Upcoming Events

• Tuesday, October 17 - ICGC Babka Bake for women and girls: join us baking and saying Tehillim for chayalim and civilians in Israel 6:15-7:45pm (see flyer below for details - register here)

• Monday, October 23 - All-school assembly with Gil Hoffman '95, Executive Director of Honest Reporting

• Tuesday, October 24 - Yearbook picture day



• Friday, October 27 - Sophomore and Junior Friday-ton

• Tuesday, October 31 - Junior PSAT in school (morning)

• Wednesday, November 15 - ICJA Open House for 7th and 8th grade students and their families - 6:45pm - 9:15pm (Click here to register.)

Please let us know if you know any families in the Chicago area where a parent left to fight in the war and could use some support from ICJA students (babysitting, playtime, homework help, etc.). Click here and complete the form; we will contact the family to see how we can help.

On Tuesday, the entire ICJA student body attended JUF's rally in solidarity with Israel.

As we came back from Sukkot break on Tuesday, ICJA students davened for Israel, then travelled to Glencoe for JUF's Israel Solidary Gathering. We joined with Chicago's Jewish community to demonstrate our unwavering support for Israel. Students heard from Gov. J.B. Pritzker, Rep. Brad Schneider, our very own Rabbi Matanky, and other community leaders.

Pictured above left to right: seniors Jakob Wortman and Joseph Rothner, Rabbi Moshe Eisenberg of NCSY, Gov. J.B. Pritzker, senior Jordana Zwelling, Lt. Gov. Julia Stratton, and seniors Noa Gavant and Ilana Schwartz

Pictured above: sophomore Libby Bleichman

Pictured above: sophomores Benny Kalman, Eli Fretzin, Zachary Fogel, Aiden Rich, Noam Hellman, Boaz Stopek, Natan Rine, Ben Rosenburg, Macks Kroll, Ami Gavant, Aaron Katz, and Judah Well

Pictured above: Rabbi Matanky addressing the crowd

Pictured above: juniors Ami Weiss, Levi Polsky, Coby Engel, Toby Burstyn, Talia Linzer, Daria Lennon, and Nina Ripstein waving flags and showing their support for Israel at the rally

Pictured above: junor Rachel Freed

Students are saying Tehillim for Chayalim.

When Mrs. Alissa Zeffren suggested beginning her freshman girls' Navi class by saying Tehillim for chayalim, she didn't realize quite how many connections her students have with people currently serving in Israel's armed forces.

Mrs. Zeffren invited students to write the names of chayalim who are friends and relatives. Soon, her board was covered with names. Each morning, the class begins school by saying Tehillim for these and other soldiers.

Students heard from Rabbi Ari Katz about his and his talmidim's experiences in Sderot.

On Wednesday morning, students spoke on Zoom with Rabbi Ari Katz at Yeshivat Hesder Sderot. Rabbi Katz described what the past few days have been like and answered students' questions. He encouraged ICJA students to daven for people in Israel, to show achdut, to write to displaced families in Israel, and to participate in NCSY's adopt a chayal program, which students then signed up for.

Click here to watch Rabbi Katz's talk. (The passcode is 81$%J3kf.)

Students wrote to peers in Israel

On Tuesday, students in Mrs. Michelle Prince's AP Literature class took time out of class to write to students in Neve Chana and Neve Shmuel, two religious Zionist high schools in the Gush Etzion region in Israel. ICJA students offered support and encouragement and told their Israeli peers that we are supporting them here in Chicago.

Pictured above: senior Ari Klein

Pictured above: senior Gabriella Zipperstein

Pictured above: senior Jacob Friedman

Students learned about fractals and created their own fractal shapes.

Students in Mrs. Stephanie Pederson's Concepts of Geometry class have been learning about fractals, "self-similar" shapes that repeat the same pattern at any scale. This week, students created their own fractals that they will use to create fractal patterns.

Pictured above: sophomores Moshe Nedwin and Noah Lehrfield with Mrs. Pederson

Pictured above: sophomore Jayden Pearlman

Pictured above: sophomore Daniel Allswang

How can ICJA students help Israel politically?

On Thursday, the entire student body came together to hear from members of ICJA's Israel Advocacy Club and Ms. Karli Krasnipol, AIPAC's Leadership Development Director.

Students received a briefing about the current situation in Israel and asked questions about how we can support Israel politically through lobbying our elected representatives here in the USA.

Pictured above: Ms. Karli Krasnipol

Pictured above: seniors Milo Benmelech and Evan Comrov speaking about the attacks in Israel

Pictured above: seniors Ben Baronofsky and Jordana Zwelling addressing the student bod

Led by ICGC, students raised over $2,000 and provided supplies to Israeli soldiers.

This week, ICGC board members came up with a special way to support chayalim in Israel. Seniors Talia Linzer and Jordana Zwelling, working with Mrs. Alise Gold, planned and executed a major charity bake sale at very short notice, and have already delivered vital supplies to Israeli soldiers.

Mrs. Gold was visiting Israel with her family when war broke out. After planning the Bake Sale with the ICGC Board, Mrs. Gold and her kids went shopping in Israel for supplies needed by soldiers; they were aided by former ICJA teacher Rabbi Yoni Fox's daughter Tehila, and Naomi (Lichtenstein) Shicker '05. The supplies were delivered to a makeshift army base that's been established near Bet Shemesh, ישיבת אמי״ת נחשון. Chayalim wait for orders from the base and are dispatched directly from there.

Back at school, ICJA board members spent hours on Wednesday night baking cakes, cupcakes and cookies. They also wrote letters to chayalim, which are already hanging on the walls of the army base. The proceeds of the Bake Sale, held on Thursday, were able to buy baby wipes, peanut butter, energy bars, batteries, flash lights, tuna, and other goods that were requested by the base. 

Pictured above: Thursday's bake sale in action

Pictured above: soldiers with goods donated by ICJA

Pictured above: some of the Bake Sale bakers

Pictured above: ICJA's Israeli shoppers

Pictured above: crowds at the Bake Sale

Pictured above: ICJA letters hanging in the Israeli base

Fox News covered ICGC's Bake Sale.

Fox News reporters visited ICJA on Thursday, interviewing members of Ida Crown Girls' Club and Israel Advocacy Club about the Bake Sale and our school's commitment to supporting Israeli soldiers and civilians.

Fox featured our school in their evening newscast. Yasher koach to all the many students and faculty members who made this Bake Sale a resounding success.

(Pictured here: Senior Ayelet Appel being interviewed by Fox News Producer Melissa Kula)

• Nishmat - Oct. 23, during 6th
• Baer Miriam - Oct. 31, during 6th
• Midreshet Harova - Nov. 2, during 6th
• Midreshet Lev HaTorah - Nov. 6 during 6th
• Aish Gesher - Tuesday, Nov. 7 during 6th
• Midreshet Lindenbaum - Nov. 7 during 6th
• Machon Maayan - Nov. 8 during 6th
• Midreshet Moriah - Nov. 8 during 6th
• Midreshet Torat Chesed - Nov. 9 during 6th
• Sha'alvim for Women - Nov. 9 during 6th
• Midreshet Torah Va'avodah - Nov. 14 during breakfast
• MMY - Nov. 14 during 6th
• Midreshet Amit - Nov. 14 during 6th
• Migdal Oz - Nov. 15 during 6th
• Tiferet - Nov. 15 during 6th
• Amudim - Nov. 20 during 6th

For more information about upcoming seminary visits, please contact Mrs. Lynn Kraft, lkraft@icja.org.

• Yeshivat Har Etzion - Nov. 8 during breakfast
• Orayta - Nov. 15 during breakfast
• Yeshivat Aish Gesher - Nov. 15 during 6th
• Netiv Aryeh - Nov. 16 during breakfast
• Torat Shraga - Nov. 16 during 6th
• Migdal HaTorah - Nov. 20 during breakfast
• Lev HaTorah - Nov. 20 during 5th
• Amudim - Nov. 20 during 6th
• Mevaseret - Nov. 21 during breakfast
• Reishit - Nov. 30 during 5th

For more information about upcoming seminary visits, please contact Rabbi Shmuel Oren, soren@icja.org.

• Lamdeini High School Summer Program - Nov. 7 during breakfast
• Bar Ilan - Nov. 8 during breakfast

• Indiana University Oct. 25
• Hebrew University of Jerusalem - Nov. 2
• Bar Ilan University - Virtual visit - Nov. 9

For more information about upcoming college visits, contact Ms. Susan Weiss, Director of College Guidance sweiss@icja.org (773) 973-1450 x121.

This week's Learning Dedications are in honor of ICJA alumni who are serving in the IDF, including:

Matthew Okner '21

Tali Yaeger '21

Daniel Otani '17

If you would like to sponsor a Day of Learning for a different soldier, please contact our Director of Development, Deva Zwelling, at (773) 973-1450 ext. 115, or dzwelling@icja.org.

Watch our Open House video

for prospective students - and share it with people you know who'd like to learn more about ICJA!

Founded in 1942, ICJA is 80 years old this year. Please enjoy this 80th Anniversary Video which looks back on eight decades of excellence, close bonds, and memories.

In addition to many thousands of physical books and journals, ICJA's Learning Commons contains tens of thousands of online books, journal articles and other resources, including subscriptions to newspapers such as The New York Times and the Wall Street Journal, the Encyclopedia Britannica, and more.  Students are able to access these resources through our portal.

Please stop by our librarian Mrs. Steinberg's desk in the Learning Commons or email her at  librarian@icja.org her to pick up your updated passwords to access our online material. ICJA's subscriptions are available at icja.libguides.com/home.

Do you have school-related news you'd like to see in this newsletter? Let us know!

If you have exciting ICJA-related news to share about classes, sports, clubs, or other projects, please tell us! Send news items and/or photos to Dr. Yvette Miller, Director of Communications at ymiller@icja.org. Your items can enhance our newsletter and ICJA's social media presence.

Spread the word - all 7th and 8th grade students and their families are invited to come to our exciting open house and learn more about what makes ICJA the premier Modern Orthodox school in the Chicago area!

Thank you to all those who donated to our Rosh Hashana Appeal. 5784 is off to a great start for Ida Crown and we are so grateful for our generous community members who support our Annual Scholarship Fund.

We are still hoping to achieve 100% parent involvement; if you have not already donated, please use the link below to give. Your contribution helps ensure no child is denied a Jewish education due to lack of funds.

Last summer, ICJA gave its Class of '22 alumni the second edition of our directory listing ICJA alumni who live in Israel and have graciously offered to open their homes to recent ICJA grads who are currently spending a gap year in Israel.

Thank you to the many alumni who have reached out to us, offering to host.

The directory was sent out to the emails of '22 grads that we have on file. If you have any questions or would like to update our contact information to help recent ICJA grads obtain a copy, please contact Dr. Yvette Miller, ICJA Director of Communications, at ymiller@icja.org.

We are still taking submissions from alumni who are willing to host, to include in future copies of this directory. Please contact Dr. Miller to be included.