Friday Letter

Friday Letter Archive | Friday Letter Alerts

 MIDDLE SCHOOL NEWS

Candle Lighting - 6:39 pm - Friday, Erev Rosh Hashanah

Candle Lighting - After 7:40 pm - Saturday night 

Havdalah - 7:38 pm - Sunday Night

COMING EVENTS

Friday, September 18

Erev Rosh Hashanah - School closed

Saturday, September 19

Rosh Hashanah

Sunday, September 20

Rosh Hashanah

Monday, September 21

Tzom Gedaliah - School open, Gray Day

Tuesday, September 22

Co-ed Soccer Practice - 4:00 - 5:30, Pascucci Field

Meet-the-Teacher Night: 6^th Grade - 6:30 pm in the Old Gym / 7^th & 8^th Grades - 7:00 pm

Wednesday, September 23

Girls' Volleyball Intramural - 4:00 - 6:00

Thursday, September 24

Co-ed Soccer Practice - 4:00 - 5:30, Backfield

Monday, September 28

Yom Kippur - School closed

Tuesday, September 29

Board of Directors meeting

Friday, October 2

Erev Sukkot - School closed

NYS Education Department - Student Technology Survey

The NYS Education Department has just released the Student Technology Survey 2.0 for student input on the development of a statewide educational technology plan. This survey is an updated version of a student technology survey released by the State Education Department in June 2009.

The Student Technology Survey 2.0 is for students at all levels and stages of learning. It addresses questions such as: What kinds of technology do you use both in and out of school? What kinds of technology do you want to use, and how?

We encourage you to participate in this survey so that the NYS Technology Plan will reflect the input of a comprehensive sample of NYS' students, including Jewish Day School students.

** The deadline for completing the survey is September 30, 2009 **

Grandparent and Special Friend's Days

Mark Your Calendars and Update Information For Invitations

Schechter is preparing for our annual Grandparent and Special Friends Days:

Middle School:  Wednesday, October 21, 2009/3 Cheshvan, 5770

High School:  Wednesday, October 28, 2009/10 Cheshvan, 5770

Elementary School: Thursday, April 22, 2010/8 Iyar, 5770

We would like to send an invitation to each student's grandparents and/or special friends.

Please update The Grandparent/Special Friends Information Form so that they can receive their invitation.  Send the completed form (please see link below) via e-mail to Elaine Dalfen at edalfen@ssdsnassau.org or to either of the school offices by Friday, September 25th. For more information, please call (516) 656-5500, ext. 1219.

Thank you!

FRIDAY LETTER

Dr. Shuly Rubin-Schwartz is Dean of the LIST College, Associate Professor of Jewish History and Acting Director of Enrollment Management at the Jewish Theological Seminary. She is a past co-chair of the SSHSLI Board of Education, parent of SSHS alumni Avital (Tali) '98 and Eliezer z"l '00 and mother of Rabbi Moshe Schwartz, Director of Jewish Life.

Psalm 27

Psalm 27, which we recite twice daily from Rosh Hodesh Elul through the High Holiday season, beautifully encapsulates our hopes and fears at this season of awe. If we are not already confronting both the small ways in which we've fallen short and the bigger questions of our own mortality and purpose in the world, the Psalm reminds us of this reckoning every morning and night. And yet, even as the Psalmist jarringly recounts the horrors of evildoers, wars, death and abandonment, he simultaneously dares to dream of salvation, peace, and a long life:  

One thing I ask of the Lord, for this I yearn: to dwell in the House of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold God's beauty, to pray in God's sanctuary.

And the Psalmist even has a healthy dose of confidence! He asks for only "one" thing from the Lord and then proceeds to enumerate three things that he desires!

In this era of diminished resources and thwarted expectations, many of us are afraid or unable to look beyond these circumstances and dream big. The Psalm reminds us that despite the inevitable disappointments and devastations of life, we ought never to curb our passion for life. Going one step further, the Psalmist suggests a direction for our zeal, one most likely to yield contentment: God's sanctuary, where he hopes to "dwell", "behold," and "pray." His three requests include important guide posts for our own yearnings: comfort in place, the ability to behold beauty no matter what challenges we are experiencing, the power of prayer in community. If we can achieve these three things, we will have found the tranquility that we yearn for this High Holiday season. May we all merit this achievement. 

Shanah tovah,

Dr. Shuly Rubin-Schwartz

Shanah tova u'metukah, a healthy and sweet new year to all.

Allan Dalfen

Upper School Principal

PDF files

Grandparent and Special Friend's Day