Chabad Educators Convene In New Jersey

Newark, NJ — More than 100 Chabad Rabbis, varied practitioners in the field of education, convened at the Robert Treat Hotel in Newark, NJ. from Sunday night August 5th through Tuesday afternoon Aug. 7th. They heard lectures and panel discussions, participated in workshops and in strategy sessions, they shared meals renewed friendships, as they retooled professionally and were rejuvenated spiritually.

Concurrent lectures were presented throughout the conference, geared to primary and secondary education respectively. Dr. Judah Weller director of P’TACH and a disciple of the famed pediatrician Dr. Mel Levine, presented a series of lectures on the theme of “Schools Attuned”. His lectures featured Dr. Levine’s developmental philosophy which outlines the complex constructs which constitutes cognition. It focuses on a study of eight neurodevelopment constructs that affect learning: attention, language, memory, neuromotor functions, temporal-sequential ordering, spatial ordering, social cognition, and higher order cognition.

More in the Extended Article!

Concurrently Dr. Jerry Lob, an adolescent clinical physiologist from Chicago, together with Rabbi Yehuda L. Shapiro, Dean of the Yeshiva of Miami and Rabbi of the Chabad community therein, presented views on adolescent development as seen from a physiological-developmental point of view and its multitude of religious implications.

In both cases a series of resolutions was presented at the conclusion, with the aim of carrying forward the work done at the convention, throughout the year.

A series of papers which are the precursor to a full developmental curriculum for Talmud studies was made by Rabbi Mendel Greenbaum principal of Cheder Menachem in Los Angeles CA, Rabbi Levi Kaplan and Rabbi Mendel Eidelman both from Oholei Menachem in New York. Their presentation lasted more than 3 hours after which committees were formed to help facilitate further research and field testing.

A first timer at the annual conference, Rabbi Shimon Druk from Detroit, MI, said “the intensity and caliber of the presentations and workshops is amazing, it demands so much I could not have lasted for another.”

During lunch on Monday, Rabbi Yosef Charytan the principal of the Chabad School in Seattle, WA sat with Rabbi Noach Kosofsky principal of the Lubavitcher Yeshiva Academy in Longmeadow, MA reviewing the events of the morning, catching a well deserved breather as they talked shop. Rabbi Yaakov Sheinberger vice principal of Chabad Hebrew Academy in Margate, FL sat with a group of collogues, Rabbi Hirsh Raskin from Montreal, Rabbi Zalman L Markowitz from Morristown, NJ and Rabbi Zalman Twersky from Chicago among others, planning the implantation of some of the ideas presented, in their respective schools in the fall. Rabbi Twersky commented “I have been coming to conferences for a number of years but I think this one outdoes them all, every session breathes new ideas.”

Rabbi Ephraim Rosenblum, veteran educator from Pittsburgh, PA led a delegation of 6 colleagues from the Yeshiva Schools and Rabbi Hershel Lusitg principal of Oholei Menachem led a group of 12. All in all 34 instructions from across the country were represented. call R

”While the concentration is intense the atmosphere prevailing is one of satisfactions and camaraderie“ said Rabbi Moshe Rodman principal of Desert Torah Academy, Las Vegas, NV. Rabbi Nochem Kaplan Director of the Merkos Chinuch office remarked that a lot of preparation and planning go into every conference; the knowledge that our schools and their thousands of students will be positively impacted make it all worthwhile. Dr. Lob called Rabbi Kaplan Wednesday morning to say that though he a frequent speaker at such meetings he has never encountered such a serious a group with so much energy and motivation. ”I know“ said Rabbi Kaplan, ”I work with them all year and they keep me on my toes”.

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13 Comments

  • an appreciative parent

    kol hakavod
    boruch hashem these yungerlite are taking this awesome job of educating the next generation sincerely
    keep up the good work

  • 9 MILE

    Rabbi Stein from the D.
    ITS GOOD TO SEE YOU AND THE OTHER TEACHERS THERE FROM YOUR CHADER,

  • Concerned Parent

    I agree with Parent in CH. Especially when these Rebbeim don’t practice what they preach! One of whom was even a presentor at this conference. It’s not enough just to pass on educational material-what about hanhaga, middos, etc? That, these guys don’t seem to deal with much. They just take the easy way out and send a kid to the mashgiach to punish. What happened to the caring teacher who is out for our children’s best interests? Not in OT.

  • Rabbi Morgenstern

    I can’t beleive it!!!

    Are you perhaps the parent that sits their child in front of a TV to baby sit them?

    I take my hat off to you, it’s not easy to find the negetivity in this one.
    But, negetivity there is aplenty, it doesn’t need your help.

    Why don’t you try for a change to focus on the good things in life.

    The fact that those mechanchim are there listening to "outsiders," who are instructing them on how better to teach YOUR CHILDREN is proof enough!

    I don’t exactly know how the Kinus will effect the childrens chinuch but I can sure tell you how this kind of rhetoric will…

    "Kulonu bnei ish echad nochnu," we are all one family. Let’s work together.

    PS. See how you felt when I blindly attacked you in my opening statement and I don’t even know who you are! The same holds true with your horrible slander.

  • Parent in CH

    When I wrote my comment, I was actually just talking to the writer of the article. I know that the teachers will most definitely use the new knowledge they have obtained. I just feel that the PR piece would have been even more effective if it told me how they will use the knowledge in the classrooms.

    We are talking about Chinuch here – a much discussed topic in the neighborhood. We all agree that there is much more the Mechanchim can do to make their lessons even better. Show me something that they will be doing this year. Now is Oholei Torah’s opportunity to tell me what they have learned at the conference and more importantly how they will implement it.

  • BrookAve

    Look at that first picture. The faces, the folded arms. Bored? Our holy educators. Rav Nachas!

  • ADDAve

    I would say attentive. Listening. Without ADD. Without shifting around. How unheard of.

  • shnuel munkes

    i think its a great idea the rebbe said the teachers are shluchim they also need something like a convention,

  • chicago

    seriously, where are all the chicagoans?? t he chinuch in that city needs major help in every dept. but theyre to egotistic to actually go to a convention and listen to someone elses advice!! uch!!