A Slice of Chai - Summer Edition - Bialik

Sept. 2014Issue No. 1

Building Jewish Leaders since 1914

Toutes les nouvelles que vous souhaitiez savoir!

Summer 2015Issue No. III

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Inside This Issue

* Bialik vs. Herzliah Debating Tournament* Bialik Secondary I Invention Convention* Photos drom March Of The Living 2015* Photos from the Bialik Secondary III IBMYP Trip To Costa Rica!* The Grand Opening of the Lederman Foundation Synagogue ...And much, much more!

Contact:

Brittany WittCommunications and Marketing Coordinator Les Écoles juives populaires et les Écoles Peretz inc.(514) 731-3841 ext: 233 or [email protected]

SO, what are you looking for? News: pages 3-13Science & Technology: pages 14-16Arts: pages 17-23Sports: page 24Graduation Special: pages 25-26Awards: pages 27-28Next Issue Sneak Peek: page 29

Table of Contents

© 2014-2015 Les Écoles juives populaires et les Écoles Peretz inc.

New to A Slice of Chai From JPPS-Bialik:The “Did You Know?”section!

See page 4 for this issue’s “Did You Know?”

Chai Lifeline Crohn’s & Colitis Canada

Dr. Shimshon Hamerman, Ph.D

2 A Slice of Chai From JPPS-Bialik

Appointments

JPPS-Bialik Board of Directors 2015-2016 President: Harley Eisman

Vice-President: Lee Wise ‘85Secretary: Etan JagermannTreasurer: Mitchell Laxer

Past President: Jamie RossBoard Liaison for the IBMYP Program:

Jane Siblin BrandmanPast President: Arnold Cohen ‘82

President of the Bialik Parent Council: Andrea Greenberg Kadanoff ‘89

David InzlichtSelina Itzkowitz

Ruth NajmanDavid PerlisSteven VictorKitry Znaty

Anat ToledanoCoordinator of Judaic Studies

Kindergarten-Secondary V

Lysie-Anne DesrochersCoordinatrice des études françaises pour

le primaire et le secondaire

This coming September, JPPS-Bialik will welcome Ms. Anat Toledano as the Coordinator of Judaic Studies for both JPPS and Bialik. Anat holds an under-graduate and a graduate degree in Judaic Studies from Concordia University. In 2006, she graduated from McGill University, where she attained her Bachelor of Education and her Brevet. Soon after, she earned a graduate certif-icate in Leadership and Education from McGill. During the 15 years she has taught at JPPS, Anat has worn many hats. She headed the Jewish Life Program in 2014. She met the challenge by organizing different activities and events that revolved around the Jewish calendar. During the past decade she taught French (Grades 3-4), and she also developed a French drama program and staged productions such as Le Prince d’Egypt and the Le Magicien d’Oz. We look forward to seeing what she has planned for our 2015-2016 academic year!

JPPS-Bialik is pleased to welcome Mme. Lysie-Anne Desrochers as our new Coordinatrice des études françaises pour le primaire et le secondaire. Lysie-Anne has been a French specialist at Bialik High School since 1983. Lysie-Anne attended l’École Secondaire Saint-Maxime in Chomedey, CEGEP de Saint-Jérôme, and Université de Montréal. She attained an under-graduate and a graduate degree in French Studies and linguistics, plus her Brevet. She has been a prime mover behind numerous initiatives at JPPS-Bialik, such as stage productions and cultural incentives that enable students to appreciate Quebec’s rich culture and engage with other communities that contribute to the country’s cultural mosaic. The 2015-2016 academic year is certainly off to a great start with all that Lysie-Anne has in store!

New to A Slice of Chai From JPPS-Bialik:The “Did You Know?”section!

See page 4 for this issue’s “Did You Know?”


Bialik Student Lounge Receives New Additions In Memory of Bialik Alumni, Jamie Abrams ‘04

In April of 2015, the Bialik High School Student Lounge received a facelift. A new TV and leather couches were installed. These items were donated in memory of Bialik alumni Jamie Abrams ‘04, who passed away this past year.

A beautiful plaque was placed inside the lounge. Now all who enter can stop and remember Jamie. The plaque was unveiled to an audience of family, friends and teachers, all who wished to remember Jamie. The Bialik administration are looking to add to the room so that students can spend more time there and benefit from what it will have to offer.

The parents of Jamie Abrams unveil his plaque

A Slice of Chai From JPPS-Bialik 4 A Slice of Chai From JPPS-Bialik

Maria Altman (Helen Mirren)

class of 1977

Did You Know?Do the three photos on the right look familiar to you? If so, you might have seen the 2015 film which featured them! In April of 2015, the film The Woman in Gold was released and it told a powerful true story. In 1999, Maria Alt-man (Helen Mirren) sought to regain a world famous painting of her aunt stolen by the Nazis during World War II. She did so not just to regain what was rightfully hers, but also to obtain some measure of justice for the death, destruction and massive art theft perpetrated by the Nazis. She does so with help from her lawyer, Randol (Randy) Schoenberg (Ryan Reynolds).

Did you know that a Bialik alumni named Michael Shuster ‘77, is the laywer involved in a similar case as the one told in this non-fictional drama? (See photo below). This story takes place in 2010, in what experts say is (still) the world’s largest unresolved Holocaust art claim! The heirs of Hungarian banker Baron Mor Lipot Herzog filed a lawsuit in United States District Court in Washington demanding the return of the art collection they say is right-fully theirs. The lawsuit was filed against Hungary and several museums that it oversees. David de Csepel, the great-grandson of Baron Herzog, has said he was speaking on behalf of about a dozen relatives, and explained that this lawsuit had come after decades of frustration with the Hungarian gov-ernment. Bialik’s very own Michael S. Shuster is the lawyer for the Herzog family, and has said that Hungary has been “one of the countries that has been the most recalcitrant” about returning looted art. The Herzogs believe that there may be many more artworks than those named in the suit, which are valued at a total of about $100 million. In 2013, the U.S. Court of Appeals ruled that the case against Hungary could proceed in its entirety. This deci-sion confirmed the Herzog heirs’ right to claim looted artworks, including eleven previously excluded pieces.

Randy Schoenberg (Ryan Reynolds)

Bio of Michael Shuster ‘77 Taken From His Website


On Fire In Baghdad: Sabih Ezra Akerib (also known as Steven Acre) Visits Bialik

On May 15th, Bialik students gathered in the Metterlin Hall to listen to an eyewitness account of the destruction of an ancient Jewish community in Baghdad.

“On June 1 and 2, 1941, the Baghdadi Jewish communities burned, a proud Jewish existence that had spanned 2,600 years was abruptly incinerated,” said Mr. Sabih Ezra Akerib, who was nine-years-old at the time. Bialik students listened intently as he told the story of how the Farhud came to be in Baghdad and the events that transpired in Iraq during the Second World War. His whole story can be found in the AMI Magazine, titled: On Fire in Baghdad.

“In April 1948...Two months later we boarded planes for Israel. For us, 2,600 years of Jewish Iraqi existence had come to an end”.


In early May of 2015, Bialik Secondary V students gathered in the Metterlin Hall to learn about trauma. Four guest speakers ad-dressed the students about trauma and its effects. The first guest speaker, a current first responder, explained how a trauma centre works, and how first responders are taught to treat trauma. She spoke about how trauma staff are available at all times and that when on call, they must be back in the hospital within 15 minutes of a call. She also spoke about numbers. The Montreal General Hospital is a designated Trauma Centre and on average, sees about 30,000 people per year, with 1,600 of these cases related to trauma.

The next to speak was a current trauma surgeon. He asked the students to raise their hands if they had a cell phone. All students raised their hands. He then asked how many of these students had a protective case for their phones. Most raised their hands. The surgeon smiled and asked why they bought protective cases for their phones, but yet don’t wear helemts when riding a bike.His analogy spoke volumes. He then spoke to the students about various trauma cases he had worked on and the results. He went on to say that even if someone survives a trauma-related accident, the individual’s life could be changed forever depending on the severity of the accident.

The third guest speaker was an anestheiologist. She explained what happens to trauma patients from the moment they arrive at the hospital, all the way to their surgery.

The last guest speaker was a trauma victim. He had suffered a traumatic brain injury after a severe motorcyle accident in April of 1998. As a result, he still has issues with mobility and behavior. For more information, please click on the link below.

https://muhc.ca/sites/default/files/m-Trauma/CrashCourse_depliantDec2010.pdf

Bialik Students Receive a Crash Course in Trauma


Yom Hazikaron at Bialik


On May 5th, Bialik High School hosted a Secondary I-V debating tournament against Herzliah High School. Featured in the photos below are Bialik Secondary V students Justin Shapiro and Noah Adessky, and Herzliah Secondary V students Shai Navi and Jared Boretsky, as they prepared for their debate.

Bialik Debates And Bialik Votes

On May 14th, the students of Bialik voted. Shortly thereafter, Bialik formally congratulated its newly-elected Prime Min-ister, Matthew Copelovitch and his Expansion Party! The two other parties were Raffi Katz-Zeitlin and his People’s Party, and Mitch Fergenbaum and his Synergy Party. They both ran excellent campaigns. The students were focused, and put in the necessary work to ensure that the democratic process was observed. Their commitment to helping make the school a more interactive environment was very much appreciated.

The Expansion Party


Bialik Hosts the Final JMID Meeting for the 2014-2015 Academic Year

During the second week of May 2015, the Jewish Muslim Intercultural Dialogue group (JMID) met for the last time for the 2014-2015 academic year. Earlier in the year, Bialik teamed up with École Le Savoir, and both schools participated in various activities that were both fun and informative. The students had the opportunity to get to know each other and learn about their different cultures. During this last session, the students welcomed two very special guests: Mrs. Mia Swartzman-Barsheshat and Mrs. Rivka Butovsky. Rivka is the mother of the late Avriel Bu-tovsky ‘76. He and Mia were classmates and close friends, and were both part of the first grad-uating class of Bialik High School. The Avriel Butovsky Memorial Fund for Middle East Issues promotes a mutual understanding of both cultures. The vision and goal is to have a dialogue between Arab and Jewish students. Thanks to Avriel’s legacy, there are many opportunities for Bialik students to better understand their role in the world, and their connection to humanity. The two women were honoured to be present during this last session, and the students were happy to receive them.

Rivka Butovsky (left) Mia Swartzman-Barsheshat (right)


It was a dream come true for many, and a very strong statement with regard to the future of Bialik High School. Friday, May 22nd marked the grand opening of the Lederman Foundation Synagogue, located inside the school in what used to be a classroom.

“Today, I stand very proud because this was our dream for many months. The idea, inception and vision has now come to fruition, and our goal of creating a shul like this has become a reality,” beamed Mr. Avi Satov, Principal of Bialik High School. The Lederman Foundation Synagogue, located at the front entrance of Bialik High School, makes a grand statement of Bialik’s commitment to Jewish education.

“We are a Jewish school first and foremost above anything else, and what we are trying to instill in our students are Jewish values. The synagogue is front and center when you enter the building and everyone has access to it,” Satov said while looking around the synagogue, which was filled to capacity with students, faculty, administrators, parents and invited guests. Among the gatherers were JPPS-Bialik President Mr. Jamie Ross, JPPS-Bialik Vice-President Dr. Harley Eisman, Bialik Vice-Principal Ms. Nancy Sculnik, Bialik Senior Academic and Pedagogical Consultant Ms. Judy Stein, JPPS Principal Ms. Marnie Stein, JPPS-Bialik Head of School Ms. Maureen Baron, and countless Bialik students and parents. In his formal address, Satov thanked Mr. Neil O’Kelly and Mrs. Susan Orenstein Little of The Lederman Foundation for their help in realizing this re-markable dream. He also thanked Ms. Etti Kimchi, a Bialik Jewish Studies teacher who played an enormous role in the building of the Lederman Foundation Synagogue.

“In all the years that I stood behind the daily morning Minyan project here at Bialik, I had the hope of forming a real synagogue at our institution. I am filled with happiness with the knowledge that next year marks the 13th year, the Bar Mitzvah year, of our Bialik daily morning Minyan. I am excited to see all the activities and events that will take place in our very own synagogue,” Kimchi stated proudly. For the past twelve years, Bialik has held morning Minyanim for all students who wished to attend. Services are led by Rabbi Levi Raskin, who volunteers his time, along-side Berel Ryan Solomon, a Bialik alumus from the class of 2006. The synagogue will now comfortably accommodate the fifty students that attend Minyan each morning, with the numbers growing every month. The ceremony came to an end with the affixing of the mezuzah by Jeremy Little ‘10, son of Ms. Susan Orenstein Little. With the dream of so many realized, there was hardly a dry eye in the room. As Kimchi stated in her closing remarks: “Yes we did it, yes we can.”

A Dream Come True: The Lederman Foundation Synagogue Opens Its Doors


Bialik Secondary III IBMYP Community Service ProjectsThe Secondary III IBMYP Community Service Projects were on display during the last week of May 2015 for all to see and admire. They were fantastic, and the students presented the projects proudly! The projects featured community service work with the following organizations: The Friendship Circle, Dans La Rue, Chatopia, Le Waldorf, Little Red Playhouse, Montreal Children’s Hospital, Chai Lifeline, Yaldei and The Breakfast Club Of Canada.


Bialik High School Annual Mentor-Mentee Info Session and BBQ

Bialik Secondary V Annual Scavenger Hunt!Ready...go! And in a mad dash, Dorothy, the Tin Man, Batman, Kids from Recess, a football player, the TNT, the Scooby Doo Crew and many more ran out of Bialik High School. It was officially the start of the annual Secondary V Scavenger Hunt! A few hours later, the winners of the 2015 Bialik High School Secondary V Scavenger Hunt were announced! After following the Yellow Brick Road for most of their journey, the Wizard of Oz team won the hunt! The prize? Free tickets to Prom for all members of the team.

The Bialik High School Annual Mentor-Mentee Info Session and BBQ was a wonderful opportunity for incoming Secondary I students to spend time with their mentors and meet some of the Bialik teachers. The evening began with a meet and greet, followed by a speaker for the parents, activities for the students and a BBQ.


Bialik Students Participate in the 7th Annual Moot Court of Jewish LawOn May 27th, eight Bialik Secondary IV students participated in the 7th Annual Moot Court of Jewish Law. This program is endowed by the Ruth and Alex Dworkin Family Foundation at the Jewish Community Foundation. The students took part in writing a brief/factum using Judaic text to understand and solve a modern-day legal case. The Moot Court program involved selected Secondary IV students from Bialik High School, École Maïmonide, Hebrew Academy and Herzliah. Each presented their case before a panel composed of the Hon. Justice Morris J. Fish, the Hon. Benjamin J. Greenberg and Rabbi Schachar Orenstein. This year’s case explored the halachic issues pertaining to Inheritance in Jewish Law.

Bialik High School Secondary V Melaveh Malka


The Bialik High School Junior Robotics Team Competes in the City-Wide East Robotics Competition

The Bialik High School Junior Robotics Team was successful in creating Bialik’s first ever Robocup team! Under the guidance, training and leadership of Ms. Rona Katz, Volunteer Manager of the Bialik Advanced Technology Program, and Bialik alumni Jonathen Zlotnik ‘14, the Bialik Secondary I Junior Robotics Team competed in the city-wide East Robotics Competition which was held on Friday, April 24th. The competition took place at John Rennie High School and required building and programming a robot to achieve a “Search and Rescue” challenge. Pictured below are Rona Katz, Liam Murad, Max Laxer, Zachary Groszman, Harry Marshall, Andrea Mendell (Bialik Science teacher) and Josh Schacter. “Like every Robotics team I have worked with, each member has a strength that they bring to the team. Lessons of improvisation, adaptability, engineering, humility, teamwork and sportmanship were learned by many,” Rona stated proudly.

Bialik High School Secondary III IBMYP “All About Prosthesis” Science Project

The future of prosthetic limbs could be seen in the Secondary III IB-MYP “All About Prosthesis” projects. The students were divided into groups of two or three and were given the task of chosing a body part that they wished to turn into a prosthetic model, using Bialik’s 3-D printer. Once the model was made, the group then had to present the projects on their iPads and submit them to be viewed by the en-tire class. While each group presented their project, the model of the group’s chosen prosthetic was passed around the class. Some of the prosthetics chosen were: a foot, an Atlas bone, a finger, a Patella bone, a thumb, a hip bone and a toe.


Popular Mechanics For BialikThe students in Mr. Liam Twomey’s Science class will never look at a bike the same way again. In this unit, the students learned about the mechanics of a bicycle. With his class watching very closely, he exhibited the skills necessary to construct a proper bike.

Bialik Biology Class Explored The Circulatory System

What better way to learn about the circulatory system then to make a life-sized model demon-strating how it all works? This was the thought process behind the projects presented in Ms. Lisa Marcus’ Secondary III Science class. The photos on the right show the extent to which the students went to show off their knowledge of the circulatory system. These are just two of their amazing projects.


Bialik Secondary I Invention ConventionThey are future innovators, entrepreneurs and science/math geniuses! Each Spring, Bialik’s Secondary I students get all the at-tention! Welcome to the 2015 Invention Convention. Secondary I students present their invention - a project that they and their partner(s) have created and constructed. This year, the inventions were amazingly clever and unique. From an easier method to decide on what to eat for dinner to irrigation, these projects drew crowds into the Invention Convention Exhibit.


March Of The Living 2015


Bialik High School Secondary III IBMYP Students Perform Community Service in Costa Rica


Bialik Goes to NYC and Washington


At the end of April, Bialik Secondary II IBMYP students went on a wonderful and informative school trip to Wendake! Wendake is the current name for the Huron-Wendat reserve, an enclave within the former city of Loretteville in the La Haute-Saint-Char-les borough of Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The students participated in many fun activities unique to Wendake.They spent the night in the National Longhouse Ekionkiestha’ of the Huron-Wendat People, explored the Huron-Wendat Museum, learned about the myths and legends of the pre-European contact period, visited the traditional Huron-Wendat site Onhoüa and did some crafts in a craft workshop at the Hôtel-Musée Premières Nations. It was a great experience that created many unforgetable moments. The scenery was beautiful, and the weather couldn’t have been more perfect!

The Bialik Secondary II IBMYP Students Venture to Wendake!


On May 19th, the Bialik Secondary III students spent the day at Arbraska Rigaud, the largest adventure park in all of Quebec (http://arbraska.com/en/rigaud/). Students and teachers had an incredibly fun day as they swung from tree to tree and completed various obstacle courses. Many team-building initiatives took place, and everyone loved the experience, especially being able to enjoy a day in the great outdoors.

Bialik Secondary III Students Journey to the Largest Adventure Park in Québec!


Artwork By the Students of Bialik High School

Bialik High School Yiddish Choir Celebrates a Wonderful Year of Yiddish Music


Go Bialik Bulldogs Go!


Last Day of High School=Fun, Fun and More Fun!


Bialik High School Graduation!

ValedictoriansEnglish: Chloe GordonFrench: Lévana ZnatyHebrew: Noah AdesskyYiddish: Brandon Azimov


Bialik High School Awards Ceremony


Bialik High School Awards Ceremony Continued


2015-2016 Producers of Bands On The Run and Coffe HouseJonah Saks

Samantha StermerDylan StermerNoah Zlotnik

Zara Fox

2015-2016 Play ProducersNikki Adler

Madison GoldSierra Gazin

Jeremy KormanShilat Dohan

Rebecca Turner

Dance and Runway Producers of the Bialik Fashion Show 2016

Dance producers: Alyssa Korman, Jillian Stoopler and Talia TehraniRunway producers: Carly Bruck and Shoshana Nuez

Save the Date!Bialik Open House: October 15th

Have a great summer vacation!

Next Year (2015-2016) at JPPS-Bialik!

A Slice of Chai - Summer Edition - Bialik

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