Student Life

Introduction

Dear Students,
We are so excited to welcome you to Ohr HaTorah Yeshiva High School! We are confident that this year will only build on the incredible foundation that has been established for our yeshiva. It is our sincere hope that this will be a year of tremendous growth and success for each and every one of you individually and for our school community. The goal of this handbook is to outline the framework, procedures, and norms of our school. We firmly believe that a clear understanding of the expectations and culture of our school will lead to a successful year. Creating a positive, strong, and structured environment for all of our students, leads to greater opportunities for success, happiness, and fulfillment for each individual student. We are completely invested in your growth and development religiously, socially, academically, and emotionally. The administration and faculty are always available to help you, please do not hesitate to reach out for help in any area. Looking forward to an incredible year together!

Rabbi Josh Grajower
Menahel

Mission Statement

Ohr HaTorah Yeshiva High School, located in Hollywood, Florida, is designed to meet the diverse demographic needs of 9th-12th grade boys in the local South Florida Ashkenazic and Sephardic communities.

Our mission is to develop young men who become true bnei Torah, passionate about their Judaism, with exemplary character, self-confidence, and the Torah skills to be life-long learners. Our goal is to foster an environment of personal responsibility and commitment to the Jewish people and Eretz Yisrael. Our school strives for academic excellence, both in Limudei Kodesh and General Studies, equipping each student with the educational building blocks, life-skills, and personal guidance to be able to pursue higher education and a meaningful career and life path in accordance with the Torah and their individual purpose and talents. We are invested in the personal growth of our students, developing each one, with his personal strengths, to become an ambassador of Torah and Judaism in the world.

Core Values

Every successful organization has core values that define all that happens within the organization. At Ohr HaTorah, everything we do and hope to accomplish is based on the following four core values:

1. Mission Driven
Everything we do is motivated with passion and purpose. As individuals, and as a school community, we need to constantly be focused on our personal and collective vision and goals.

2. Constant Growth
We must never be content or satisfied. We must always be looking for ways to improve.

3. Striving for Excellence
We are constantly balancing different responsibilities and obligations, yet we must always be striving for excellence in every domain.

4. Caring Community
As a school we are not merely a collection of individuals, but we are an interconnected community. As Jews, we are not simply here to care for ourselves, rather we have a responsibility to the entire Jewish community and ultimately to the entire world.

Academics

Limudei Kodesh Curriculum

Our yeshiva is committed to developing students who have a passion for learning Torah and the skills to be independent learners. We have an emphasis on Gemara, with students learning each year both b’iyun and bekius to develop critical thinking and reading skills. Students will also study Chumash, Navi, Halacha, Hashkafah, Mussar, and Ivrit over the course of their four years. This will be done in an environment of acceptance and respect which fosters genuine, meaningful, and lasting relationships and encourages open and honest dialogue to internalize the Torah’s values.

In addition to the formal curriculum, there will be a strong emphasis and focus on the development of personal feelings, attitudes, and character traits that produce sincere, principled, sophisticated, and motivated B’nei Torah with a lifelong focus on growth and passionate commitment to Torah, Hashem, and their fellow Jews.

General Studies Curriculum

We strongly believe in our students receiving a broad, engaging, and quality secular education. Our curriculum satisfies and surpasses the requirements of the Department of Education of the State of Florida. Our students will take four years of ELA and Math, and at least three years of Science and History. In addition, our students will take a wide range of electives, including Engineering, Foreign Languages, Business, and Videography.

Standardized Testing

By tenth grade, students begin receiving college advisement and are readied for the Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test (PSAT), a necessary preparation for the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) that is required for college admission. Full information about SAT II’s will also be supplied.

Juniors are prepared in our in-house SAT Prep class as well as encouraged to enroll in an additional SAT preparatory course. Information about programs (after school or Sundays) conducted by independent agencies will be made available upon request

Class Placement

We offer both grade level and honors tracks throughout the day in both Limudei Kodesh and General Studies classes. Honors classes will be noted on students’ transcripts and will receive additional points in the GPA, per subject. Our administration, based on teacher’s recommendations and previous performance, spends many hours of work to properly place our students at the appropriate level. If a student feels that a change is warranted, a formal request must be submitted to the administration.

Assessments

Assessing student learning is an essential part of the learning process. Assessments can take on various forms, and formative and summative assessments are necessary for learning.

Students can expect to have a range of quizzes, tests, and projects throughout each semester in each class. In order to balance the workload and not overwhelm our students, we will have a test calendar for all subjects. The test calendar can be found on our school website. No student should have more than one test and one quiz on any given day. Quizzes should not take more than 15 minutes of class time and cannot cover more than one week of work. Tests, which cover more material, should be announced by the teacher at least
one week in advance of the test day.

Make Up Tests

It is imperative that students make every effort to be in class for a test. On the rare occurrence that a student is absent for a test, he will be responsible for making up the test on the earliest make up test time slot. Make up tests will take place during a student’s gym period in the main office (or if another arrangement is made with the teacher).

The first time a student is absent for a test in a class, he will be able to make up the test without penalty. However, the second time a student is absent for a test in a class he will have 10% deducted from the test grade, the third time 20%, etc. Special accommodations will be made for extended illnesses.

Grading

Our academic year is divided into four quarters. Students will receive a numerical grade at the end of each quarter. Grades for the year in each course will be calculated as follows: each quarter counts for 20% of the grade, the midterm counts for 10%, and the final counts for 10%.

Failing Grades

A passing grade in any subject is considered a 65. If a student has a failing grade in a course at the end of the year, he will be required to complete (and pass) a summer school course in order to return to school the following year. If a specific class does not have a summer school option (e.g. Limudei Kodesh classes), he will be required to learn a designated amount of material with a tutor and complete a major assessment to receive a passing grade before returning to school. 

In addition, while 65 is a passing grade, in order for a student to be able to participate in extracurricular activities, including athletics, he must maintain an average of 75 or above in all of his classes.

Academic Integrity

As a school that is promoting honesty, integrity, and Torah values, we are unable to tolerate any breaches of academic integrity. This refers to both cheating and plagiarism. Plagiarism is defined as representing the words or ideas of others as one’s own. This can be both in the form of direct copying or paraphrasing without attribution to the author (including published and unpublished works and the work of another student).

The first offense on either a test, quiz, or assignment will be given a zero and averaged into a student’s quarter grade. A second offense will result in a zero for the quarter. A third offense is grounds for expulsion

FACTS (Renweb) and Google Classroom

This year our school will be using the FACTS (Renweb) SIS (School Information System) and Google Classroom for the workflow of each individual class. Please make sure to continuously monitor both accounts

Attendance and Residency

Absences

Absence from school creates a disruption in the learning process and inhibits the growth of a student. Personal business, appointments, and routine medical and dental visits should not be made during school hours. Any student who is absent from class is responsible for any material covered during his absence, including homeworks, and any work that was assigned during class. Students are allowed to be absent for a total of 16 days throughout the school year. These include all forms of absences, including family vacations, illness, simchot, personal days, etc. Exceptions will be made by the administration for extended illnesses. Any student who exceeds 16 absences will begin losing points from his GPA. Each absence that exceeds 16 wil be a .05 reduction from the student’s overall GPA. The only absences that qualify as excused are school-organized or school-sanctioned events.

Lates and Leaving Early

Anyone who arrives at school more than 15 minutes late will be marked as late to school and will receive a ¼ absence. Similarly, anyone who leaves school (with permission) more than one hour early will receive a ¼ absence. Students who arrive after 10:30 am will receive a ½ absence from school. Similarly, students who leave school (with permission) prior to 2:30pm, will receive a ½ absence from school. These all count towards the cumulative 16 absences allowed throughout the school year

Late to Class

Each class is allotted only a few hours per week, and it is extremely important for classes to start and end on time. Students arriving late to class is disruptive to the learning process. The first two times a student is late to class, he will receive a warning. Starting with the third late to class, students will lose ½ point off the quarter grade

Cutting Class

A student who misses any class without explicit permission from the administration will be considered cutting class. Similarly, a student arriving to class more than 10 minutes late or leaving class for more than a 10 minute period is considered cutting class. A cut from a class will result in 2 points off the quarter grade in that class. Repeat offenses will be dealt with more strictly.

Suspension

If a student is suspended from school for any reason, he will receive a zero on all assignments and assessments (including tests and quizzes) that took place on the day missed. In addition, the day of suspension counts towards the 16 absences for the year.

Remaining on School Premises

Once a student arrives at school, he must remain on the school premises until the end of the day. Students cannot leave the premises for any reason, without explicit permission from the administration. A student who leaves campus without permission will receive a lunch detention, and on the second offense, will receive a one-day suspension. As a privilege of becoming a senior, seniors may leave campus during lunch, gym, or with explicit permission from the administration. A parental consent form must be completed and submitted prior to leaving campus.

Behaviors and Expectations

Dress Code

There is a saying that “clothes make the man.” The type of clothes we wear both influences our behaviors and the image we create regarding ourselves. As a yeshiva, we are constantly trying to balance the need for our students to dress like Bnei Torah, while also allowing for self expression. For the upcoming year, our dress code will be as follows:

  • Students must wear tzitzis every day to school.
  • Students must wear solid-colored button down shirts. All colors are allowed, however the shirt must be a single color.
  • Students must wear dress-style pants that are either blue, black, or grey. Students may not wear track pants, sweat pants, jeans or any other variety of non-dress pants. Any pants that students wear to school must comply with the following: 1) They must have side pockets. 2) They must have a front zipper. 3) They cannot have elastic or zippers on the bottom of the pants. 4) Cannot have a front drawstring
  • Students may wear shoes or sneakers of their choice, however they should be modest and appropriate for a Yeshiva setting.
  • Students may only wear sweatshirts that have no logos or designs (except Ohr HaTorah designed sweatshirts).
  • Students may not wear any jewelry, unless it is for religious reasons based on family customs.
  • Students’ haircuts should be modest and appropriate for a yeshiva setting. The length should not be too long or too short. The length of the hair on top should not be noticeably longer than the length on the sides, and bangs should not be significantly longer than the rest of one’s hair.

Students who arrive at school in violation of the dress code will not be allowed into class until they are compliant with the dress code. The time missed from class will be considered an unexcused absence.

Cell Phones and Smart Watches

Every day when students arrive at school, they must place their cell phones in a designated box in the office. The phones must remain in the box throughout the entirety of the school day. Any student that is caught putting in a “dummy” phone will receive a one day suspension. Smart watches are not allowed under any circumstances. Any student found wearing a smart watch will have it confiscated. Similarly, students may not bring in any other electronic devices (e.g. Ipad, Nintendo Switch), any such devices that are brought into school will be confiscated.

Laptops

Laptops will be provided to students to be used during the school day to complete work. Students may not bring their own laptops or tablets to school. Any student who has a non-school authorized laptop will have it confiscated.

Uber Eats

Students are not allowed to order Uber Eats to the school building. It causes a disruption to the school and is unnecessary. In the rare instance that a student is missing lunch and is in need of food, a family member can personally deliver lunch to the school or we can charge the family for our school hot lunch. If for whatever reason, this is not a feasible option, parents may order Uber Eats to the school to arrive during lunch time only. Anything that arrives prior to lunch will be held in the office until lunch. Anything that arrives after lunch has ended will be held in the office until the end of the school day.

Driving to School

Students may use their own cars to drive to and from school. Any student that is either driving to and from school or receiving rides from another student must complete the Student Private Vehicle Permission Form. Students are not allowed off the premises during the school day and therefore may not use a personal vehicle during school hours.

Code of Conduct

The functioning of any school is dependent upon clear expectations, proper standards, and mutual respect between all constituents. While every student is an individual and requires personal attention and direction, a school can only function with basic guidelines and universal rules. Students are expected to behave respectfully and appropriately throughout the school day. We have developed a system of consequences for both general breaches of conduct and more serious offenses. Repeat offenses will be taken more seriously and will result in more severe consequences.

General breaches of conduct include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Cursing or other inappropriate language in school
  • Removal from class
  • Disrespect to a faculty member

General breaches of conduct will result in the following disciplinary action:

  • First offense – Verbal warning from administration
  • Second offense – Lunch detention as well as phone call home
  • Third offense – Request for parent meeting with student and administration
  • Fourth offense – possible suspension

More serious infractions include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Bullying or fighting
  • Substance abuse
  • Vandalizing school property
  • Extreme disrespect of a faculty member

More serious infractions can result in the following disciplinary action per the discretion
of the administration:

  • Detention
  • School Clean-Up (as a natural consequence for vandalism)
  • Suspension
  • Probation
  • Expulsion

Substance Abuse

One of Ohr HaTorah’s main goals is to ensure a safe, wholesome environment for all of its students. To that end, we are committed to a student body that is free of controlled substances. Any student who uses drugs, alcohol, or nicotine products on campus will face immediate suspension, with the possibility of expulsion. If the student remains in the school, he must receive an evaluation by a school-approved drug counselor and follow the guidance of the evaluation. In addition, this student will be subject to drug testing at the parents’ expense. In general, we reserve the right and intend to do random drug testing and irregular intervals throughout the school year. Any student that tests positive must receive an evaluation by a school-approved drug counselor and follow the guidance of that evaluation. In addition, this student will be subject to drug testing at the parents’ expense

Month Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa
Aug 2023 27 28 29 30 31 1 2 28 & 29 Faculty Meeting 29 Orientation for all students 30 First Day of School
Sep 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 3- 4 Labor Day- No School 7 Beginning of Year BBQ Mishmar
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 10 Father n Son Event 14 Mishmar 15-17 No School- (Rosh Hashana)
17 18 19 20 21 22 23 18 Early Dismissal (Fast of Gedalia) 21 Teshuva Event
24 25 26 27 28 29 30 24-25 No school (Yom Kippur)
Oct 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 9/28-10/9 No School (Sukkos Break)
8 9 10 11 12 13 14 12 Mishmar
15 16 17 18 19 20 21 16 Faculty Meeting 16 Rosh Chodesh 19 Mishmar
22 23 24 25 26 27 28 26 Mishmar
29 30 31 1 2 3 4 3-4 Boca Freshman Shabbaton
Nov 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 6 Faculty Meeting 7 Term 1 ends 9 Mishmar
12 13 14 15 16 17 18 14 Rosh Chodesh 16 Mishmar
19 20 21 22 23 24 25 23-24 No School (Thanksgiving)
26 27 28 29 30 1 2 30 Mishmar
Dec 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 3 Open House 4 Faculty Meeting 7 Mishmar
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 7-15 Chanukah 11 Chanukah Event 13 Rosh Chodesh
17 18 19 20 21 22 23 21 Mishmar
24 25 26 27 28 29 30 25 Early Dismissal Father & Son Learning 28 Mishmar
31 1 2 3 4 5 6 1 No School (New Year's 4 Mishmar)
Jan 2024 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 8 Faculty Meeting 10 Term 2 ends 11 Rosh Chodesh 11-17 Midterms
14 15 16 17 18 19 20 18 Faculty Meeting 19-28 No School (Mid-Winter Break)
21 22 23 24 25 26 27
28 29 30 31 1 2 3 1 Mishmar
Feb 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 5 Faculty Meeting 8 Mishmar 10-11 Rosh Chodesh
11 12 13 14 15 16 17 16-17 School Shabbaton
18 19 20 21 22 23 24 19 No School (Presidents' Day) 22 Mishmar
25 26 27 28 29 1 2 29 Mishmar
Mar 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 4 Faculty Meeting 7 Mishmar
10 11 12 13 14 15 16 11 Rosh Chodesh
17 18 19 20 21 22 23 21 Early Dismissal Taanis Esther 22-24 No School (Purim)
24 25 26 27 28 29 30 28 Mishmar
31 1 2 3 4 5 6 1 Faculty meeting 3 Term 3 ends 4 Mishmar 6 Melave Malka
Apr 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 9 Rosh Chodesh 11 Mishmar
14 15 16 17 18 19 20 4/18-5/1 Pesach Break
21 22 23 24 25 26 27
28 29 30 1 2 3 4
May 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 6 Yom Hashoah 6 Faculty meeting 8-9 Rosh Chodesh 9 Mishmar
12 13 14 15 16 17 18 13-14 Yom Haatzmaut 16 Mishmar
19 20 21 22 23 24 25
26 27 28 29 30 31 1 26 Lag Ba’omer 26-27 No School (Memorial Day) 30 Mishmar
Jun 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 3 Faculty meeting 3 Term 4 ends 3-7 Finals 7 Rosh Chodesh
9 10 11 12 13 14 15 9 No School 10 & 14 Finals 11-13 Shavuos Break 14 last day of School & Faculty Meeting
16 17 18 19 20 21 22
23 24 25 26 27 28 29
30 1 2 3 4 5 6
Download 2023-2024 Calendar