"American Jewry is beginning to real-
ize the time has come not to limit the
education for our children to the secular
realm," Roth said.
The JAMD will provide the best of
secular education, he said, but also
Torah. Jewish learning and literature —
"the reason why we are here
after three millennia."
The academy opened with
49 students in grades 9 and
10, coming from 15 public
and private feeder schools,
Rabbi Buckman said. The
opening enrollment is more
Jeffrey
than for any other non-affili-
Garden
ated Jewish day high school in
the United States. The rabbi said at least
five more students still are seriously con-
sidering enrolling for this semester.
"Each one of you students tells us
powerfully 'Am Yisroel Chai (The
nation of Israel lives)," he said.
After the outdoor ceremony, stu-
dents, faculty and guests returned to
Handleman Hall for brunch.
But not before Garden and Rabbi
Buckman were surrounded by well-
wishers who hoisted them aloft on
chairs, dancing and singing as the morn-
ing dew evaporated into a glorious
sunny day.
Clockwise from left:
' Molli Spatter a 10th-grader
from West Bloomfield, takes
notes during her first day
at the JAMD.
Officers of the Jewish Academy
Metropolitan Detroit:
Robert Kleiman, treasurer;
Steve Schanes, vice pPresident;
Robert Roth, president.
Jordan Weiss of West Bloomfield,
a 10th-grader at the JAMD,
chats with R. Scott Bolton,
director of community learning
at Hillel Day School of
Metropolitan Detroit.
❑
tor of technology for the largest
Edison Project School, a charter-
school system largely located in
Detroit, where she secured a tech-
nology literacy-challenge grant serv-
ing 1,200 students. Her work has
also included corporate training and
teaching in public and non-profit
environments.
What attracted her to the JAMD
was the caliber of the teaching staff,
Shayne said. "Also, I was interested
in being part of the first Jewish
academy in Michigan — I thrive on
start-up projects."
Science Boosters
Stu Schultz has left a job as science
consultant for the Oakland Schools
to head the JAMD science depart-
ment.
His reasons? "To get back into the
classroom and work with students
again," Schultz said. 'And, they
wanted me to put together a state-
of-the-art science lab." All of this
was too much to resist.
Schultz was an award winner on
Disney's American Salute to the
American Teacher, where he was
cited for his innovative work in
using the medium of television to
raise the interest of students in math
and science. Among his other
numerous honors are a national
Presidential Award for Excellence in
Science and a Milken Family
Foundation National Educator
Award.
Before taking the position at
Oakland Schools, Schultz was a
physics teacher at West Bloomfield
High School and science coordinator
for the West Bloomfield School
District. He earned a bachelor's
degree from the University of
Michigan and his master's from
Michigan State University.
Michael Mally joins Schultz as
instructor in biology and chemistry.
"I've been teaching 29 years at the
University of Detroit-Mercy," Mally
said. "Being back with the kids is
where the foundation is."
In addition to his college teaching
experience, Malty has spent the past
19 years teaching Hebrew at Temple
Emanu-El in Oak Park.
But perhaps the most impressive
job on his resume is as research asso-
ciate at DMC-Children's Hospital of
Michigan in Detroit, where he has
been managing the oldest cell cul-
ture/cryogenics storage facility in the
world. He has gained local and
national fame as project leader for
.
growing cultured skin in the lab for
transplantation to severely burned
padents.
Mally, who holds a master's
degree from Oakland University, has
published extensively in Various biol-
ogy-related fields, including cryo-
genics, cell . biology, immunology
and biochemistry.
The Mother Tongue
Heading the Hebrew Language and
Literature Department is Dr. Yaacova
(Gobi) Sacerdoti, who has been
teaching at U-M, where she received
a doctorate in Hebrew language and
literature. Her research focuses on
children's literature, Israeli culture
and teaching methods.
"I joined the academy," she said,
"because it is my belief that, if we
want to continue the legacy of
Jewish education . . . we, as educa-
tors, have to put all our effort and
energy into building and reinforcing
the Jewish high schools."
A native Israeli who speaks Italian
and Rumanian as well as Hebrew
and English, - Sacerdoti is the author
of a book, Together and Separately As
Weil:l. On the Child and Adult
Addressee in Children's Literature.
Sacerdoti anticipates that the book,
recently published in Hebrew, will
soon be translated into English. She
is also co-authoring a book on meth
ods for teaching Hebrew.
Tracey Jackier, director of student
life, was most recently a school
social worker in the Pontiac School
District, while also working for
Common Ground Sanctuary, head-
quartered in Pontiac.
After graduating with honors in
psychology from U-M, she received
her master's degree in social work
from the University of Chicago,
where she worked for the city's
Jewish Family Services and taught at
a Hebrew day school. She has led , 44
counseling and educational groups
focusing on anger management,
body image, substance abuse and
conflict resolution with teens.
At the JAMD, each teacher will
be an adviser for a group of four or
five students, working with them on
emotional as well as academic issues.
Jackier will be focusing largely on
the emotional issues.
"I love working in a school set-
ting and working with young
adults," she said "And it's also excit-
ing, as a young person, to help build
something from the ground up." El
9/1
2000
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