This past Sunday, the students of the class of 2009 completed WYHS' placement tests, which are taken by every prospective student in the spring before they enter the school. These tests play an important role in determining the level of each student in Hebrew and math. The Hebrew exam is actually generated and reviewed by the NETA Hebrew program. The math exam has been developed by the math department of the Frisch School in New Jersey. WYHS believes that each student deserves to be placed in the most appropriate level class for his or her needs.

Before the tests began, the students decided which extracurricular activities, clubs and committees they want to pursue in the fall. Principal Rabbi Perry Tirschwell explained the reorganization of the school week to obviate conflicts between class and sports by moving electives after early dismissal on Tuesday. Activities included nine sports teams, art, band, Model UN, debate, tech, newspaper, dance, photography, etc. Committees included chesed, Rosh Chodesh, Yom Hazikaron/Yom Haatzmaut, student council, etc.

Following a national trend, a number of the incoming freshmen have taken multiple high school math courses while still in middle school. These students had additional sections on their placement tests to see if they have mastered the Algebra, Geometry and Algebra II courses they took in 7th or 8th grades.

This freshman class will be the first WYHS class of over 50 students. Rabbi and Mrs. Tirschwell personally hosted 61 prospective, freshman students for Shabbat meals on Shabbatot throughout the winter. Students are coming from as far as Miami Beach, NMB, Hollywood, Aventura, Boca Raton, West Palm Beach and Jacksonville. There are several public school students, a Pinecrest student, and three students from Meyer Academy in West Palm Beach joining next year.

It seems that admissions season is still going strong. In the past month, additional students from Kendall, Monsey, New Orleans and Springfield, New Jersey have visited or inquired about enrolling. This incoming class will definitely be an important addition to our school and we're looking forward to their joining us next year!

It has been a pleasure to be part of our students' lives this year. As the year comes to a close and the last student has made his decision about his post high school plans, I would like to share with you an overview of college guidance this year at WYHS.

Seniors
Congratulations to the Class of 2005. As a result of our seniors' hard work, diligence, perseverance and the support of their families, 75% of our senior class will attend universities that are listed in "America's Best 100 Colleges 2005" (US News and Time Report).

I want to commend the students on choosing a campus with a significant observant population at which they can realistically continue to practice their religious lifestyle. Many of our graduates have earned significant academic scholarships.

Juniors
"Well done" to the Class of 2006. Thanks to their earnest desire to get an early start at college admissions, all of our juniors have or will be taking the SAT or ACT exam before the end of this year. 31 out of 40 juniors have already taken the ACT, the scores of which we received last week.

Our analysis of these scores is the basis of the advice we are presently giving the juniors about the necessity (or lack there of) to take the college boards again, and which exam (ACT, SAT or both) to take in the fall. Also, these vital statistics are helping them select the universities to which they will apply.

The students in our junior class will complete their first college application before the end of the school year. The corrected applications will be returned to them by Sept., 2005. The faculty and I will be writing the school's official letter of recommendation this summer. An application submitted early to a college indicates a responsible student to the admissions committee.

Sophomores and Freshmen
All WYHS students take the SSAT exam before they enter the school. The classes of 2007 and 2008 have also taken PSATs (twice and once, respectively), and will take the PSAT exam in the fall (on November 1). Each year we track their progress on these standardized tests on a large spreadsheet. When we received the scores, I met with the math and science teachers and reviewed the scores to see if they were commensurate with the students' classroom accomplishments.

I highly recommend that next year's sophomores take the optional PLAN test given at the school on an off day from school, Wednesday, September 21. The PLAN is a preliminary ACT which gives the student an idea of which areas he or she has to concentrate.

I would like to express my appreciation to Rabbi Tirschwell, Mrs. Kanner, Mrs. Schultz and Jane Jordan for their assistance and cooperation in the application and acceptance process at universities.

Since Pesach, many students have been busy studying for the highly anticipated Advanced Placement (AP) tests. If students do well on these examinations, they are able to apply for college credit. Scoring high on the exams, which are graded on a scale of 1-5, means even more when it comes to college admissions. Since AP courses are geared for high level college students, the colleges view students who take them as prepared to handle the challenges of university work.

In the humanities, WYHS students had the option to take European History (10th grade), American History (11th), US Government (12th) and English Literature (12th). Other rigorous courses were Biology (11th & 12th), Psychology (12th), and Calculus (12th).

Over the years, our AP teachers have attended courses and workshops to help them prepare curricula with the tests in mind (the College Board, creator of the AP, does not mandate or even suggest a particular curriculum). Our AP instructors have devoted many additional hours helping us prepare for these endless curricula.

Many WYHS alumni have attested to benefits that their AP courses have afforded them. They have been able to take other courses because they had fulfilled requirements prior to entering college. Some have been able to graduate college early due to the credits that they were awarded.

This year, due to the proximity of the examinations to Pesach, students had to work hard during their vacation in preparation for the tests. The students who decided to participate in the March of the Living (despite its coinciding with the AP weeks), took makeup exams this past week.

All of the AP exams are graded in a one week period at the University of Nebraska in early June. History instructor Mr. Adam Dobrick, recognized by the AP for the high scores of his WYHS students on the history exams, will be a grader of AP exams for the third year in a row. Scores are released to students in the beginning of July. We wish luck to all students who took them.

Last week the eleventh grade took a field trip to view the controversial movie "Columbia Unbecoming", produced by the non-profit David Project. The David Project's mission is to alert high school students of the dangers of growing "anti- Israel" propaganda on college campuses, and to combat it by educating students so they can recognize exploited fallacies.

The movie was undoubtedly an eye-opener to many who had been oblivious to the extent of anti-Israel (the "politically correct" term for anti- Semitic) sentiments. This documentary by The David Project unveiled the great use of racial intimidation at one of the nation's most well respected universities by a few pro-Palestinian professors whose goal it is to silence the voices of students with opposing beliefs.

The video clearly presented the problem inherent in such a method of teaching. Uninformed students in the class walked away with an inaccurate, or at least biased view, of the Middle East situation. The students walked away believing that the opinions they heard were factual because they heard them from a professor at Columbia University, apparently a credible source. Many of the pro-Israel students complained of a lack of a supportive and sympathizing authority on which they could rely to act against such intimidation.

The video's ramifications were strong but fleeting. Columbia University decided to respond by organizing a committee to investigate the students' complaints and keep the teachers in check. The committee consisted of five members, three of whom (including the committee's organizer) signed the petition for divestment from Israel. One of the remaining two was serving as the dissertation advisor of an accused professor at the times of the accusation, and the other wrote an article suggesting that the rise of global anti-Semitism was created by Israel.

I feel that this movie was extremely important as it demonstrated exactly what is suggested by its name. If such "unbecoming" acts of intolerance and intimidation can exist and continue unbridled in what is supposed to be one of the highest institutions of liberal thought and academic freedom- it can exist anywhere. It is the responsibility of every American citizen to combat such abuses of academic freedom and the responsibility of every Jew to educate him or herself with the facts of Israel-Arab conflict. Next year as seniors, we will be learning about the history of Modern Israel and the zionist movement.