Yeshivat Rambam Maimonides Academy: Difference between revisions

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m →‎References: Fixed url=value, updated info on other references. Added additional reference re: Ohr Chadesh grade levels.
→‎History: removed sentence re: prominent alumni as no citation was given and I haven't found anything on it. Added information re: pledged $500,000 donation in 2007 and possible connection to SIST. Added info re: sell of Bnos building to settle $1M in debt. Added →‎American East for Israel campaign: and info on the student-run charity program.
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== History ==
== History ==
The school was founded in 1991. Yeshivat Rambam grew over the years, adding several grades, outgrowing its original location on [[Pimlico Road]] and purchasing the former [[Har Sinai Congregation]] property on [[Park Heights Avenue]] when that congregation moved to [[Owings Mills]]. Eventually, Yeshivat Rambam added a middle school and high school, and it built enrollment to about 400 students. Its first high school class graduated in 2001.
The school was founded in 1991. Yeshivat Rambam grew over the years, adding several grades, outgrowing its original location on [[Pimlico Road]] and purchasing the former [[Har Sinai Congregation]] property on [[Park Heights Avenue]] when that congregation moved to [[Owings Mills]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Alvarez |first=Rafel |date=1995-01-12 |title=Har Sinai congregation may move to Owings Mills |work=[[Baltimore Sun]] |url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-1995-01-12-1995012087-story.html |url-status=live |access-date=2023-08-02}}</ref> Eventually, Yeshivat Rambam added a middle school and high school, and it built enrollment to about 400 students. Its first high school class graduated in 2001.<ref name=":2">{{Cite news |date=2011-05-09 |title=Orthodox Jewish School In Baltimore To Close |work=CBS News Baltimore |agency=[[Associated Press]] |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/baltimore/news/orthodox-jewish-school-in-baltimore-to-close/ |url-status=live |access-date=2023-08-02}}</ref>


During its existence, Yeshivat Rambam was earned recognition as a [[National Blue Ribbon School of Excellence]] for its high scholastic performance, as measured by SAT and other standardized tests, consistently exceeding 95th percentile across all measures.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Oster |first=Marcy |date=2011-05-09 |title=Baltimore's Yeshivat Rambam day school to close |url=http://www.jta.org/2011/05/09/news-opinion/united-states/baltimores-yeshivat-rambam-day-school-to-close |url-status=live |access-date=2023-08-02 |website=[[Jewish Telegraphic Agency]]}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{cite web |year=2005 |title=National Blue Ribbon Schools Program 2005 Archived Information |url=https://www2.ed.gov/programs/nclbbrs/2005/index.html |url-status=live |website=[[United States Department of Education]]}}</ref> The school produced several notable alumni{{citation needed|date=June 2022}} including numerous well-known Rabbis, physicists, mathematicians, scientists, physicians and policy-makers in the United States and Israel. The school had a 0% dropout rate and an average student:teacher ratio of 8:1.<ref name=":0" /> Its founding Head of School was Dr. Rita Shloush.
During its existence, Yeshivat Rambam earned recognition as a [[National Blue Ribbon School of Excellence]] for its high scholastic performance, as measured by SAT and other standardized tests, consistently exceeding 95th percentile across all measures.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Oster |first=Marcy |date=2011-05-09 |title=Baltimore's Yeshivat Rambam day school to close |url=http://www.jta.org/2011/05/09/news-opinion/united-states/baltimores-yeshivat-rambam-day-school-to-close |url-status=live |access-date=2023-08-02 |website=[[Jewish Telegraphic Agency]]}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{cite web |year=2005 |title=National Blue Ribbon Schools Program 2005 Archived Information |url=https://www2.ed.gov/programs/nclbbrs/2005/index.html |url-status=live |website=[[United States Department of Education]]}}</ref> The school had a 0% dropout rate and an average student:teacher ratio of 8:1.<ref name=":0" /> Its founding Head of School was Dr. Rita Shloush.


In the mid to late 2000s, Yeshivat Rambam ran into financial difficulties, having accumulated significant debt due to its resource-intensive educational strategies and other factors, and those problems sparked annual rumors about its doors closing. Donations dropped off during the Great Recession and about 60 Rambam families had moved to Israel since the school was founded in 1991, eroding its base in Park Heights. In addition, the school became gender-segregated, with the girls division remaining on the Park Heights campus and the boys division moving to the nearby [[Jewish Community Center]].
In the mid to late 2000s, Yeshivat Rambam ran into financial difficulties, having accumulated significant debt due to its resource-intensive educational strategies and other factors, and those problems sparked annual rumors about its doors closing. Donations dropped off during the [[Great Recession]] and about 60 Rambam families had moved to Israel since the school was founded in 1991, eroding its base in Park Heights. In addition, the school became gender-segregated, with the girls division remaining on the Park Heights campus and the boys division moving to the nearby [[Jewish Community Center]].


The school also experienced public relations difficulties with respect to a pledged donation. In 2007, Dr. Avraham Cohen pledged $500,000 to the school. When an article appeared on the school's website announcing the pledge, the doctor, reportedly a neurosurgeon, was recognized by several [[Shawano County, Wisconsin]] businessmen as the leader of a [[cult]] known as the [[Samanta Roy Institute of Science and Technology|Samanta Roy Institute of Science and Technology, Inc.]] Affidavits were filed in the Wisconsin case, with the defense denying all claims of similarity.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ryan |first=Tim |date=2007-07-20 |title=Mayor claims Samanta Roy has other identity: Roy's attorney denies |url=https://culteducation.com/group/1111-rama-behera/17803-mayor-claims-samanta-roy-has-other-identity-roys-attorney-denies.html |access-date=2023-08-02 |website=culteducation.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=DaAdmin |date=2007-09-12 |title=Purported "Cult" leader proclaimed "a shining example" by Baltimore school |url=https://cultnews.com/2007/09/purported-cult-leader-proclaimed-a-shining-example-by-school-in-baltimore/ |access-date=2023-08-02 |website=Cult News}}</ref>
⚫
On May 8, 2011, the executive board announced that Yeshivat Rambam would close in June 2011, at the end of the academic year.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Rodericks |first=Dan |date=2011-05-18 |title=Striving for the Modern Orthodox middle |url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/opinion/bs-xpm-2011-05-18-bs-ed-rodricks-rambam-20110518-story.html |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |access-date=2023-08-02 |website=[[Baltimore Sun]]}}</ref>

⚫
In April 2011, the school obtained a building from Bnos Yisroel, a private girls-only Jewish school, through a building exchange. Yeshivat Rambam's board was able to sell the building to a financing entity for $1,000,000, which they used to pay the debt owed by the school.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=Ambrose |first=Eileen |date=2011-05-08 |title=Park Heights Jewish school to close at end of academic year |url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/maryland/baltimore-city/bs-xpm-2011-05-08-bs-md-rambam-20110509-story.html |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |access-date=2023-08-02 |website=[[Baltimore Sun]]}}</ref>

On May 9, 2011,<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |last=Metzner |first=Janet |date=2011-05-09 |title=Yeshivat Rambam Schools to Close in June |url=https://patch.com/maryland/pikesville/yeshivat-rabam-to-close-in-june |url-status=live |access-date=2023-08-02 |website=Pikesville, MD Patch |language=en}}</ref> the executive board announced that Yeshivat Rambam would close in June 2011, at the end of the academic year.<ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Rodericks |first=Dan |date=2011-05-18 |title=Striving for the Modern Orthodox middle |url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/opinion/bs-xpm-2011-05-18-bs-ed-rodricks-rambam-20110518-story.html |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |access-date=2023-08-02 |website=[[Baltimore Sun]]}}</ref> Originally, the school had announced in January that the high school grades would be ending,<ref>{{Cite web |year=2011 |title=Yeshivat Rambam Transition Announcement |url=http://www.yrambam.org/transition |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110203021128/http://www.yrambam.org/transition |archive-date=2011-10-20 |access-date=2023-08-02 |website=Yeshivat Rambam}}</ref> and provided services to help students transfer to other area schools.<ref name=":4" /> The combined total of students in the boys' and girls' high schools was one hundred.<ref name=":3" />


== Successor ==
== Successor ==
Following the permanent closure of Yeshivat Rambam, some of its former faculty members remained to found another Orthodox Jewish day school in the area, Ohr Chadash Academy.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Brown |first=Ebony |date=2015-12-10 |title=Ohr Chadash celebrates five years |url=https://www.jewishtimes.com/ohr-chadash-celebrates-five-years/ |url-status=live |access-date=2023-08-02 |website=[[Baltimore Jewish Times]]}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=2011-08-04 |title=Baltimore Modern Orthodox Get New Day School |url=https://forward.com/news/breaking-news/140947/baltimore-modern-orthodox-get-new-day-school/ |url-access=subscription |access-date=2023-08-02 |website=The Forward |language=en}}</ref> Unlike Yeshivat Rambam, the school serves only preschool through eighth grades, but follows identical curriculum and principles.<ref name=":1" />
Following the permanent closure of Yeshivat Rambam, some of its former faculty members remained to found another Orthodox Jewish day school in the area, Ohr Chadash Academy.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Brown |first=Ebony |date=2015-12-10 |title=Ohr Chadash celebrates five years |url=https://www.jewishtimes.com/ohr-chadash-celebrates-five-years/ |url-status=live |access-date=2023-08-02 |website=[[Baltimore Jewish Times]]}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=2011-08-04 |title=Baltimore Modern Orthodox Get New Day School |url=https://forward.com/news/breaking-news/140947/baltimore-modern-orthodox-get-new-day-school/ |url-access=subscription |access-date=2023-08-02 |website=The Forward |language=en}}</ref> Unlike Yeshivat Rambam, the school serves only preschool through eighth grades, but follows identical curriculum and principles.<ref name=":1" />

== America Eats for Israel campaign ==
In 2004, the school began a campaign to raise funds to help Israeli survivors of [[Terrorism|terror attacks]]. At the time, the campaign existed only in Baltimore, but by 2008, it had grown into an effort including several schools in [[New Jersey]] as well. Coordinated by students, restaurants were asked to participate by donating ten percent of their sales for a day to a chosen charity. Over the span of the campaign, student-led efforts raised $50,000 for Almagor (Israel's Terror Victims Association)<ref>{{Cite news |last=Goldrich |first=Lois |date=2006-03-23 |title=Eating for a good cause |work=[[Jewish Standard]] |url=https://jewishstandard.timesofisrael.com/eating-for-a-good-cause/ |url-status=live |access-date=2023-08-02}}</ref> and the Koby Mandell Foundation.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Leichman |first=Abigail Klein |date=2008-03-07 |title=Feeding hungry hearts — and bodies |work=[[Jewish Standard]] |url=https://jewishstandard.timesofisrael.com/feeding-hungry-hearts-and-bodies/ |url-status=live |access-date=2023-08-02}}</ref>


== References ==
== References ==

Revision as of 14:58, 2 August 2023

Yeshivat Rambam Maimonides Academy was an elite Orthodox Jewish dual-curriculum day school and yeshiva in Baltimore, Maryland. It encompassed kindergarten through twelfth grade, as well as an early childhood center.

History

The school was founded in 1991. Yeshivat Rambam grew over the years, adding several grades, outgrowing its original location on Pimlico Road and purchasing the former Har Sinai Congregation property on Park Heights Avenue when that congregation moved to Owings Mills.[1] Eventually, Yeshivat Rambam added a middle school and high school, and it built enrollment to about 400 students. Its first high school class graduated in 2001.[2]

During its existence, Yeshivat Rambam earned recognition as a National Blue Ribbon School of Excellence for its high scholastic performance, as measured by SAT and other standardized tests, consistently exceeding 95th percentile across all measures.[3][4] The school had a 0% dropout rate and an average student:teacher ratio of 8:1.[4] Its founding Head of School was Dr. Rita Shloush.

In the mid to late 2000s, Yeshivat Rambam ran into financial difficulties, having accumulated significant debt due to its resource-intensive educational strategies and other factors, and those problems sparked annual rumors about its doors closing. Donations dropped off during the Great Recession and about 60 Rambam families had moved to Israel since the school was founded in 1991, eroding its base in Park Heights. In addition, the school became gender-segregated, with the girls division remaining on the Park Heights campus and the boys division moving to the nearby Jewish Community Center.

The school also experienced public relations difficulties with respect to a pledged donation. In 2007, Dr. Avraham Cohen pledged $500,000 to the school. When an article appeared on the school's website announcing the pledge, the doctor, reportedly a neurosurgeon, was recognized by several Shawano County, Wisconsin businessmen as the leader of a cult known as the Samanta Roy Institute of Science and Technology, Inc. Affidavits were filed in the Wisconsin case, with the defense denying all claims of similarity.[5][6]

In April 2011, the school obtained a building from Bnos Yisroel, a private girls-only Jewish school, through a building exchange. Yeshivat Rambam's board was able to sell the building to a financing entity for $1,000,000, which they used to pay the debt owed by the school.[7]

On May 9, 2011,[8] the executive board announced that Yeshivat Rambam would close in June 2011, at the end of the academic year.[2][9] Originally, the school had announced in January that the high school grades would be ending,[10] and provided services to help students transfer to other area schools.[8] The combined total of students in the boys' and girls' high schools was one hundred.[7]

Successor

Following the permanent closure of Yeshivat Rambam, some of its former faculty members remained to found another Orthodox Jewish day school in the area, Ohr Chadash Academy.[11][12] Unlike Yeshivat Rambam, the school serves only preschool through eighth grades, but follows identical curriculum and principles.[12]

America Eats for Israel campaign

In 2004, the school began a campaign to raise funds to help Israeli survivors of terror attacks. At the time, the campaign existed only in Baltimore, but by 2008, it had grown into an effort including several schools in New Jersey as well. Coordinated by students, restaurants were asked to participate by donating ten percent of their sales for a day to a chosen charity. Over the span of the campaign, student-led efforts raised $50,000 for Almagor (Israel's Terror Victims Association)[13] and the Koby Mandell Foundation.[14]

References

  1. ^ Alvarez, Rafel (1995-01-12). "Har Sinai congregation may move to Owings Mills". Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 2023-08-02.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  2. ^ a b "Orthodox Jewish School In Baltimore To Close". CBS News Baltimore. Associated Press. 2011-05-09. Retrieved 2023-08-02.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  3. ^ Oster, Marcy (2011-05-09). "Baltimore's Yeshivat Rambam day school to close". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Retrieved 2023-08-02.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  4. ^ a b "National Blue Ribbon Schools Program 2005 Archived Information". United States Department of Education. 2005.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  5. ^ Ryan, Tim (2007-07-20). "Mayor claims Samanta Roy has other identity: Roy's attorney denies". culteducation.com. Retrieved 2023-08-02.
  6. ^ DaAdmin (2007-09-12). "Purported "Cult" leader proclaimed "a shining example" by Baltimore school". Cult News. Retrieved 2023-08-02.
  7. ^ a b Ambrose, Eileen (2011-05-08). "Park Heights Jewish school to close at end of academic year". Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 2023-08-02.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  8. ^ a b Metzner, Janet (2011-05-09). "Yeshivat Rambam Schools to Close in June". Pikesville, MD Patch. Retrieved 2023-08-02.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  9. ^ Rodericks, Dan (2011-05-18). "Striving for the Modern Orthodox middle". Baltimore Sun. Retrieved 2023-08-02.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  10. ^ "Yeshivat Rambam Transition Announcement". Yeshivat Rambam. 2011. Archived from the original on 2011-10-20. Retrieved 2023-08-02. {{cite web}}: |archive-date= / |archive-url= timestamp mismatch; 2011-02-03 suggested (help)
  11. ^ Brown, Ebony (2015-12-10). "Ohr Chadash celebrates five years". Baltimore Jewish Times. Retrieved 2023-08-02.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  12. ^ a b "Baltimore Modern Orthodox Get New Day School". The Forward. 2011-08-04. Retrieved 2023-08-02.
  13. ^ Goldrich, Lois (2006-03-23). "Eating for a good cause". Jewish Standard. Retrieved 2023-08-02.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  14. ^ Leichman, Abigail Klein (2008-03-07). "Feeding hungry hearts — and bodies". Jewish Standard. Retrieved 2023-08-02.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)

39°21′11″N 76°41′11″W / 39.353084°N 76.686501°W / 39.353084; -76.686501


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