Upcoming Events

• Friday, February 9 - Shabbat, February 10, 2024 - Ida Crown Boys' Club Shabbaton

• Sunday, February 25, 2024 - 9th Grade conferences 12:30-5pm

• Sunday, February 25, 2024 - Lady Aces' Basketball Clinic for 6th - 8th grade girls 9:30am-12pm (Click here to register)

• Tuesday, March 12, 2024 - NHS Induction Ceremony

• Wednesday, March 13, 2024 - ICJA Takes the Stage Artist in Residence Program for girls with Nikki Sausen of Paint with Me 

• Tuesday, April 2, 2024 - ICJA Takes the Stage outing to see Peter Pan

• Sunday, April 7, 2024 - 18 Under 18 Awards Event

• Thursday, April 11, 2024 - ICJA Takes the Stage, Commemorating the Life of Batsheva Chaya Stadlan z"l, generously sponsored by The Ralla Klepak Foundation for Education in the Performing Arts

Girls spent Wednesday morning learning "The Secret of Seven - A New Hope).

On Wednesday, all ICJA girls spent a high-energy morning learning as part of ICJA Takes the Stage in memory of Batsheva Stadlan z"l '16. Wednesday was the seventh yahrtzeit of Batsheva, and we were honored to learn with her parents, Noam Stadlan and Marianne Novak (pictured), who taught about the power of the number seven and also about the Biblical figures Batsheva and Batya, as Batsheva was named after her great grandmother Batya.

Some seniors led classes about Shemita, Shabbat, Batsheva in the Torah, and Bat Pharoah for freshmen and sophomores, while the rest of the senior grade and juniors learrned together b'chavruta.

ICJA Takes the Stage in memory of Batsheva Stadlan z"l is generously supported by the Ralla Klepak Foundation for the Performing Arts. Thank you to Marianne Novak, Noam Stadlan, and all the teachers and students who worked so hard to make this event meaningful and rewarding.

Pictured above: juniors Sarah Levitt and Yardana Schayer

Pictured above: juniors Maytal Needle, Rachel Sommer, Dana Kalutsky, Nina Ripstein, and Ariela Bielak with Mrs. Lynn Kraft

Pictured above: juniors Eliana Levine, Sarah Lipson, Lauren Fensterheim, and Rachel Freed

Pictured above: seniors Taly Benzaquen and Rena Neiger teaching

Pictured above: juniors Hadar Simkovitch and Allie Stein

Senior Aviva Dallal and junior Simcha Seruya with Mrs. Olivia Friedman

Yasher kochachen to the Lady Aces and JV Lady Aces on Winning their Conference Championships!

On Tuesday night, the JV Lady Aces won their second consecutive Conference Championship, beating CTK 47-27! Yasher kochachen to all the players and coaches!

The following evening, the Lady Aces beat CTK 47-30, clinching their first tournament championship ever! Yasher kochachen to the entire team and coaches on being undefeated this season in the Chicago Prep Conference. Congratulations to Ilana Schwartz for being named Tournament MVP!

Students learned how to identify and treat different types of shock.

What are the differences between distributive, obstructive, cardiogenic, anaphylactic, and other types of shock?

This week, ICJA father, alumnus, and Hatzalah member Joel Gorenstein '93 taught students in ICJA's EMT class learned how to identify different types of shock, as well as how to provide emergency first aid to treat them (pictured here).

Pictured above: junior Simcha Seruya

Pictured above: senior Yitzchak Mishkin

Pictured above: junior Tali Weiss

Freshmen discussed differences between Italian and Northern European Renaissance paintings.

How did Italian and Northern European paintings differ during the Renaissance, and what did those differences say about Italian and Northern European societies? This week, freshmen in Mrs. Rachel Polsky's Western Civilization class debated how painting styles and subjects varied and why, creating Ven Diagrams expressing similarities and differences.

Pictured above: Mrs. Polsky helping out students

Pictured above Jacob Thomas, Caleb Novick, Raya Volkov, and Ariella Titievsky

Pictured above: Noah Ehrich, Aryeh Lowenthal, Eliana Levitt, and Hillel Lennon

Sophomores took a break from Masechet Megillah to practice their davening and ba'al tzibur skills.

Sophomores in Rabbi Joel Gutstein's Talmud class are learning Masechet Megillah. This week they took a break to brush up on their skills in davening and leading davening.

Students practiced reading tefillot. (Pictured here: Adin Jones and Yona Jones using their davening skills)

Students then learned the halachot of hagba and galila, and practiced hagba with one of the school's sifrei Torah.

Pictured above: Eli Cherney

Pictured above: Noah Lehrfield

Pictured above: Gabe Boshes

Welcome to the shuk!

On Thursday, juniors in Ms. Eliora Lavi's Hebrew class ran a shuk for each other and for other students who were able to stop in during their lunch. Students sold a range of items, including pineapple and pineapple juice, videos, and homemade slime.

Pictured above: Yaakov Friedman and Meir Zayan selling pineapple and pineapple juice

Pictured above: Jacob Friedman and Aidan Zukerman selling a link to a video, complete with Hebrew-language reviews

Pictured above: Aaron Hartman and Zev Margolin selling homemade slime

Students analyzed the relationship between radius and speed in a circular moving object.

Juniors in Mr. Allen Sears' Physics class analyzed the relationship between the radius of an object moving in a circle, its centripetal force, and the speed with which it moves.

They observed a weight spinning at the end of a string (pictured here, with Mr. Sears spinning the weight), and noted what appeared to happen to its movement as the cord holding it was shortened. Students then used a force meter to measure changes in centripetal force on the spinning weight as its radius shrank.

Pictured above: Avi Okner and Yitzhak Bock

Pictured above: Ranon Ginsberg with Mr. Sears

Pictured above: Allie Stein with Sarah Lipson

Seniors discussed and mapped the relationships between characters in Hamlet.

Hamlet has a tight cast of characters whose relationships with one another are complex. This week, seniors in Mrs. Michelle Prince's AP Literature class discussed the characters' ties to one another and created visual maps explaining their interactions.

Pictured above: Ari Klein and Dory Marshall discuss their project with Mrs. Prince

Pictured above: Joseph Rothner, Gabe Klein, and Jacob Friedman working on their map

Pictured above: Gabrielle Sander and Julia Bellows with the finished project they created along with Rotem Lavi

How old must a walled city be to read the Megillah on Shushan Purim inside it?

Freshmen in Rabbi Daniel Fox's accelerated Talmud class are learning about the differences between celebrating Purim in walled and in unwalled cities. This week they learned how old a city has to be in order to read the Megillah on Shushan Purim inside it.

Pictured above: Orli Appel and Bela Burstyn

Livia Baronofsky and Maayan Engel

Pictured above: Kinneret Finegold, Goldie Boyarskiy, and Eliana Levitt

Last Sunday, ICJA alumnae competed against the current undefeated Lady Aces.

Last Sunday evening, Lady Aces alumnae competed against the Lady Aces. It was a fun event filled with camaraderie and good exercise. All funds raised are going to help defray travel costs for the Lady Aces Miami tournament.

Students discussed what the Gemara is refering to when it instructs us to prepare and eruv before Shabbat.

Seniors in Rabbi Shlomo Rosen's Talmud class are learning Masechet Gittin. This week, they discussed what different mefarshim have said about the Gemara's instruction to prepare an eruv before Shabbat.

Students discussed the various types of eruvim and what building them entails.

Pictured above: Yehoshua Zagorin

Pictured above: Jacob Pick and Josh Mishie

Pictured above: Rami Ripstein

Freshmen girls continued their team building activities this week.

This week, freshmen girls continued their team building activities with Mrs. Noa Nussbaum and Mrs. Estee Gugenheim. One group of students role played conversations after they'd been assigned different "personalities" to embody. A second group brainstormed different groups and entities for which they feel responsible, then discussed why. Both activities helped students get to know their own feelings better and analyze what values they want to have.

Pictured above: Meira Schultz, Rose Matatya, Talia Bielak, Sheindy Worch, Orli Lubin, and Ayelet Klein

Pictured above: Emuna Arnold, Masha Perkins, Dalia Cohen, and Raya Volkov

Pictured above: cards labeled with some of the people, places, and values for which freshman girls feel responsible

Freshmen and their relatives davened together at Beis Medrash Mikor HaChaim last Sunday.

Many Sunday mornings, ICJA's freshmen boys' rebbe, Rabbi Louis Fliegelman, arranges for students and their fathers (or grandfathers or other relatives) to meet at a different Chicago-area shul to daven Shacharit together and enjoy breakfast and learning.

Last Sunday they gathered at Beis Medrash Mikor HaChaim in West Rogers Park. After davening, the boys heard from mohel and former ICJA dad Rabbi Phil Karesh.

For more information about the Veshinantam Levanecha program, email Rabbi Louis Fliegelman at lfliegelman@icja.org.

ICJA Wrestlers placed 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th in IHSA Regionals as senior Gabe Klein entered state rankings!

Yasher koach to ICJA Wrestling Aces on winning a 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th place in last week's IHSA Regionals! We finished 4th overall, out of 11 schools - and made a kiddush Hashem by creating a warm Shabbaton near the wrestling venue so they could participate motzaei Shabbat.

Senior Gabriel Klein (pictured here) won the championship at 132 with one of the most momentous matches in Ida Crown history and becomes ICJA’s first regional champion since Yosef Marcucci in 2017.

Seniors Ari Klein (126) and Millo Benmelech (175) took silver medals with solid performances. Freshman Megill Hamieri (106) and Seniors Jacob Z. Friedman (150), Dory Marshall (190), and Meir Aberman (215) claimed bronze medals. Senior Benny Lowenthal (144) took 4th place in a tough weight class. 

As for the Shabbaton, there was a little dancing at Kabbalat Shabbat and some spirited davening. Senior Dory Marshall did most of the leyning as it was his bar mitzvah parsha, and Seniors Aidan Zukerman, Ari Klein, and Gabriel Klein also chipped in. Senior Meir Aberman led the end of Mussaf. 

As a result of his victory in the regional finals, Gabriel Klein will appear in the Illinois state-wide rankings for Class 1A at 132 lbs. He will be the first Ida Crown wrestler to appear in the state rankings since 2008 when Jered Greenspan and Stanley Dayan were ranked. 

Pictured above: senior Ari Klein and competitors

Pictured above: freshman Megill Hameiri and competitors

Pictured above: Senior Dory Marshall and competitors

Pictured above: senor Jacob Friedman and competitors

Pictured above: senior Meir Aberman and competitors

Pictured above: senior Millo Benmelech and competitors

This week we caught up with ICJA Associate Dean Daniel Harris and asked him a bit about himself.

Associate Dean Daniel Harris '78 often has a smile on his face and time to spend with students. His collection of rabbi-signed baseballs is legendary. This week, we caught up with Mr. Harris and asked him a few questions about himself.

Where did you grow up? And where do you live now?

I grew up in West Roger's Park. I attended a different Jewish school freshman and sophomore year, then transferred to ICJA as a junior.

I met my wife Alida when I arrived at Ida Crown; we were the same year. We were friends in high school; now we have three kids and three grandkids. Our son Tye '04 is married to Nikki and they have three kids: Baer, Gemma, and Bennie. They live in Lakeview and their children attend Akiva Schechter. Our daughters Marnina '15 (Eli) and Dodi '18 (Yair) both live in Jerusalem.

How did you decide to go into Jewish education?

I grew up across the street from the West Rogers Park JCC and they practically raised me. I played sports there, then volunteered at the JCC when I was in high school and college. I worked with their Little League team, with their sports leagues, and at the sports camp there.

When I went to college, I decided to give back and work in the Jewish community. After high school I spent a year learning in Israel at Ohr Sameach, then came back to Chicago fo college. I got a Masters degree in Education at Temple University in Philadelphia and went to work at B'nai B'rith Hillel International on various college campuses. I worked in Metro Chicago campuses and spent a year living in Champaign-Urbana.

How did you come to work at ICJA?

In 1979, I helped start the girls' basketball team here at Ida Crown, and then I was its coach for many years. Later on, I volunteered even more and eventually started working here, first as PE teacher, and then as Activities Coordinator too. When Rabbi Myers suggested creating a Chesed Program, I put that together. I used to plan Shabbatonim and other programs.

In 1992 Rabbi Myers, who was Dean at the time, offered me the position of Assistant Principal. I've been here over 30 years now.

What is one of your favorite ICJA memories?

Purim Shpeil '78. Let's just leave it at that.

Why do you love working here?

The students! The students here are great. And they keep me young!

Please tell us about your baseball collection.

About ten years ago I was learning Daf Yomi with Rabbi Gedalia Schwartz, z"l, and I wanted to have something near me all the time that reminded me of him. I asked him to sign a baseball. (He said what about a football? He was a big football fan.) Then later Rabbi Berel Wein came to town, and I asked him to sign a baseball too. As more and more rebbeim came to the Academy, I would ask them to sign balls. Mrs. Miriam Jaffee helped me out a lot too: she took baseballs with her when she met rabbis. She gave me my baseball that's signed by Rav Aharon Lichtenstein, z"l.

Students have helped me grown my collection too. Students got balls signed by Rav Hershel Schachter and Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, z"l.

Are you still adding to your collection?

Yes, when baseball-worthy people come to town.

What advice do you have for students?

Life is all about relationships. If you want to have a good life, you have to have positive relationships with other people. It's important to work on that as you move forward in life.

This week's learning dedications include:

Monday, the 26th of Shevat, 5784, February 5, 2024, by - Friday, the 30th of Shevat, 5784, February 9, 2024, by Barbara and George Hanus

in memory of John Hanus, z"l, Moshe Yehuda ben Dovid Ha Lavi, in commemoration of his 56th Yahrtzeit, which is observed on Rosh Chodesh Adar 1

Thursday, the 29th of Shevat, 5784, February 8, 2024 by Sharon and Seymour Gertz in loving memory of Doris Rosenberg, z''l, דבורה אסתר בת דוד ז"ל

Thursday, the 29th of Shevat, 5784, February 8, 2024 by the Campbell and Gold Families, in loving memory of Rabbi William B. Gold, a"h, HaRav Zev ben Chaim Yitzchak, on the occasion of his Yahrtzeit on the 29th of Shevat

Friday, the 30th of Shevat, 5784, February 9, 2024, by Deva and Josh Zwelling, Jacob '15, Madison, Vigo, Eli, Ariella '17, Zeke '21, and Jordana '24, in memory of Irwin Schlass, ישראל בן אברהם אבא, on the occasion of his 19th Yahrzeit

If you would like to sponsor a Day of Learning, please contact our Director of Development, Deva Zwelling, at (773) 973-1450 ext. 115, or dzwelling@icja.org.

Watch "Connect with ICJA," our newest video

for prospective students - and share it with people you know who'd like to learn more about ICJA!

In addition to many thousands of physical books and journals, ICJA's Learning Commons contains tens of thousands of online books, journal articles and other resources, including subscriptions to newspapers such as The New York Times and the Wall Street Journal, the Encyclopedia Britannica, and more. Students are able to access these resources through our portal.

Please stop by our librarian Mrs. Steinberg's desk in the Learning Commons or email her at  librarian@icja.org her to pick up your updated passwords to access our online material. ICJA's subscriptions are available at icja.libguides.com/home.

Do you have school-related news you'd like to see in this newsletter? Let us know!

If you have exciting ICJA-related news to share about classes, sports, clubs, or other projects, please tell us! Send news items and/or photos to Dr. Yvette Miller, Director of Communications at ymiller@icja.org. Your items can enhance our newsletter and ICJA's social media presence.

Join our New Alumni Facebook Group

We are excited to announce that we have a new private Facebook group called “ICJA Official Alumni Page.” It is a space for alumni from all graduating years to join. We will periodically post alumni reunions, events, fundraising opportunities, information about ICJA today, and news.

We are proud to have some families with us for four generations. If you are an alum, please join the group HERE and be sure to share the link with your family, friends, and fellow graduates. You can also share this link: https://www.facebook.com/share/UeTsqg16DDx4JHGK/?mibextid=hubsqH. Thanks for staying connected to ICJA!

Please reach out to Ilana Levy at ilevy@icja.org if you have any questions about this new effort.

Last summer, ICJA gave its Class of '23 alumni the second edition of our directory listing ICJA alumni who live in Israel and have graciously offered to open their homes to recent ICJA grads who are currently spending a gap year in Israel.

Thank you to the many alumni who have reached out to us, offering to host.

The directory was sent out to the emails of '22 grads that we have on file. If you have any questions or would like to update our contact information to help recent ICJA grads obtain a copy, please contact Dr. Yvette Miller, ICJA Director of Communications, at ymiller@icja.org.

We are still taking submissions from alumni who are willing to host, to include in future copies of this directory. Please contact Dr. Miller to be included.