HAFTR happenings

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It was an exciting week at HAFTR High School. Not only did more students in the senior class receive additional college acceptances, but it was also a week filled with team wins and insight about the college guidance process.

The ninth and tenth grade students, along with their parents, attended College Awareness Night on February 14. The program, run by College Guidance, was instituted to inform the students about the college application process, and to give tips on how to do well when it comes to the details of filling out the application. Information about standardized exams was also included. The program featured various speakers, including General Studies Principal Ms. Naomi Lippman, Judaic Studies Principal Rabbi Gedaliah Oppen, Rabbi Lewis Wienerkur, director of Boys’ Israel Guidance, and Mrs. Joan Parmet, Director of College Guidance. To give the students insight from a student’s perspective, senior Hillel Friedman told the students and parents about his experience in applying to Princeton University. In addition, college guidance counselors Mrs. Karen Wolf and Mrs. Susan Szaluta conducted an interactive game with the audience to dispense important information in a fun way. The entire evening was very informative and gave everyone in attendance an idea of what is to come in the near future.

In team news, the HAFTR Mock Trial team won its first trial in two years! The trial this year revolves around the story of Dana Malone being attacked with a tire iron, and all the evidence brought into the trial points to P.J. Long, the defendant. The HAFTR team was playing defense when they won, and it was a proud moment for the whole team. As one of the witnesses for the defense, I had an amazing experience with this particular trial, and I can’t wait to see what happens when the team advances to the intermediate round on February 29th! Congratulations to everyone on defense: Hillel Friedman, Aryeh Lifshitz, Michael Sosnick (attorneys), Chaviva Freedman, Sarah Fuchs, and Tara Seidel (witnesses).

In other team news, HAFTR also hosted its annual debate tournament on February 16. Many schools came to debate the issue of whether the U.S. government should provide funding for manned missions to outer space. At the conclusion of the debate, HAFTR earned third place. Congratulations to Matthew Goldstein and Hillel Friedman for their win, and congratulations to the rest of the team for their individual debate wins. Let’s keep up the good work!