Libbie Zimmer, Director of Juda and Maria Diener Lower School
About Us
Josh Meisels*, Director of Samuel and Henrietta Scheck Middle School
Benjamin Thompson-Echevarria, Director of High School
*Scheck Hillel Alumnus/Alumna
Scheck Hillel Community School educates and inspires students from 18 months through Grade 12 to become exemplary global citizens with enduring Jewish identity and values. We offer an individualized, college-preparatory curriculum highlighted by Design/STEM, Capstone, dual college enrollment, arts, athletics, and community service. Our 14-acre campus includes a 115,000 square-foot athletic complex, with plans for future academic expansion. Set within a nurturing and diverse community, Scheck Hillel is one of the world’s largest Jewish community day schools and a two-time National Blue Ribbon. For more information about Scheck Hillel Community School, or to arrange an in-person or virtual tour, please contact the Admissions Office at 305-931-2831 or email admissions@ehillel.org.
A Note from Our HEAD OF SCHOOL
As the school year unfolds, daily life at Scheck Hillel begins to feel familiar in the best way. Relationships deepen, routines settle, and learning and Jewish life move forward side by side. Students know where they are going, teachers know their classrooms, and the days take shape through the shared experiences that define our community.
Much of this work happens quietly. In conversations between students. In the questions they ask, and sometimes wrestle with. In classrooms where engagement, effort, and curiosity guide the day. Learning here is shaped not only by what students study, but by how they listen to one another, how they respond, and how they learn to take responsibility for themselves and for the people around them.
Over time, these moments add up. Students are challenged to think more deeply and to listen more carefully. They begin to understand their place within a larger community and the role they play in shaping it. They learn that growth is not only academic, but also about showing up with integrity and care. Kavod develops gradually through consistency and guidance, as students come to see how their choices affect others.
Jewish life is woven naturally into this rhythm. It is present in the everyday moments when students pause, take responsibility, and practice chessed. It also comes alive through the Chaggim, which bring meaning, joy, and intention into the school day and help mark the year as it unfolds.
As you turn the pages of this issue, you will see many expressions of that daily life. The stories here capture students learning, creating, questioning, and growing, both inside and beyond the classroom. Together, they offer a picture of a school community grounded in thoughtful learning, genuine connection, and care for one another.
Kol Hillel brings these moments together, offering a glimpse into life at Scheck Hillel. We invite you to read on and enjoy the story of our school as it is lived each day.
Am Yisrael
Chai.
Connection That Carries Forward
How Israel shapes our community and the values we live every day.
The past months at Scheck Hillel have been shaped by meaning, movement, and a deep connection to Israel that live far beyond any single moment. As the war came to an end and families began to look toward rebuilding and healing, our campus moved forward with intention, togetherness, and strength.
From the very �irst days of the year, Israel has been present in how we gathered, how we showed care, and how students learned to hold both pride and responsibility at the same time.
Morning tefillah grounded our days. The rhythm of the Chagim filled our halls with energy, shalom, and purpose. Families came together in warm, meaningful ways. And across all divisions, students stepped into moments that helped shape both their identity and their understanding of what it means to belong to Am Israel.
For our Grade 10 students, that connection took on an especially personal meaning during their Israel trip. Walking the streets of Jerusalem, meeting people rebuilding their lives after the war, and standing in places layered with history, brought new perspective and clarity. Students returned not just inspired, but changed.
They came back with deeper gratitude and a growing understanding that their connection to Israel carries real responsibility and lasting impact.
Across every grade, Israel was never experienced as something distant. It lived in how students spoke, how they listened, how they cared, how they give, and how they carried pride into each day. Israel is not just part of what we teach. It is part of who we are as a community.
This year so far has not been defined by one single highlight. It has been shaped by many moments that added up to something meaningful. Moments of reflection, chessed, responsibility, joy, and connection. Together, they form the path our students are learning to walk, guided by the values that shape who we are and how we live each day.
LIVING OUR VALUES
One Month at a Time
Across the months, our students lived our core values in real ways through everyday moments and shared experiences. The pathway that follows, traces how those values took shape on campus from August through December.
AUGUST | SHALOM
SEPTEMBER | EMET
Rosh Hashanah invited reflection across our community as students explored the meaning of our traditions through hands-on activities on campus. That same spirit carried into the Grade 11 Shabbaton, creating space for honest conversations and authentic connection.
Give Miami Day became a powerful day, demonstrating how our community comes together to give and support our school. The HIP/PTA Babka B'Yachad offered a warm reminder that generosity is often shared around the table.
NOVEMBER | CHESSED
OCTOBER
| KAVOD
In October our community came together to mark October 7 with respect and unity in support of Israel, and to celebrate Sukkot and Simchat Torah with movement and meaning across campus.
DECEMBER | RUACH
Our Chanukah celebration filled campus with light and music. Grade 2 students marked a meaningful milestone at their Chumash Presentation, and Grade 10 students traveled to Israel during a time of rebuilding. Together, these moments shaped a month filled with pride and ruach.
From new beginnings to shared celebrations, each month re ected the values at the heart of our school: Shalom, Emet, Kavod, Chessed, Ruach. As we look ahead, these values continue to guide how our students learn, grow and lead every day.
Understand how screen use affects focus, mood, and relationships
Pause and think before reacting or scrolling
Stay present during learning, family time, and daily routines
Make responsible choices about when and how they use technology
Learning in
GRADE 8 WASHINGTON, DC TRIP
This signature Middle School experience brings learning to life as students step onto the national stage, exploring history, leadership, and civic responsibility through real-world immersion in
NATIONAL HONOR SOCIETY
The National Honor Society recognizes students for academic excellence, leadership, character,
NATIONAL MERIT RECOGNITION
We proudly celebrated Avichai M. ’26, Anabella M. ’26, and Nathan S. ’26, named National Merit Scholarship Commended
student musicians performed in the '25 Fall concert
beginning of a lifelong relationship with Torah. The presentation reflected months of learning and preparation, filled with excitement, confidence, and meaning. It captured what Judaics at Scheck Hillel is all about. Not only learning Torah, but living it with heart, joy, and purpose.
CELEBRATING SHABBAT TOGETHER WITH SHABBAT B’YACHAD
Full-capacity audience ensembles on stage across Band and Orchestra programs
COMING SOON
Our theater program is preparing two upcoming productions, Matilda Jr.
Middle School Boys Soccer finished the regular season undefeated
First-ever national competition for Varsity Girls Volleyball (in Atlanta)
HIP / PTA
At Scheck Hillel, HIP/PTA is a central part of how families stay connected to school life. Through its programming and initiatives, parents help create spaces for shared experiences and school pride that extend beyond the classroom.
One of this year’s most meaningful gatherings was Babka B’Yachad, where mothers and daughters came together in the school cafeteria for an evening of hands-on baking and shared tradition. Families learned how to make babka from scratch, exchanged tips, and spent intentional time together in a setting that felt relaxed and purpose-driven. The evening reflected what HIP/PTA does best. Creating moments that are authentic and rooted in real connection.
School spirit took on a more visible presence through the Spirit Store, offering updated swag for students and families. Monthly meetings brought our parent community together, and a school-wide book fair strengthened engagement
Together, these initiatives highlight the role HIP/PTA plays in shaping school culture. Through creative ideas and consistent involvement, our parent community continues to strengthen the bonds between families, students, and the school.
We are grateful for the parents who give their time, energy, and ideas to these efforts and for the shared sense of partnership they continue to build.
Some Questions are Worth Asking...
HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE?
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BELONG TO A SCHOOL COMMUNITY?
It means learning in the same classrooms, forming the same friendships, and feeling fully part of something larger than yourself.
WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE IN PRACTICE?
Students learning side by side. Families showing up year after year. A school that feels like home, not just a place you attend.
IS THAT ALL THE ANNUAL LION FUND SUPPORTS? 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
No. But the experience itself is. IS EVERY FAMILY’S PATH TO THAT EXPERIENCE THE SAME?
Because support exists quietly, allowing families to be part of the community with dignity and without distinction.
CAN YOU TELL WHO NEEDS THAT SUPPORT?
You cannot. And that is the point.
WHY DOES THIS MATTER IN JEWISH LIFE?
Because Jewish education has always been sustained through shared responsibility. Our tradition teaches that ensuring access, especially within our own community, is essential to continuity and care from one generation to the next.
SO WHAT MAKES ALL OF THIS POSSIBLE?
The Annual Lion Fund. The Annual Lion Fund supports financial aid, helping ensure that families can be part of the same community, learning and growing together.
No. The Annual Lion Fund also strengthens the overall Scheck Hillel experience by supporting academic excellence, faculty, programs, and the resources that allow our school to thrive.
SOME ANSWERS ARE LIVED
Families share how support from the Annual Lion Fund has shaped their children’s Scheck Hillel experience.
If these experiences resonate, help make them possible through the Annual Lion Fund.
BUSINESS PARTNERS
Geraldine Dayan Your Real Estate Agent at Compass
KOL HILLEL THROUGH
Kol Hillel has long served as a living record of the Scheck Hillel community. Across decades of publication, its pages have captured the people, programs, milestones, and moments that define life on our campus. Each edition reflects a moment in time and the spirit of the school as it continues to grow and evolve.
2009 2010 2011 2012 2015 2016 2017 2018
2023 2024 2025
2026
As Scheck Hillel expands in both size and vision, this year marks a refreshed chapter for the magazine, one that reflects who we are today while honoring the journey that brought us here.
GENERATIONS IN THE MAKING
AT A GLANCE
1,271
Students across ECE through Grade 12 8:1
Average student–teacher ratio
97%
Re-enrollment rate
18 Y
Average teaching experience
ACADEMIC STRENGTH
Scheck
100% College matriculation
591
Early college applications submitted this year (school record)*
89 AP Scholar Awards
98 After-school programs with 773 students enrolled
For more than five decades, Scheck Hillel has been shaped by families committed to strong values, meaningful education, and a close-knit Jewish community. Founded in 1970, it has grown into a thriving Pre-K through Grade 12 school where tradition and innovation come together. Each generation leaves its mark, with every year building on the last as students, alumni, families, and educators strengthen the school we share.
