Jewish schools make strong showing in Kohl’s $10 million challenge

Dangle $500,000, and Jewish schools listen. At one point last week, Jewish schools held 14 of the top 25 spots to win the Kohl’s Cares Facebook popularity contest that will give away $10 million to the 20 schools that get the most votes. While the list is constantly changing, it seems Jewish schools are making a strong showing, especially Chabad schools. Four of the top five schools were Jewish — and three of those were Chabad schools. The top position, with nearly 64,000 votes, was held by Silverstein Hebrew Academy in Great Neck, N.Y.

All public schools and nonprofit charter or independent schools are eligible. Voters can cast a total of 20 votes, with a maximum of five votes per school; voting closes Sept. 3.

Cheder Menachem, a Chabad boys’ elementary school on La Cienega Boulevard, held the No. 6 position with more than 50,000 votes.

Cheder Menachem is one of three L.A. Jewish schools collaborating at Votelaschools.com, a Web site that makes it easy for people to register for a Facebook account and vote for all three schools. Voters are also entered into a raffle to win an iPad.

Cheder Menachem was early out of the gate, according to board member Yossi Lipsker, and after exhausting the usual methods — circulating e-mails to family and friends — it upped the game. It was one of the first to use the raffle tactic, and more recently teen volunteers have been soliciting votes in public spaces. Lipsker said the goal is to continue adding 2,000 to 3,000 votes a day.

Other California schools in the top 40 include the San Diego Hebrew Academy; Bais Chaya Mushka, a Chabad girls’ school on Pico Boulevard; the Hebrew Academy in Huntington Beach, also a Chabad school; JETS Jewish Educational Training School, a vocational Jewish high school in Granada Hills; and Netan Eli Hebrew Academy in Reseda.

Voters have to have Facebook accounts, and have to fan Kohl’s and allow the organization access to profile information. Voters submit ideas for how the school should use the money, which schools can decide to use or not.