Courtesy of Hillel Day School

Courtesy of Hillel Day School

Getting acquainted in Mrs. Newman's classroom in the early years.

mon for Hillel teachers to send
their own children to the school.
"There are 21 administrators
or faculty members who are
current or past Hillel parents,"
said Elizabeth Schubiner, Hillel's
director of operations, who went
from parent-volunteer to admin-
istrative staff member in 1993.

Expectations
Of nearly 70 Solomon Schechter
schools in the United States, including the
Hebrew Day School of Ann Arbor, and two
in Israel and four in Canada, Hillel s one
of our larger schools',' said Rabbi Robert
Abramson, director of the department of
education for the United Synagogue of
Conservative Judaism in New York and a
former Hillel head of school for 14 years
dating from 1976. His wife was a Hillel
teacher and their two children attended
Hillel from kindergarten through gradua-
tion.
A frequent Hillel visitor, he said, "It is
thrilling to see how Hillel has continued
to blossom educationally and physically
and how committed the lay leadership has
been."
Like at other Schechter schools, Hillel
students are exposed to a variety of cus-
toms and ritual practices, including daily
prayer as part of the educational pro-
gram and respect for Shabbat and Jewish
holidays. Curriculum includes the study of
Bible, classical texts and rabbinic literature.
As a Schechter school, Hillel is affiliated
with the Conservative movement, with an
egalitarian approach to Jewish observance,

A 1962 Chanukah program

"The best part ()Wind is the sense of confidencc
to a conijort it Save •me about whol "am and
ame two
thotit being Jewish. I still have the some:
best friends that I met there in kindergarten."

but welcomes children from all Jewish affil-
iations, with students coming from Reform
and modern Orthodox families.
Tuition for the 2007-2008 school year
is $13,840 per student. Hillel maintains a
commitment that all qualifying families
who wish to give their children a Jewish day
school education should be able to do so.
Financial assistance comes from funds
gathered though the school's annual fund-
raising campaigns, the Jewish Federation of
Metropolitan Detroit, the Shiffman Family
Day School Tuition Assistance Fund and the
Goldman-Hermelin Education Foundation.
"For the current school year, 35 percent
of students received financial assistance,"
said Liz Schubiner, Hillel's director of oper-
ations."Families whose income is $180,000
or below are eligible to apply"
According to Schubiner, "Hillel has run
a balanced budget for the last five years
despite declining enrollment. Although
attrition at Hillel is extremely low, incom-
ing kindergarten and first-grade classes
are smaller as measured by independent
school norms," she said. "In part, this
sterns from the declining number of dill-

rooms, with the rest of the school
set to have them by fall.
Also scheduled for next school
year is the implementation of
Freedman's plan to divide the
school into three "learning com-
munities." Recognizing the devel-
opmental differences of students
between
the ages of 10 and 14,
- Jordan Field, Class of 1991
divisions
will include kindergarten
director of public affairs for the Detroit Tigers Foundation
through fourth grade; fifth and
sixth grade; and seventh and eighth
grade, each led by a division head.
dren in this age group and the economic
A recent Partnership for Excellence in
downturn in Michigan."
Jewish Education School Improvement
Journey grant supports a current "two-year
New Developments
process of in-depth reflection and analysis
Hillel's 100,000-square-foot structure
boasts a state-of-the-art technology center, leading to a higher level of excellence in all
areas of functioning': Freedman said.
three science labs, an art center and the
To secure the school's future and man-
recently completed Blumenstein Family
age tuition increases, Hillel engaged a
Gym, a theater arts-athletic facility.
SMART Boards (computerized interac-
50 And Counting on page A18
tive whiteboards) now are in some class-

Naming A School

• 1986: Wing endowed by William, Ethan and Marla Davidson. Jean and Sam Frankel
wing and Mary and Mike Must multipurpose room named.
• 1989: Sadie and Irwin Cohn, Joyce and Avern Cohn and Rita and John Haddow
playground dedicated. Goldman-Hermelin Education Foundation formed.
• 1991: Mala and Henry Dorfman Elementary School named.
• 1993: Shiffman Media Center, Rudolph Shulman Chapel and Fisher-Sherman
Science Wing named.
• 1994: Bradley Bluestone playing field dedicated in memory of former Hillel student.
. 1996: Middle school wing dedicated on newly named Schostak Family Campus.
• 1997: Garden of Wonder elementary playground donated in honor of Miriam and
Fred Ferber by their children. Jane Rudy Schostak Outdoor Classroom dedicated.
• 2005: Blumenstein Family Gym named.
• 2006: K-2 playground dedicated in honor of Hillel past President Terri Farber Roth.

•

2008

A17