Upcoming Events

Thursday, April 18 - Wednesday, May 1 - Pesach Break

Thursday, May 2 - Classes resume

Tuesday, May 7 - Grandparents' Day - Click here to reserve your Grandparent spot

Friday, May 10 - Last day to receive 70% Give-Get credit for Dr. Edward A. Crown Scholarship Dinner ads and dinner reservations (after May 10, ads and reservations receive 50% Give-Get credit)

Wednesday, May 15 - Winner of the 15th Annual Bonnie Dayan, z"l Art Competition will be announced (entries will be displayed in the school foyer)

Wednesday, May 15 - Oratory Fair, 6pm

Tuesday, June 4 - Thursday, June 6 - Senior Retreat

Sunday, June 9 - Graduation

Monday, June 17 - Edward A. Crown Scholarship Dinner honoring Eric Rothner (Crown Leadership Award), Leslie Wortman (Crown Service Award), and Chavee Gottlieb (Educator of the Year Award) - Click here to reserve your ad and dinner reservation

Wishing all members of the ICJA Community a happy and healthy Pesach

חַג כָּשֵׁר וְשָׂמֵחַ

Students learned with recent graduates who are currently learning in Israel.

On Wednesday, freshmen, sophomores, and juniors had the chance to learn with members of the ICJA Class of 2023 who are currently learning in Israel and visiting Chicago for Pesach. Each alumnus/a shared insights into a different aspect of Pesach with our students. Thank you Rachel Adar '23, Jordyn Baker '23, Tovi Litwack '23, Daniel Carl '23, Josh Felix '23, Shmuel Gurvich '23, and others for sharing your time and your knowledge.

Pictured above: Daniel Carl '23 and sophomores talking about Yetziat Mitzraim in a post-October 7 world

Pictured above: Shmuel Gurvich '23 talking about the meanings of maror with sophomores

Pictured above: Tovi Litwack ' 23 talking with freshmen about thanking Hashem for putting us into galut and taking us out

Pictured above: Josh Felix '23 and freshmen discussing relating to Hashem in the context of Pesach

Pictured above: Jordyn Baker '23 and freshmen discussing differences between remembering Yetziat Mitzraim during the seder and every day

Pictured above: Rachel Adar '23 and sophomores talking about freeing ourselves from our own personal forms of slavery

Students created booklets illustrating the 10 plagues and 50 miracles of Pesach.

Freshmen in Mrs. Kochava Yitzchak's Chumash class have been learning Sefer Shemot, including descriptions in the Chumash and in the Midrash of the 10 plagues Hashem visited upon the Egyptians and the 50 miracles with Hashem brought the Jews out of Egypt.

Students collaborated to create books illustrating and explaining the 10 plagues and the 50 miracles to read at their Seders. This week, the bound versions of the class booklets were finally delivered, and students unpacked them to bring them home for Pesach next week.

Pictured above: the class holding up their books The 50 Miracles - 50

נסים שעשה ה' על הים

Pictured above: Evie Weiss with her copy of the class book about the Ten Plagues

Students created illuminated Haggadah pages.

Sophomores in Mrs. Alissa Zeffren's Jewish History class learned how Jews in the Middle Ages davened from siddurim and Haggadot that were often beautifully illustrated with illuminated pictures. This week - outside, as they enjoyed the warm weather - students experimented with creating their own illuminated Haggadah pages, incorporating the hallmarks of illuminated manuscripts, including vivid and metallic colors, miniature pictures, and elaborate designs.

Pictured above: Zachary Fogel and Ben Rosenburg

Pictured above: Rivki Belsh and Caley Gordon

Pictured above: Jack Marshall and Noam Hellman

Students asked a local dayan halachic questions.

If you know that a friend of yours just ate meat but they ask for a taste of your milchig snack, are you allowed to give it to them? If a Sefardi girl learned to daven Ashkenaz, is that a problem? Does it affect her other Sefardi minhagim?

Throughout the year, Mrs. Lynn Kraft's junior AJSP students have asked many interesting halachic questions, which she often passed on to her husband, Rabbi Aaron Kraft, Dayan Kavua at the CRC and Rosh Beit Midrash at Bais Chaim Dovid, to answer.

Last Friday, the students were privileged to hear from Rabbi Kraft in person during a live Q&A (pictured below). The girls posed many insightful questions, including the questions above, and were thrilled to be able to hear answers from Rabbi Kraft directly. 

Students practiced graphing skills by creating geometic models of Seder plates.

Sophomores in Mrs. Pederson's Geometry class spent part of this week using mathematical equations to create pictures of Seder plates.

Students wrote equations to draw circles, ovals, and other shapes, representing the elements of the Seder plate (pictured) and experimented with different coordinates to create a realistic-looking Seder plate.

Pictured above: Josh Miller

Pictured above: Devorah Koplowitz

Pictured above: Yona Jones and Yehuda Goldstein

Four artworks by ICJA students are currently on display in the Skokie Public Library.

Yasher koach to seniors Gabriella Zipperstein, Dina Osgood, and Julia Bellows and to sophomore Natan Miller, whose artwork has been chosen to appear in the 2024 High School Congressional Art Competition Exhibit currently at the Skokie Public Library.

One of the works displayed will be sent to Washington DC to compete with high school artwork from across the country.

Pictured above: "Silent Strike" by senior Gabriella Zipperstein

Pictured above: "Turtle's Ocean House" by senior Dina Osgood

Pictured above: "Girls Don't Cry" by senior Julia Bellows

Pictured above: "Saul Bellow Portrait" by sophomore Natan Miller

Students delivered Pesach food to those in need.

Last Sunday, the ICJA Wrestling Team delivered pre-Pesach food packages with Maot Chitim to families in need around the Chicago area.

It was part of the Wrestling Team's regular chesed each year, including delivering food before Rosh Hashana and before Pesach.

Pictured above: freshman Levi Madoff, seniors Jacob Z. Friedman and Ari Klein, and freshman Caleb Novick

Students took a break to make a last chametz meal before Pesach next week.

On Tuesday this week, sophomores in Rabbi Binyamin Segal's Navi class took a break from studying to gain a skill they've been anticipating since Rabbi Segal told them he'd teach them at the beginning of the year: how to make homemade pasta.

Students mixed and rolled their pasta dough before boiling it and eating it with Rabbi Segal's homemade sauce.

Pictured above: Jonah Strahlberg and Judah Well

Pictured above: Gabe Klein and Adam Katz

Pictured above: Boaz Stopek

ICJA students presented to over 200 students at Loyola Academy this week.

On Tuesday this week, ICJA students gave presentations about Judaism and living a Jewish life to over 200 students at Loyola Academy.

Yasher koach to first time ICJA presenters sophomores Penina Benjamin, Zachary Fogel, Caley Gordon, Devorah Kaplowitz, Yaffa Hoberman, Mina Brandes, Yehuda Goldstein, and Rivky Belsh. Thank you to returning presenters and mentors Ayelet Appel, Toby Burstyn, Aaron Hartman, Hadar Simkovich, Leahrina Brochin, Allie Stein, Elisha Shpayher, Yonah Rubin, Rena Neiger, Aryeh Neiger, Benjy Baronofsky, Hayden Gradstein, Emily Darlow, and Ella Perlman, for helping train a new cohort of speakers.

Freshmen boys and their relatives davened together at Congregation Bais Yitzchok in West Rogers Park last Sunday.

Many Sunday mornings, ICJA's freshmen boys' rebbe, Rabbi Louis Fliegelman, arranges for students and their fathers (and grandfathers or other relatives) to meet at a different Chicago-area location to daven Shacharit together and enjoy breakfast and learning.

Last Sunday they gathered at Congregation Bais Yitzchok in West Rogers Park.



For more information about the Veshinantam Levanecha program, email Rabbi Louis Fliegelman at lfliegelman@icja.org.

Watch "Connect with ICJA," our newest video for prospective students - and share it with people you know who'd like to learn more about ICJA!

Watch this moving video documenting some of the volunteer activities our seniors participated in during their month-long Mission to Israel!

ICJA Dean Rabbi Leonard Matanky has released an e-book containing his letters to parents during the ICJA Senior Mission, plus additional reflections and divrei Torah.

Click HERE to download Missions: The First 100 Days of the Gaza War by Rabbi L. Matanky.

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.

Review ICJA on Niche.com and enter a sweepstakes.

Help let people know how fabulous ICJA is! Whether you're a parent, student, teacher, or alumnus/alumna, the popular school ranking website Niche.com wants to hear from you. Plus, every person who reviews ICJA (or any other school) is automatically entered into a monthly $1,000 sweepstakes by Niche.com. For more information and to leave a review, click here.

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.

This will be ICJA's last Oratory Fair! All are welcome to attend.  Please email Mrs. Sheri Goldstein at sgoldstein@icja.org to reserve your spot. (Poster credit: senior Shuli Falk)

Sign up for the Fridayton HERE and submit payment (if paying by credit card) HERE. To discuss financial assistance, email Michael London.

Announcing ICCC: Ida Crown Cycling Club!

Join our New Alumni Facebook Group

We are excited to announce that we have a new private Facebook group called “ICJA Official Alumni Page.” It is a space for alumni from all graduating years to join. We will periodically post alumni reunions, events, fundraising opportunities, information about ICJA today, and news.

We are proud to have some families with us for four generations. If you are an alum, please join the group HERE and be sure to share the link with your family, friends, and fellow graduates. You can also share this link: https://www.facebook.com/share/UeTsqg16DDx4JHGK/?mibextid=hubsqH. Thanks for staying connected to ICJA!

Please reach out to Ilana Levy at ilevy@icja.org if you have any questions about this new effort.

Last summer, ICJA gave its Class of '23 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.