22 | MAY 30 • 2024
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N

I

f you walk into Lawton
Elementary School in Ann
Arbor, you will find two
large glass displays showcas-
ing influential Jewish figures,
Judaica such as shofars and
a Torah plushie, and the
American and Israeli flags.
The displays represent a
grassroots effort by three
Jewish families in the school.
One of the display’s design-
ers, with two children in
the school, said she wanted
the cases to mirror her own
feelings about being Jewish:
“Bursting with pride.” (She
requested to remain anony-
mous.)
Jewish families across
Washtenaw County public
schools have taken similar
initiatives to recognize Jewish
American Heritage Month in
their children’s schools, as they
find few school-sponsored

events. In the absence of such
events, Jewish families reached
out to their children’s teachers,
read books on Jewish themes,
presented in classrooms and
erected displays.
Hagit Barry-Naab read the
book Pizza Mitzvah in her
daughter’s first-grade class
at Thurston Elementary, and

Jenny Kirsch Van Beck, who
has a first-grader at Bryant
Elementary, presented on
mitzvot, or good deeds. She
brought in a big poster titled:
Everyday Mitzvahs! and read
a book called Can Sophie
Change the World?
According to AAPS
Interim Superintendent Jazz

Parks, “Jewish Americans are
highlighted in lessons and
reading selections with our
students across classrooms
in AAPS school and digital
libraries. In the arts, students
explore, study and perform
the works of great Jewish
American artists, lyricists,
dancers, composers and many
other extraordinary individ-
uals who have had a positive
impact on our society.”
Parks recognized Jewish
American Heritage month in a
May 3 update via the district’s
website and in a May 8 update
to the Board of Education,
However, this announce-
ment did not list any specific
events or provide resources
for schools — information
that was provided for many
other heritage months, such as
Black History Month, National
Asian, Pacific Islander & South

Jewish American heritage celebrated by families in Washtenaw schools.
Grassroots Efforts Fill the Gap

LAURA PASEK SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS

OUR COMMUNITY

Digital Choice Board in Saline Area Schools 4th and 5th grades.

A bulletin board at Heritage
School in Saline features
famous Jewish Americans.