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is also taking 
on the roles of 
religious studies 
principal and 
oversees athletic 
and theater 
departments. 
Weiler said as of 
the 2021-2022 
school year, FJA 
had 18 AP courses and this year 
will add AP precalculus, as well 
as having two dual enrollment 
courses with Lawrence Tech 
under the guidance of Rapp. 
This year, Weiler said FJA will 
again offer the AP Capstone 
curriculum based on two 
yearlong AP courses: AP 
Seminar and AP Research.
This year, just like last 
year, students will have the 
opportunity to leave the four 
walls of school behind and 
explore the world around them. 
Thanks to a generous grant 
from the William Davidson 
Foundation, students traveled 
last year to live and study with 
Native Americans in Montana, 
built homes for the homeless 
in Portland, and explored 
European destinations, 
including Prague and Warsaw, 
in addition to traveling to 
Israel. All trips were framed 
by Jewish texts and values and 
focused on the identity of each 
student.
“It was a huge hurdle to be 
able to offer travel experiential 
programming the year 
after returning to school in 
person full time following the 
pandemic,
” Weiler said. “
After a 
year when many of us did not 
even leave our houses, it was 
very exciting to be able to offer 
our students the chance to learn 
through travel.
” 
To assuage the jitters of a 
student who comes from a 
public-school background, 
Weiler said FJA offers them 

multiple entry points to getting 
the feel for attending a religious 
school. Zman Kodesh, or holy 
times, occur Monday through 
Thursday where students have 
choices to attend a beginner’s 
minyan for prayer. At this 
time, they learn the structure 
of a prayer service or can 
learn about the weekly Torah 
portion. Also, Weiler said 
there are a variety of levels 
of Hebrew, Judaic studies 
and Israel education courses 
students can choose from to 
build upon their 
current skill and 
knowledge levels. 
FJA Director of 
Admissions Rachel 
Maxbauer said in 
addition to getting 
an education in 
a smaller, more 
personalized 

setting, families enrolling their 
students are seeking a sense 
of Jewish community. As the 
2023-2024 academic year gets 
underway, Maxbauer said she 
is already receiving calls from 
prospective 2024-2025 students. 
“Besides the advantages of 

smaller classes where students 
and faculty alike can engage 
in deep, quality learning, 
students enroll here for the 
Jewish community,
” Maxbauer 
said. “They want to come for 
a feeling of safety. They want 
an academic experience in a 

FJA 
Director of 
Admissions 
Rachel 
Maxbauer 

FJA General 
Studies 
Principal 
Erika Weiler 

ABOVE: Frankel Jewish 
Academy juniors enjoy a 
camel ride in Israel. 
BELOW: Rising Hillel 
Day School fourth- 
graders Elan Tamaroff, 
Ryan Bershas and 
Nathan Parker.