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SCHECK HILLEL ADDS STUDENT-DESIGNED CLASS TO CAPSTONE CURRICULUM
North Miami Beach, Florida – Scheck Hillel Community School added a student-designed class to its Capstone Senior Seminar: a signature Scheck Hillel program that prepares students for college and career. The class, entitled “Introduction to Adulthood” and created by Class of 2020 seniors Michael Berenstein and Alex Wagenberg, brings outside speakers from various fields to share the lessons and values that shaped their professional, entrepreneurial journeys.
The class is taught by the school’s Experiential Learning & Internship Coordinator Cristina Florez, and it also covers career awareness, personal budgeting and investing.
“Alex and Michael are amazing young men. They came in with a big idea, and we made it happen,” said Christopher Johnson, Director of Scheck Hillel’s High School. “It is great to see our students bringing the Scheck Hillel community, one of the strengths of our school, into the classroom. I strive to lead a high school where students explore their passions and take initiative to mold their high school experience. Alex and Michael are doing that, and then some. I am very proud of them.”
The seniors conceived the concept when they were talking about college and what they wanted to learn before graduation. “We noticed that the school prepares us very well for getting into college, and how to deal with certain situations in college, but we wanted to deepen our learning within real life skills that would help us when we actually leave for college,” saidWagenberg. They realized that their classmates had the same questions.
A project that began as a business plan to learn from real-life situations and inspire the senior class became a curriculum Berenstein and Wagenberg built with the support of faculty. Students now have the opportunity to learn from industry experts and learn life skills such as building a budget, identifying and managing investments, and learning to build and sell a company.
“You can learn from a textbook, but that just provides the information. “Introduction to Adulthood” doesn’t only teach these essential skills, but also helps incorporate them into the real world.” Berenstein observed
About Scheck Hillel’s Senior Capstone Program
As Scheck Hillel’s Grade 12 students continue to pursue requirements toward a Scheck Hillel diploma, they rotate through courses in Capstone Senior Seminar, one of Scheck Hillel's signature programs preparing students for college and career. Courses in both General and Judaic Studies are created and taught by Capstone faculty using seminar-style instruction - covering themes around identity, entrepreneurship, essentials of Judaism, and other “big questions” that require interdisciplinary thinking.
About Scheck Hillel Community School
Scheck Hillel Community School educates and inspires students 18 months-Grade 12 to become exemplary global citizens with enduring Jewish identity and values through an individualized college preparatory curriculum highlighted by Design/STEM, Capstone, college dual enrollment, arts, athletics and community service. Its 14-acres include a 115,000-sq.-ft athletic complex with academic expansion plans. Set within a nurturing, diverse community, Scheck Hillel is one of the world's largest Jewish community day schools and a National Blue Ribbon School of Excellence. For more information about Scheck Hillel Community School or to arrange a visit to the school, please contact our Admissions office at 305.931.2831x173 or write to admissions@eHillel.org.
