YHT Annual Report 2022-2023

Yeshiva Har Torah Year In Review
תשפ”ג / 5783 • 2022–2023

Our Mission
הצהרת משימתינו
Yeshiva Har Torah is a Centrist Orthodox yes
Our mission is to educate children in a warm
that brings out the unique qualities and max
each child. As a religious school, Yeshiva Har
to Torah values, Halacha (Jewish law), and M
(the State of Israel). Our goal is to provide a c
innovative academic program and to foster a
in each child, while integrating Kavod HaBrio
humanity) in all that we do.

hiva for boys and girls.
, caring environment
imum potential of
Torah is dedicated
edinat Yisrael
hallenging and
love of learning
t (respect for
Dear YHT Family,
I am so excited to share with you our Year In
Review, which offers a glimpse into some of the
special accomplishments of this past school year. In
our quest to provide our students and teachers with
opportunities for ongoing growth, we embarked on a
host of new initiatives and experiences, some of which
are reflected in these pages. We take this opportunity to
celebrate and share the great pride that we have in our
Yeshiva - our students, our teachers, our lay leaders, our
parents and our alumni.
Rabbi Shalom Noah Berezovsky, the Slonimer Rov, author of
the well known Netivot Shalom, explains that the command
by Hashem to Avram of “Lech Lecha” - “Go for yourself” -
means to go to fulfill your purpose, to elevate your spiritual
energy and to repair and improve the world. “Go for yourself,” he
posits, is an eternal message for every one of us, all of the time.
We are enjoined to strive to realize the unique purpose intended
specifically for each one of us, to be a “Holech”, one who is always
on the go - always looking to achieve and to progress towards one’s
purpose in life. I am so proud that all members of our Yeshiva family
embrace a growth mindset, which elevates us all to continue to build
on our successes and to keep on improving and moving forward. The
beneficiaries are our wonderful, precious children. Thank you for joining
me on this incredibly meaningful and inspiring journey.
Rabbi Gary Menchel

Fun
Facts
days הידעת?‏
11
yeshiva high schools
Class of 2023 is attending
Too many
YHT classes declared a
dress up day
1
rhyming pair of
Bnot Sheirut -
Noga and Herut
6
seconds away from
winning our first-ever boys’
basketball championship :(
600
apples pressed by
students into juice
74
parking spaces in new
Early Learning Center
PTA
ועד הורים
Book & Literacy Fair
It was wonderful to see so
many parents and students
celebrating books on a
Sunday morning at this
year’s reimagined Book &
Literacy Fair. Families and
teachers enjoyed snacks
inspired by classic books as
they perused and purchased
books from the Scholastic
Book Fair. From a Hebrew
puppet show of an Israeli
classic book to UV resin
bookmark making, the
PTA-organized event helped
our children experience
books and storytelling in a
new way.
Pre-Purim Chagiga with
Aryeh Kunstler & Purim
Mishloach Manot
The energy in the room on
Rosh Chodesh Adar was
palpable as all students
celebrated, danced, and
sang at a PTA-sponsored
Pre-Purim chagiga and
Aryeh Kunstler concert. On
Ta’anit Esther we distributed
“Building Together”- themed
Mishloach Manot for 788
students. Our Mishloach
Manot program has evolved
into one of the PTA’s most
successful fundraisers
- thanks to all who
participated!
Teacher Appreciation
Sushi Luncheon
In addition to the PTA’s
sponsorship of Teacher
Appreciation Week in
May with daily treats to
thank our teachers and staff
for all their hard work, the
PTA organized a surprise
luncheon for teachers in
February. With freshly
prepared sushi by a skilled
sushi chef on the premises,
our educators experienced a
culinary delight.

20
players on YHT’s first girls’
hockey team
177
pizza pies eaten
every Pizza Day
31
shades of paint used
in the new gym mural
1st, 1st, & 3rd 750 13
places YHT teams came
in Inter-Yeshiva Science
Congress
attendees at
Class of 2023 Graduation
number of moving trucks to
move into the ELC
פרופילי בוגרי הישיבה Alumni Profile
Amalia Klapper (née Weinberg) ‘06 distinctly remembers each of her teachers, the details of her
classrooms, and the closest of friendships created at YHT. After YHT, Amalia went to Central, Migdal
Oz, Stern and then on to receive a graduate degree in science education. Amalia currently teaches high
school chemistry at an international public school in the Bronx. Amalia was inspired by the core love of
yiddishkeit imparted by Morah Gutman in third grade, passing on what she had learned as a student to
her own class as a teacher. “All of these points together have shaped me and guided me to where I am
today, an educator. I must have been taking notes all along.”
Ariel Sassoon ‘05, remembers YHT as the first place he put on Tefillin and fondly recalls the times he
actually showed up to his hockey games (he counts 4, but no penalties there because of an irresistible
slapshot). He credits Rabbi Fried with his strong connection to the school, staying in touch to this day.
“YHT instills a ton of positive values as it relates to midot in its students. It’s a place where Judaism is
inherent and I believe strongly that it’s kept with me to this day.” Today, Ariel is a Creative Strategist and
Luxury Home Advisor (check out his beautiful website arielsassoon.com).
Avi Herschman ‘05 developed a love of learning at YHT. Motivated by Rabbi Fried with his unique
approach to Gemara and hockey, and Ms. Kopman (“She is tough!”, his words, not ours) who unlocked
the secrets of science and instilled the importance of hard work, Avi went on to complete his MBA from
Queens College and receive Smicha. He is currently the Assistant Rosh Mesivta at Rambam Mesivta
where he inspires a new generation of students teaching Tanach, Pirkei Avot, and Gemara. He’s also
the proud parent of David and Rena. “The warmth and dedication I experienced from the entire staff,
especially Rabbi Menchel, is something that I always looked back on fondly and try to emulate in my
own work.”

Academic Features
נתונים אקדמיים
After an extensive
search, we were
thrilled to announce
our new, incoming
Early Childhood
Director, our very own
Morah Chaya Wernick.
We focused on Social Emotional
Learning across all our grades this
year. These efforts included the
Magenu program, which teaches safety
awareness; Ohel’s Resilient School
Initiative, teaching educators how
to embed emotional resilience into
their classrooms; Our Path/Darkeinu
social/emotional program designed
to increase self-esteem and foster
positive social skills; and, through
a grant from JOWMA, YHT piloted
a curriculum known as STEPS-A
(Skills Training for Emotional Problem
Solving for Adolescents), which is
an adaptation of DBT (Dialectical
Behavior Therapy) skills for the
classroom, that focuses on learning
skills including mindfulness, emotion
regulation, interpersonal effectiveness,
and distress tolerance.
This year, YHT had the benefit of
two visiting Bnot Sheirut, Noga and
Herut. They enlivened our school,
improved our Hebrew, and helped
students learn about and discover
new aspects of Israeli culture.
This school year, we had the honor to
host three prominent rabbinic leaders.
Top Rav David Lau, sitting Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi
of Israel; Left Rav Zvi Rimon, Rosh Kollel at Yeshivat
Har Etzion and Rosh Yeshiva of Machon Lev;
Right Rav Herschel Schacter, Rosh Yeshiva and
Rosh Kollel at Yeshiva University’s RIETS and
Distinguished Professorial Chair in Talmud.
After a number of false starts in trying
to start a girls’ middle school hockey
league in our area, we decided to make
a team anyway and scrimmage with
schools outside our area. Thanks to our
Athletic Director, Mr. Brian Miller, and
our first girls’ hockey team coach, Ms.
Leah Goykadosh, as well as all the girls
who played, for making this a reality.

Over winter break, Bareket
Kezwer, a mural artist from
Toronto, came down to paint a
new gym mural. Thank you to the
Adelsberg family for sponsoring
this amazing project.
Financial
Overview
סקירה כלכלית
Balanced budget for 22-23: $11.6MM
7% Other
8% Grants /
Government Funding
80% Tuition
5% Fundraising
Revenue
22-23
10% Other
5% Student Programming
2% Security
3% Transportation
Mazal tov to this year’s winners of
the Reiss Educator Innovation Award
who distinguished themselves for
developing and implementing new
educational initiatives this school year:
Talia Cohen, Orit Lax, Stefanie Losonci
and Rachel Leah Mittelman.
4% Repairs & Maintenance
76% Benefits / Compensation
Expenses
22-23

Join us for our 35th
Annual Dinner
Motzaei Shabbat,
January 13, 2024
Old Westbury Hebrew Congregation
Guests of Honor
Ariella & Ari Spodek
Pillars of Jewish Education
Mira & Yakir Wachstock
Award for Distinguished
Professional Leadership
Ephi Strazynski
Tomchei Torah Awardees
Shira and Koorosh Shamtoub
Yeshiva Har Torah
250–10 Grand Central Pkwy
Little Neck, NY 11426
Office (718) 343–2533
Check out
our website!
www.hartorah.org
@hartorah
@hartorah
@YeshivaHarTorah
@YHarTorah