November 3, 2016

New study options attracting students to Hebrew High

Leave a Comment / Education / Jewish Journal

Established in 1949 as a Jewish community school at Boyle Heights’ Menorah Center, Los Angeles Hebrew High School (LAHHS) boasts such notable alumni as state Sen. Ben Allen and Jewish World Watch co-founder Janice Kamenir-Reznik.

But after decades of serving as a traditional part-time supplementary school with Hebrew language and text study courses offered on Sunday and during the week, the school has embarked on major changes.

In an effort to broaden the school’s reach and address plateauing enrollment figures, Head of School Amittai Benami has led the charge to diversify the school’s course offerings, the platforms on which it offers them and expand the school’s partnership with local Jewish institutions.

“The school is going through a transformation,” Benami said. “We’ve been around since 1949. We were the city’s first supplemental Jewish high school before the day schools emerged. This isn’t the first time the school has had to transform itself. We’ve always tried to be in touch with community needs.”

In recent years, enrollment has been hovering around 120 students in grades 7-12. Compare that to 2005, when there were 475 students attending, according to a Journal article at the time. Benami attributes the gradual dip to the proliferation of day school options and economic factors that caused the school to scale down considerably.

The word Benami finds himself repeating often is “choice,” but it’s about more than all the other choices offered to local students in the form of reputable day schools and Israel teen engagement programs. With so many students challenged to find spare time, his goal is for LAHHS to provide students with choices in scheduling as well as content.

“We’re trying to accommodate students’ chaotic schedules. We’ve started expanding and giving more options. We’re adding choices in coursework,” he said. “Community collaboration and choice are my guiding principles.”

Straying from a one-size-fits-all approach, the school now provides three different programs. Students can attend “full time” (Sundays and one weekday); one weekday only and online; or part time (Sunday only). All three include Hebrew language courses that are accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges, fulfilling most students’ high school foreign language requirements.

Weekday classes are at Pressman Academy on La Cienega Boulevard, Shomrei Torah Synagogue in West Hills and Congregation Beth Shalom in Santa Clarita. On Sundays, all participants meet at Emek Hebrew Academy in Sherman Oaks.

Full-time students also take part in weekend Shabbaton retreats, headed by Benami, as well as an exchange program with teenagers from a high school in Tel Aviv. The School Twinning Program is sponsored and subsidized by The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles. Benami also has launched a joint effort with Chabad of Northridge to offer Hebrew language courses for local teens and a Hebrew extension program at Adat Ari El in Valley Village that operates in conjunction with the congregation’s existing confirmation program.

With enrollment up 20 percent since last year, currently standing at 150 students across the school’s programs, Benami is seeing signs that changes implemented over the last two years in the school’s approach are working.

Benami, who is now in his third year with LAHHS, said that all of these options are critical — both for the community and for individual student success.

“I don’t feel in competition with any other program or day school. There are more than enough teenagers to go around,” Benami said. “I believe wholeheartedly that different students have different needs and should have different programs available to them. There should be even more Jewish programs out there available and we’re always looking to expand and reach new students who have different needs and want different things.”

For LAHHS parent and board member Debbie Posner, who has two sons from Los Angeles Center for Enriched Studies enrolled in the program, the advent of online coursework has allowed her younger son to continue at LAHHS despite ongoing extracurricular commitments at his secular school.

“My younger son plays basketball and it often conflicts with his Hebrew class,” she said. “In the past, I don’t know how they would have accommodated but now he’s able to access materials online, allowing for him to make up things he misses. If he didn’t have that option, he wouldn’t be able to stay in an accredited program. He would have had to make the decision — Hebrew or basketball.”

Another point of focus for Benami has been to revamp the Israel education curriculum. New courses on topics like Hebrew slang, Israeli music and Israeli television shows have been a hit with students, he said.

Other courses include a general Israel education seminar, hosted by Sivan Zakai of American Jewish University, and a Zionist Advocacy Public Speaking class. In the latter, guest speakers have included Erica Solomon of AIPAC, and Omer Hit, president of UCLA’s pro-Israel advocacy group, Bruins for Israel.

Based on discussions with local organizations such as the Israeli American Council, Benami said he has homed in on and attempted to address a growing community concern — students feeling equipped and comfortable to talk about Israel issues on college campuses.

“We are constantly looking for ways to prepare students to have positive views and relationships with things pertaining to Israel, and not just politically,” Benami said. “We want to prepare them so that they know what is going on, so they can develop their own perspectives and become familiar so that when they get to campus, they know what issues are being raised.”

Gil Graff, executive director at Builders of Jewish Education, hailed the continued evolution of LAHHS.

“It’s key to meet the learner’s interests within the framework of the life space of teens, and LAHHS has, for more than 60 years, offered tremendous opportunities to thousands of alumni,” Graff said. “It has a continuing place in the array of Jewish educational opportunities and is to be commended for looking to meet learners where they are and adapt to the needs and interests of today’s learners.”

New study options attracting students to Hebrew High Read More »

The sweet taste of success

Leave a Comment / Business, Culture / Jewish Journal

Piper Cochrane, the owner of the Organic Candy Factory, sat in a booth at a farmers market on a recent afternoon and couldn’t take her eyes off her 11-year-old daughter, Ginger, who looked professional and knowledgeable as she engaged a male customer.

A few days later, Cochrane got a call inviting her to a business meeting at the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf’s corporate office in Mid-Wilshire. As she walked into the room, Cochrane recognized the man from the market.

It was Adam Tabachnikoff, senior vice president of global brand strategy at the coffee chain, and he wanted to talk about selling organic and gluten-free gummy bears in Coffee Bean stores. For more than two years, Tabachnikoff had been receiving promotional emails and samples from the small, family-owned Pacific Palisades candy shop, he told Cochrane, but it was not until his brief encounter with Ginger that he decided to discuss a partnership with the company.

“Adam told me that he enjoyed his conversation with Ginger,” Cochrane said. “He said she was very educated about our products.”

Now the 54-year-old Irish Catholic entrepreneur finds herself in the unexpected position of preparing the Organic Kosher Gummy Cub line — milk chocolate bars filled with gummy bears — that will be sold in Coffee Bean shops beginning this month. (Coffee Bean is owned by two Jewish brothers who are kosher observant.)

Ginger, whose father is Jewish, was 5 years old when she told her mother she had a dream to open a candy store. Cochrane, a full-time mother with an acting background, took her words seriously.

“I just wanted to empower her, so I thought, ‘Why not?’ ” Cochrane said.

Having no resources to open a shop, Cochrane decided to launch an online store. She aimed to sell organic sweets because she wanted her daughter to enjoy candies that are healthful and chemical-free.

In 2010, Cochrane and her daughter ordered gummy bears in bulk, purchased paper bags and stocked them with sweets. She also posted photos of the candies on the newly created website that featured the company’s logo: a teddy bear drawn by Ginger with colored pencils. The name for the company — the Organic Candy Factory — came naturally, inspired by Ginger’s favorite movie, “Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory.”

When orders first began coming in, Cochrane was amazed how the entrepreneurial project that she developed to inspire her young daughter could turn a profit. Its sales have grown 200 percent over the past four years, and more than 240 Williams-Sonoma stores now carry the candy company’s Organic Gummy Cubs and Organic Gummy Worms.

The natural pharmacy chain Pharmaca and several L.A. hotels carry Organic Candy Factory chocolate bars, and three years ago, the company partnered with a California-based factory that produces candies based on Cochrane’s recipe, including peach- and raspberry-flavored gummy bears.

“Some people would say it’s a slow growth, but for me it was fast,” Cochrane said.

The success of the Factory didn’t come overnight. It took time before big retailers started noticing the family’s brand that sold organic gummy bears.

It all started in a Williams-Sonoma store in Santa Monica, where a manager overheard a conversation between Cochrane and a salesperson about the Organic Candy Factory and invited the mother-daughter team to be a part of a monthly community event where family-owned businesses sold and advertised their products. The sales at the company’s booth went so well that Williams-Sonoma offered to place its candies in its stores nationally.

When Ginger entered middle school this year, her business project kept gaining steam. And now, starting this month, Coffee Bean will place the candy company’s chocolate bars in 190 stores across Southern California.

Tabachnikoff said he liked the company because it offers gluten-free and dairy-free candies, among other reasons.

“We like the idea that it’s a local business,” he said. “Coffee Bean originated here and we like partnering with local brands and companies that have entrepreneurial spirit.”

The only condition that Coffee Bean had before placing the Organic Candy Factory’s products in its coffee shops was to make them kosher. So Cochran and Ginger started working on making sure their chocolate bars and gummy bears would adhere to Jewish dietary law. That marked the beginning of the Organic Kosher Gummy Cub line.

To satisfy requirements, Cochrane had to make sure all ingredients were kosher. She also invited a rabbi, who reviewed the production equipment and utensils to check if they were cleaned with boiled water or steam. He also looked at the ingredients to verify that they were produced in a safe and child-labor-free factory.

There are a number of reasons why kosher food is gaining a momentum, said Ira Kalb, assistant professor of clinical marketing at USC’s Marshall School of Business.

“Some people believe it’s healthier to eat kosher food,” he said. “The food is prepared in a certain way and doesn’t contain animal products. People who buy kosher are not necessarily Jews. Muslims have similar restrictions.”

Launching a new line is nerve-wracking, Cochran said, but the 5-year-old company has gained enough experience to take the big step. This year, Cochrane, who works from her home in Pacific Palisades, plans to hire three more employees to help with accounting and inventory. Her goal is to open an office and warehouse in the next few months.

As a single mother, Cochrane juggles everything herself, including domestic work, accounting, marketing and social media. When Ginger comes home from school, she helps her mother with company work.

As the company aims to stay ahead of the curve, it constantly searches for new flavors, a type of work that usually requires a group of experienced marketers. But the Cochranes created their own team: Every month, five of Ginger’s girlfriends gather at her house and taste a dozen flavors to test which ones they think will be popular among consumers.

“We call them the board meetings,” said Cochrane, who grew up in France, Italy and Japan before coming to the United States at 13.

The chocolate bars filled with gummy bears were Ginger’s idea. When she first pitched the concept, Cochrane didn’t approve. But Ginger persuaded her mom to give the new flavor a chance. Now, the Factory sells gummy bears in white, milk and dark chocolate, which cost $4.95 a bar. It has been the company’s biggest hit.

“We make huge orders and it’s very dangerous to buy flavors that don’t sell,” she said. “So I rely on my daughter. I hope Ginger keeps coming up with good ideas.” n

The sweet taste of success Read More »

Sanchez is a staunch defender of Israel

Leave a Comment / California, Election 2016, Opinion / Jewish Journal

For many political candidates, Israel is just another complex topic in their briefing book to be reduced to a reassuring pro-Israel soundbite.

But for Rep. Loretta Sanchez, who is a candidate for the Senate, the United States-Israel relationship is more than a page in her briefing book: It is a deeply personal and moral commitment to Israel that is rooted in family bonds with Israel and a proven record of steadfast support for Israel’s right to peace and security.

[OPINION: The case for Kamala Harris]

Sanchez’s work on Israel-U.S. defense issues is often overshadowed by her more high-profile work. Most know that Sanchez is a senior member of the House Armed Services and the Homeland Security committees. Elected to Congress in 1996, she has dedicated her entire congressional career to these issues, which took on a new intensity and urgency after the 9/11 attacks on New York and suburban Washington, D.C.

Since 9/11, Sanchez has been at the forefront of national security and counterterrorism policy and oversight. She has staked out a uniquely pro-defense, but fiercely independent, position on a wide range of defense issues. She was one of the few who voted against the Iraq War, but she also worked tirelessly to ensure our troops had everything they needed to fight and win.

Sanchez is also one of two U.S. representatives to the NATO Parliament, where she represents the U.S. on critical issues facing the alliance, including Russian aggression, ending the war in Afghanistan, fighting the threat posed by ISIS, and the dramatic increase in other terrorist threats. Her courage and independence have won her the support of Democrats and Republicans alike.

But Sanchez’s work on U.S.-Israel defense issues is equally impressive. Over the past 20 years in Congress, she has forged close and strong relationships with Israeli leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former Prime Minister Ehud Barak and the late President Shimon Peres. She has been a tireless champion of the Iron Dome, David’s Sling and Arrow missile programs, which have dramatically enhanced Israel’s defenses against Hamas and Hezbollah attacks. She has ardently supported bilateral Israeli-U.S. defense technology programs and increased funding of economic and defense assistance for Israel.

Sanchez also shares my support for a two-state solution, under which Israelis and Palestinians can live together in peace. There is much work to be done, of course, but she and I believe we must continue to pursue peace in the Middle East.

Sanchez’s fierce commitment to Israel is based on her belief in our common security interests and because her stepdaughter and two grandchildren live in Tel Aviv and are Israeli citizens. For Sanchez, the defense and security of Israel is personal. When Qassam rockets are fired at Tel Aviv, it’s personal. When Iran test missiles than can reach Israel, it’s personal. When Hamas digs tunnels to infiltrate terrorists, it’s personal. And, when Jewish communities in the U.S. and Europe face discrimination, it is personal.

Like any other issue, Sanchez’s approach to U.S.-Israeli defense cooperation is thoughtful and independent. She is not one to toe the party line. Yet to those who know her record, occasional disagreements over U.S.-Israel policy have been disagreements over tactics rather than any fundamental divergence of goals.

For example, Sanchez voted for the Iran deal because she firmly believed that, despite its manifest flaws, it was in the security interests of Israel and the U.S. Like me, Sanchez believes that in peacetime, diplomatic options must be exhausted before resorting to war can be justified. The Iran deal buys time, builds diplomatic strength and develops key targeting intelligence, should the use of military force prove necessary down the road.

Like the American Jewish community itself, Sanchez was torn by that vote and, as do I, believes it was one of the toughest votes of her career. Yet she stands by her decision and welcomes discussion of Iranian compliance and continuing diplomatic engagement to avert war. She promises to be the Senate’s hawk on Iranian compliance, and she is the only candidate who has proposed a special interagency Iran Compliance Commission to hold Iran and the administration accountable on implementation.

We live in an era of conflict and must send someone steady and experienced to the Senate. Unlike her opponent, Sanchez draws on decades of direct, detailed work on Israeli issues and understands the shared commitment to peace, mutual defense and cooperation that has been the bedrock of our unique alliance. She also understands that American and Israeli societies also are interconnected economically, culturally and technologically. She knows Israeli security is American security.

California cannot afford to lose Sanchez’s deep experience and international relationships on the most critical issues of U.S.-Israeli defense. That’s why I hope you will join me in voting for Loretta Sanchez, the best candidate for U.S. Senate, and a steadfast friend of Israel.

Rep. Alan Lowenthal (D-Long Beach) has represented the 47th District in Congress since 2013. Before that, he served in the California Assembly and Senate.

Sanchez is a staunch defender of Israel Read More »