Mitzvah figuratively comes with this heavy price is not something to be dreaded or feared because this very verse also guarantees that, VeChay Beham, we will live by them.

The Rebbe sees a true performance of a Mtizvah as an act of death and rebirth. One should not hold back in the performance of any Mitzvah, for fear of overexertion or great discomfort, because that is the price of Mitzvot. In the view of the Rebbe, Mitzvot performed with any less than this complete devotion is simply not considered a Mitzvah. However, the Rebbe assures us that a new and better person will emerge safely and surely from the performance of this great deed. The verse demands life as the price for the Mitzvah, but also promises life as its reward.

Mark Your Calendars!

May

5-11		Yom HaZikaron - Regular School Schedule Israel's Memorial Day and Independence Day Event Schultz Rosenberg Campus 7:30 - 9:30 p.m.
5-12		Yom HaAtzmaut - Regular School Schedule
5-17		Parent Coffee - 8:15 a.m. Yiddishe Kup
5-22		Graduation - 3:00 p.m. Schultz Family Gym
5-24		Athletic Banquet - 6:00 p.m. Pollman Hall
5-26		Lag BaOmer - Regular School Schedule
5-30		Memorial Day - No School

Click here to see more dates

Lunch Calendar

Remember, to hear more about the Parsha of the week, parents can join Rabbi Ariel Rackovsky in the Atrium Boardroom every Thursday morning from 8:15 a.m. to 8:45 a.m.

March of the Living - Week 1, Poland

Click here to read a special dvar Torah by Benji Zoller '16 from the March.

Knesset Members Visit Yavneh

On Wednesday, May 4, we were honored by the visit of three Members of the Israeli Knesset: Meir Cohen, Michal Rozin, and Dr. Nachman Shai. Mr. Cohen, a member of the Yesh Atid party, is Israel's former Minister of Welfare; Ms. Rozin, a member of Meretz, serves on the Knesset Lobby for Equality and Pluralism; and Dr. Shai, of the Zionist Union Party, is the Chair of the Knesset Lobby for Strengthening the Jewish People. Following a tour of the campus, the MKs met with several board members and long-time Yavneh supporters to discuss Jewish Day School education, governance and financing issues. Thank you to the Jewish Federation and the JCRC for arranging this special visit to Yavneh!

SENIOR

David Steinbrecher

Parent: Janyce and Jacob Steinbrecher

Synagogue: Share Tefilla

Prior School: Akiba Academy

Favorite Class: Math

Favorite Co-Curricular: Varsity Basketball

Yavneh is....a support network that promotes both spiritual and academic growth.

Mazel Tov & Alumni News

The Hidden Green in Earth Day

A blog by Charlie Saginaw '07 in the Huffington Post

To me, 'Earth Day in Texas' evokes the mental image of cowboys tending to oil derricks and treehuggers advocating to protect polar ice caps from melting. In 1970, John McConnell founded the holiday to highlight environmental deterioration caused by human actions and inspire us all to protect the Earth through collective activism. In 2016, the way to broaden the reach and potential impact of Earth Day is to showcase its economic opportunity.

Read More at the Huffington Post

Mazel Tov to Noah Donnenfield '10 who recently became engaged to Emily Byrd of San Antonio. They met as counselors at Greene Family Camp almost 5 years ago! A late spring, 2017 wedding is planned.

Mazel Tov to Gavin Shrell '16 on his attainment of the Eagle Scout Rank with the Boy Scouts of America. This is the Scouts highest achievement and we applaud Gavin's years of work towards this goal!

Mazel Tov to Avi Baynash '16 on his scholarship award from the Farra Julianne Bloom Memorial Benefiting Children of the Dallas Jewish Community Foundation. He was chosen from a field of highly qualified candidates, and we are proud to recognize his achievement and accomplishments.

Next Parent Coffee: May 17th

In the spirit of building community at Yavneh, we are pleased to announce opportunities for Yavneh Parents to get together for coffee and conversation. Please join us on May 17th at 8:15 am at the Yiddishe Kup on campus. This is open to all parents and is a great way to get to know other parents at the school! Check the Etone for upcoming dates and locations. For more information, contact Elina Minkoff at elinaglenn@yahoo.com or Terri Greenspan at tetg@aol.com.

Yavneh Bulldog Athletic Banquet 2016

Tuesday, May 24 at 6:00 p.m. in Pollman Hall

Yavneh Student-Athletes and Faculty - no Charge

$10 - adults

$8 - students

Please RSVP to LuAnn, lpitlik@yavnehdallas.org

If you would like to volunteer to help at this event, please contact Janyce Steinbrecher,

janyce19@icloud.com.

Bulldog Bytes

Click here to read BulldogBytes, a blog by Principal Rabbi Maury Grebenau.

Please Support Yavneh Academy

If you've not yet made your gift to Yavneh's Annual Fund, you will hear from us soon!

If you prefer not to be called, please click here to donate online today!

College Cues

List of College Acceptances

AP Information

Please take a few minutes to read the following so that you and your child are familiar with the 2016 AP schedule. Juniors and some seniors will take the regularly-scheduled test and those seniors who will have been on the March of the Living will follow the late-testing schedule. There are no make-up tests so students who are not present the day the test is scheduled will not have the opportunity to make up a test.

Students signed up for these tests in class at the beginning of March. Your account should show a charge for each test ordered.

The list of students taking each test is posted on the counselor bulletin board outside room 907. In addition, information about the day of testing and important information in the testing room can be found on the same bulletin board. Click here to see this information

Any student who has accommodations approved by College Board should bring a lunch to the classroom as he/she will not be able to attend the regularly-scheduled lunch. Those students will be able to eat during the breaks provided by College Board.

The most important thing to remember is check the time each test starts. That time means that each student should be in the testing room at that time ready to begin. Instructions are long and arduous and take time to complete before each test. Those who are late will not be allowed to enter the room.

Students are welcome to bring a snack for the short breaks. Snacks will stay on the cart until break.

Schedule for all Testing

Late-testing AP Schedule

There are many different start times to the late-testing AP schedule this year. This is partly due to the fact that some of our students are taking more than one exam each day. In addition, on Friday, May 20, seniors will need to practice for graduation at 4:00 p.m. Please look closely at the late-testing AP schedule for those who will be going on the March of the Living. Late testing begins on Wednesday, May 18 and ends on Friday, May 20. Those students testing on Thursday morning (Calculus AB/BC) and Friday morning (Literature and Composition) will start at 7:00 a.m. This will allow those who need to take two tests each of these days to have a brief break between the two tests.

Additional Information