Mifgash

Mifgash Jewish Community High School Program is a community of Jewish students who meet weekly to learn from engaging faculty. Our students come from many different backgrounds, and all are united in a commitment to Jewish learning and a willingness to contribute to classroom discussions. Our mission is to create an active learning community that is responsive to the needs of Jewish teens, and to offer teens opportunities to strengthen their Jewish identity and knowledge, their connection to the Jewish community, and their bond to Israel.

Mifgash welcomes all Jewish students in grades 8-12. Students choose their own classes from a diverse selection of courses. Every semester offers the chance to try something new! All of our classes are discussion-based, and there are no tests, quizzes or exams.

Mifgash transforms our students from Jewish learners to Jewish leaders.

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2024 Fall Course Descriptions

What Would You Do With Your First Million? - Mrs. Ilene Friedman

This course centers around the hypothetical scenario of acquiring $1,000,000.00 and the consequential responsibility of strategically donating it. It aims to give students the skills to assess and select appropriate philanthropic avenues, including establishing philanthropic organizations, strategically positioning them in the donor market, and exploring various Jewish and non-Jewish philanthropic organizations. The students will be entrusted with formulating priorities and goals and then allocating their "donations" in alignment with these principles.

Fighting Against Antisemitism and Advocating For Our Community - Mrs. Dee Levy, Mrs. Simi Leifer and Mrs. Laura Weisblat

We will be discussing how to fight antisemitism and stand up for the Jewish community. We will also discuss how to engage with others and how we came together to create our very own organization focused on fighting antisemitism. Topics around how to get involved and opportunities for engagement will also be discussed.

Jews And The News 2024 Edition - Mr. Arnie Adler

Welcome to the Fall 2024 edition of “Jews and the News” at Mifgash! Not surprisingly, our spirited, discussion-based current events class will likely have a dual focus this year - the 2024 US presidential election and the ongoing conflict in Gaza. As an evenly divided American public braces for the outcome of the 2024 presidential election and its aftermath, our class will evaluate the positions of the presidential candidates and consider which candidate might better address the concerns of the Jewish community, including continued support for Israel, combatting antisemitism on high school and college campuses around the country and dealing with other complex and vastly challenging societal issues. As the war in Gaza approaches the one-year anniversary, we will discuss the possible outcomes of the conflict, strategies for dealing with HAMAS terrorism, the safe return of surviving Israeli hostages and the tough choices Israel will face as it confronts an existential threat from Iran and other enemies of the Jewish State. As always, student-initiated discussions and suggestions for topics are always welcomed! If you would like to discuss and debate these and other current issues in a friendly, fun and supportive Jewish environment and teach Arnie a thing or two, there's no doubt that “Jews and the News- 2024 Edition” is the class for you!

This is Us- Yael Zafrani & Dan Ben Nun

Join Dan and Yael, our Israeli Shinshinim, in this engaging, interactive, and fun Israeli-focused class. They will teach teens about life in Israel from the perspective of Israeli teenagers. Together, you will explore Israel through games, conversations, activities, music, and food! Gain insights into modern Israeli life and understand different perspectives on social, emotional, and cultural aspects of the people and society.

Creating a Shabbat Experience - Mrs. Amy Rosenstrauch

The semester’s course will focus on Shabbat. The class will be creating table runners to enhance their Shabbat tables and uplift their experience of Shabbat. They will design their compositions for their table runners using the Hebrew phrase Shabbat Shalom and other traditional Jewish symbols. Their challenge will be to arrange the symbols of their choice into a pleasing and eye-catching composition. Using heat transfer vinyl sheets, their designs will be cut by hand or using a die-cut machine. There will be a large selection of colors of vinyl sheets. Before applying their designs they will dye their fabric to give more richness and color to their projects. The students will be using colorful ceramic tessera (mosaic pieces) in a variety of shapes to design and create beautiful timely coasters to rest Shabbat wine glasses upon.