It’s no secret that for the past few decades, sending your child to a Jewish day school practically meant buying a car every year in tuition fees. Maybe not a brand-new car, but certainly close to one in price.
About ten years ago, Jewish schools started incorporating blended learning in hopes of lowering tuition costs. Of course, the idea of affordable school initially sounds great, but it also raises concerns, because as parents, we know that we absolutely cannot sacrifice quality in education.
We understand, because it is one of the very reasons StrongMind was created. When we started our journey in 2001, we were a small company with one school and a strong belief that every student deserves a great education. We wanted to provide the best online and hybrid education we could, but we ran into a problem: Quality digital curriculum was not being offered at the time.
That was when we decided to make the high caliber curriculum we simply couldn’t find! And here we are, 20 years later, a large company providing curriculum and technology services to schools across the country. At StrongMind, we offer an award-winning, immersive digital K–12 curriculum for hybrid and online schools that’s aligned and standards-based. Our lessons are built around the idea that if students are engaged, they will want to learn. Every video, graphic, story, and lesson in our curriculum is intentionally developed for the young learner, while preparing them for tests and becoming a well-rounded, college-ready citizen. The technology is user friendly and creates a seamless process so that the student can focus on learning.
In Southern California alone, we have several highly populated K–12 schools with which we work, and in other states, we’re running the largest online schools available.
And yet, with all of these large, successful schools, we haven’t seen anything quite like the Harkham-GAON Academy (HGA). Originated from Rabbi Moises Benzaquen, he was concerned with the number of families who were opting out of a Jewish education, simply because they could not afford it.
Like we said before, every student deserves a great education; that includes Jewish day schools. Of course, there are still the more traditional schools that are equally important, but they don’t work for everyone.
This is why we partnered with Harkham-GAON Academy (HGA).
HGA has an effective model that drives student success. Their teachers are caring and dedicated, the athletics and electives they provide are outstanding, and the leadership is experienced and innovative. The school may be small, but it is mighty, and we don’t think it’ll be long before it becomes one of the largest Jewish hybrid schools in Southern California.
What we’ve seen since working with HGA is students thriving. Some of the colleges that Harkham-GAON graduates went on to attend includes the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; University of Southern California; University of California Los Angeles; San Francisco State; California State University Northridge; King’s College, London, England; Victoria College, London; Yeshiva University; Stern College; Bar Ilan; and IDC Herzliya. Additionally, HGA graduates have had the opportunity to attend gap year programs in Israel, thanks to HGA’s assistance and encouragement.
In their studies, students enjoy a rigorous college prep program of General Studies, which are taught online in a blended learning style, using our award-winning StrongMind platform; and Judaic Studies, which are taught in a traditional way by the school’s Rabbeim. College classes are offered as Dual Curriculum, giving our students the opportunity to complete one-two years of college classes while still in high school. Beyond that, HGA offers extracurricular programs such as Sports, Drama, e-sports, Model UN, and Music, for a truly rounded education.
As summer comes to a close and with school openings fast approaching, we hope you consider HGA. The school offers a truly high caliber education at a fraction of the usual cost. School starts August 18. For more information, give the school a call at 310.556.0663 or head to www.harkhamgaon.org.
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