FEBRUARY 17 • 2022 | 23
was tragically killed in the
Oxford High School shoot-
ing.
The program is part of
Hillel’s fifth grade proj-
ect-based learning unit
on heroes. Students study
the qualities of everyday
heroes in their Tanach class
through a close analysis of
Exodus 2. In the biblical
text, students learn about
the heroic qualities of
the midwives who defied
Pharaoh’s order to kill all
firstborn boys and kept the
children alive. They then
learn about the daughter of
Pharaoh and her willingness
to go against her father’s
decree and save baby Moses.
As the year progresses,
students write formal pieces
in their Language Arts class
about their own heroes. The
learning unit culminates
in the spring when the stu-
dents’ heroes are invited
into the school for a celebra-
tory reading of the students’
writing.
The panel was a huge hit,
with many of the fifth-grade
students feeling inspired.
“I think you can really
achieve anything you want
to — it’s what you put into
it,” said student Eli Panza.
“Do better in the world and
make it a better place.”
Student Reemone
Chudnow said, “I found out
people I could walk by every
day, people I could walk by
on the street are heroes.”
“The main takeaway is
we’re really surrounded
by heroes, and sometimes
you just have to look close
enough to see them,” said
student Esther Matthies.
Clara Gaba, longtime
Jewish Studies teacher who
launched this learning unit
many years ago, said, “It
started with our Bible stud-
ies, and teaching the kids
that heroes are not necessar-
ily born but can grow up to
be heroes.”
Gaba said one student
last year told her that all
they want to do is to grow
up and have a lot of money.
When Gaba asked them
why, they said they wanted
to be like Bill Farber and be
able to give it back to the
community.
“That’s a lesson by itself,”
Gaba said.
Added Renee Liberman,
Hillel language arts and
social studies teacher, “It’s
all about taking that time to
look at humanity and all the
moments we can rise to the
occasion and really support
each other. And that’s what
we look to instill in our stu-
dents, that value of commu-
nity and supporting anyone
who may need it in any way
that you can.”
Hillel faculty
member Nicole
Miller, a close
relative of
Tate Myre, a
student who was
tragically killed in
the Oxford High
School shooting.
I
n celebration of Jewish
Disability Awareness,
Acceptance, & Inclusion
Month, JCC’s Opening the
Doors is holding an inspir-
ing virtual event,
“Changing The
Norm: Celebrating
the Beauty of
Different Abilities,
”
on Feb. 28 at 7 p.m.
The event
features Tony
Award-nominated
director and cho-
reographer Marcia
Milgrom Dodge
and award-winning
dancer and actor
Evan Ruggerio.
Dodge will discuss
creating her own
authentic produc-
tions, celebrating
inclusivity in all forms, includ-
ing in her recent take on Olney
Theatre Center’s Disney’s
Beauty and the Beast. Ruggiero,
who portrayed “Beast” in her
production, will highlight his
triumphs on the stage when
returning to dancing and per-
forming after losing his leg,
which was amputated above
the knee after he was diag-
nosed with osteosarcoma, a
type of bone cancer, at age 19.
Ellen Maiseloff, senior direc-
tor of Opening the Doors, has
known Dodge for years. When
Maiseloff spoke with Dodge
about her take and casting
on Disney’s “Beauty and the
Beast,
” she was impressed with
the choices she made and her
philosophy, and also how it
mirrored so much of what
Opening the Doors strives to
do; by providing Jewish educa-
tion classroom experiences for
children of all abilities.
“When (Dodge) creates a
play or musical, she
really doesn’t want to
replicate what’s already
been done,
” Maiseloff
said. “She likes to
rebrand and reimagine,
and when she does that,
she really looks to find a
way to be inclusive of all
races, ethnicities, body
shapes and abilities in
her casting.
”
Maiseloff says Dodge
believes any child
should be able to come
to the theater, look at
the actors and believe
they might play any
role, even if they have
different abilities.
Dodge, who grew up in
Southfield, won a Tony Award
nomination for Best Director
of a Musical for her revival of
Ragtime in 2010.
“I was thrilled and honored
that she would share with us
what she’s done in the world
and how our world’s go togeth-
er in recognizing, including,
celebrating and helping peo-
ple with different abilities to
belong,
” Maiseloff said.
“I would like people to
recognize there shouldn’t be
barriers for people with dif-
fering abilities to be included,
and that they can do anything,
”
Maiseloff said.
To register, visit https://jlive.app/
events/1520. The fee is $5.
JCC’s Opening the Doors welcomes
award-winning guest speakers.
Jewish Disability
Awareness Event
DANNY SCHWARTZ STAFF WRITER
Marcia Milgrom
Dodge
Evan Ruggiero