•

Metro

Ask the
Expert

Making The Grade from page A23

Your Cellular Superstore/

ith

Jennifer Babby

Wireless Tovz Manager

I recently
broke my
phone
n't have
any insurance.
What do I do?

a Q
nd

Many of our Wireless
Toyz locations offer repair
ervices. When you stop
in to see us, our Certified Wireless
Expertz can provide you with a
repair estimate. If we discover that
your phone is broken beyond repair,
we can help you recycle it and work
with you to find a replacement
solution that will not be too hard on
your pocketbook.

As

Q

When I buy a new phone
what are my insurance
options?

When you purchase a
p hone at WirelessToyz you
an opt to purchase cell
phone insurance from Cellcare.
Wireless handsets are lost, stolen,
and damaged every day. No one
expects it to happen. However,
industry studies show that 3 out of
10 wireless handset users will suffer
loss or damage to their handset each
year. Cellcare offer competitive
pricing, friendly and available
customer service, and a streamlined
claims process.

Direct your questions to:
asktheexpertz - wirelesstoyz.com

iE5 1

and visit the nearest locations at:

Jennifer Babby @ 12 Mile & Northwestern
248.945.0090

Elizabeth Price @ 10 Mile & Evergreen
248.948.5000

Sandy Maizi @ Orchard Lk. & Telegraph
248.253.1400

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A24

1369820

April 17 • 2008

The Scorecard
Nadel made special note of improved
advanced-placement scores in high-
school history, biology and English. The
advanced placement program of the
New York-based College Board has cer-
tified Akiva's AP courses. Nadel hopes to
see AP calculus certified as well.
"Even as a small institution;' said
General Studies Principal Teri Giannetti,
"we have creatively figured out how
to offer a full range of math, science,
English and history classes!'
Along with introducing the middle
school concept in grades 6-8, she added,
"we also have begun bundling grammar,
writing and literature beginning in the
fifth grade in a curriculum that flows
through seventh grade. This will really
enhance the quality of our curriculum."
Akiva continues to draw on educa-
tional consultants to evaluate its math,
science, social studies and language
arts curriculua. The intent is to assure
all are on track with comparable pri-
vate schools and high national stan-
dards.
Nadel proudly listed the institutions
of higher education that 2007 Akiva
graduates were admitted to: Barnard
College, New York University (3),
University of Arizona (1), University
of Chicago (2), University of Michigan
(7) and Yeshiva University, New York
(5). Class valedictorian Vicki Beneson
is studying at Midreshet Moriah in
Jerusalem this school year.
Next school year, she will attend Stern
College in New York on an academic
scholarship.
Nadel proposes more Jewish day
school synergy in Metro Detroit.
"College guidance counseling, foreign
languages, school psychology, certain
AP classes and Bible contests are just
examples of programs we could share
he said.

Enhanced Learning
Nadel said the Lehava program and
Kollel Torah Mi'Tzion are other exam-
ples of Akiva's breadth of scholarship
opportunity.
Seventeen sophomores and juniors
took part this school year in Lehava
[Flame], a three-week learning experi-
ence in Israel as part of the Jewish his-
tory curriculum. The program was the
brainchild of Rabbi Tsaidi, who coordi-
nates and leads the trip.
"The rabbis have said, `One cannot
compare hearing to seeing, and Lehava
is proof positive of the wisdom of their
words;' Rabbi Tsaidi said.
"Only by experiencing the Land of
Israel through all five senses can one

Annual dinner co-chairs Rose Chessler and Michal Korman, both of Southfield

appreciate its rich history, its diverse
topography, its multifaceted culture and
its unique brand of politics:"
Rabbi Tsaidi added, "We take great
care in preparing the students for
Lehava by teaching them about the
struggle for the establishment of the
Jewish state and helping them to com-
prehend the role of Medinat Yisrael
[modern State of Israel] in contempo-
rary Jewish life as well as in the future
of our people'
The 9-year-old Kollel infuses Akiva
students and their families with an
elevated love and connection to Israel
through Israel-focused and informal
Torah programming. It is led by young
graduates of Hesder Yeshivot in Israel,
where advanced Jewish study is com-
bined with service in the Israeli armed
forces.
The Kollel includes two families and
two young men who have just finished
army service. It also coordinates the
Detroit activities of the B'not Sheirut,
young Israeli women performing
national service by working here as
Jewish studies aides.
Rabbi Betzalel Safra is Akiva's rosh
kollel. "I want to connect the people of
the Detroit Jewish community to their
Jewish identity and to the State and
Land of Israel," he said. "I want to raise
awareness of aliyah as a realistic possi-
bility and to fight assimilation."

Past And Present
Akiva's April 6 dinner honored Dr.
Robert Kelman as Alumnus of the Year.
He is a specialist in emergency medi-
cine. His parents, Bunny and Jerome
Kelman, were among the school's found-
ing families.
Other dinner honorees were Akiva's
19 past presidents, who received Akiva
Leadership Awards.
Ithamar Koenigsberg, who made
aliyah with his wife, Phyllis, was Akiva's
first president. In a message in the dinner
journal, he reflected on Akiva's startup
classes in September 1964 at the Labor
Zionist Building in northwest Detroit. He
recalled the "growing numbers of moti-
vated parents who grouped together for
months and years before 1964:'
"As Akiva's founding president:' he
said, "it was my honor to observe first-
hand the determination of these par-
ents. We shared the commitment to cre-
ate a yeshivah that would provide supe-
rior Limudei Kodesh [Torah studies]
as well as secular studies and together
cultivate the love for Eretz Yisrael [Land
of Israel]!'
"It's uncanny how much that mes-
sage still resonates today:' Nadel said.
"It's very encouraging that Akiva, as
an institution, remains grounded in its
original emphasis and how that vision
still comes into focus in everything we
do today." ❑