The Abraham Joshua Heschel School is an independent school named in memory of one of the great Jewish leaders, teachers, and activists of the 20th century. Unaffiliated with any single movement or synagogue, The Heschel School sees as essential the creating of a community with families from a wide range of Jewish backgrounds, practices and beliefs. The school is devoted to equal participation—boys and girls, men and women—in all aspects of the school's religious, intellectual and communal life.
The Heschel School is dedicated to the values and principles that characterized Rabbi Heschel's life: integrity, intellectual exploration, traditional Jewish study and practice, justice, righteousness, human dignity, and holiness. It regards the texts of the Jewish tradition and the history of the Jewish people as fundamental resources for developing ideas, beliefs, behaviors and values to shape and inspire the lives of individuals in our time.
The school's approach to education is governed by profound respect for students. It nurtures their curiosity, cultivates their imagination, encourages creative expression, values their initiative and engenders critical thinking skills. In an academic setting that values open, engaged inquiry, the school's curriculum interweaves the best of both Jewish and general knowledge and culture throughout the day. Within the context of this integrated and interdisciplinary approach, the school honors the intellectual integrity of the core subjects.
Our educational ideals are drawn from the strands of the Jewish, Western and world traditions to which we belong. They are reflected in our deep concern for the whole child and the balance in each student's academic, aesthetic, emotional, intellectual, physical and spiritual growth. In addition, the school seeks to create an environment that encourages the professional and personal growth of teachers, administrators, and staff.
Among the specific goals of The Abraham Joshua Heschel School are the following:
- The Heschel School is committed to fostering a lifelong love of learning. It seeks to engender the understanding that the discovery of personal meaning and the growth of individual identity can emerge from the rigors of study.
- The Heschel School is dedicated to creating an environment of intellectual challenge and academic excellence.
- The Heschel School seeks to create an ethical learning community that encompasses the students, staff, parents and all those who join in the work of the school. The school values both the uniqueness of each individual member and the relationships they form with one another.
- The Heschel School is dedicated to cultivating the spiritual lives of its students and nurturing their commitment to Jewish values. The school helps students learn about and respect a range of Jewish practices and encourages them to embody these traditions in the way they live their lives; students learn the skills that enable them to participate fully in Jewish life.
- The Heschel School is dedicated to building bridges between different sectors of the Jewish community, and between the Jewish community and other communities, as expressions of our religious imperative to unite human beings through justice, shared humanity and mutual respect.
- The Heschel School is dedicated to engaging our students in a relationship with the language, culture, land and people of the State of Israel.
- The Heschel School is dedicated to inspiring its students to become responsible, active, compassionate citizens and leaders in the Jewish and world communities.
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