he word is out and enroll-
ment in the Miller High
School Honors Program at
HUC-JIR/NY increased by
500%
last year to a record high
of 50 students. Students are
telling their friends about the program,
which provides leadership training, in depth
Jewish studies, and the opportunity to meet
teenagers from other Reform communities.
Rabbis, cantors, and educators select students
from their congregations to participate in this
two-year Sunday seminar program for 11
th
and 12
th
graders from Reform synagogues in
New York, New Jersey, and
Connecticut. Seymour and Claire
Glass Miller, founders of the pro-
gram, noted, “It says something for
the quality of this program that it
can draw on the precious weekends
of high school students from the far
reaches of the metropolitan area.
The probability of their becoming
future Jewish leaders is immensely
gratifying to us.”
HUC-JIR rabbinical, cantorial, and
education students teach and tailor
the curriculum based on the inter-
ests of their students.
Subjects cover Torah
study, Jewish histo-
ry, Israeli current
events, Hebrew, and
midrash
,
among
others. Teacher Joshua
Burrows, a 4
th
year HUC-
JIR rabbinical student,
remarked that the program is “a
wonderful opportunity for teenagers
who want to expand their Jewish
learning in ways that they haven’t in
other places.”
Each Sunday session includes 3 aca-
demic topics, lunch, and services.
Students study Jewish texts as a
foundation to evaluate critical
issues facing American and world
Jewry. Activities include discussion
groups,
midrash
workshops,
research projects, guest speakers,
and field trips. Teachers encourage the stu-
dents to share their ideas in group study
sessions and help prepare them to lead simi-
lar sessions in their home synagogues.
Students also learn to lead services and many
lead services during the course of the pro-
gram. The students’ enthusiasm for the
program is apparent. Cantor Gabi Arad (NY
’03),
seen teaching her students in this
photo, said, “This program is a
teacher’s dream because students
want to be here and learn.”
Jo Kay, Director of the New York
School of Education and
of the Miller High School,
remarked, “The Miller
High School Honors
Program provides an opportunity
for young leaders to hone their
skills and interact with leaders in
the Jewish community, scholars,
and peers in the hope that they
will choose to become Jewish pro-
fessionals or lay leaders in their
communities.”
The Miller High School Honors
Program is made possible through
the generous support of Seymour
and Claire Glass Miller. Additional support is
provided by The Fund for Jewish Education.
T
HE
M
ILLER
H
IGH
S
CHOOL
H
ONORS
P
ROGRAM
T
“
I believe that
everything I have
learned will even-
tually come out
in my life, and
all the informa-
tion that we have
learned will be
applied.”
{
“
I liked our
in-depth dis-
cussions best.
Everyone was
always able to
voice their
opinions.”
{
“
The program
enabled me to
develop good
leadership
skills and dis-
cuss ideas I
might not
have other-
wise raised.”
{
{
“
I keep talk-
ing about
the program
and all that
I learned.
I want my
friends to join
the program.”
By Ruth Friedman
2003
ISSUE 62
31