By Simone Miller-
Ida Crown welcomes two new members to its staff this year: Julie Avner and Yehudah Meyers.
Ms. Avner will be the new social worker-- a job that was previously filled by Shuli Tsadok. Ms. Avner has been passionate about art and counseling from a young age. She attended art programs over the summer while in high school, and she took AP Psychology as a senior, which sparked her interest in counseling.
Ms. Avner was born in Minneapolis and moved to Chicago as a child, where she attended Arie Crown and then Hannah Sacks. She studied art therapy at Stern and received a Masters in Art Therapy from the School of Visual Art.
Ms. Avner then taught several courses at Blitstein Teachers’ Institute in Chicago, including Introduction to Drawing, Elements of Design, and Digital Illustration. “I really enjoyed teaching at TI,” Ms. Avner explained. “But what I realized I really enjoyed was connecting with students and partnering in their growth.”
Ms. Avner plans to bring her love of connecting with students to Ida Crown; “My office will have an open-door policy, and I hope students will feel comfortable coming to me for support” she explained. Ms. Avner’s office is located off the cafeteria, where she can be found during the school day.
Regarding the additional challenges that COVID-19 will present students this year, Ms. Avner assured that she is equipped to provide support. “There may be some heightened anxiety or nervousness,” she acknowledged. “But we have the capacity to adapt and be resilient,” she said, “and I am here to help anyone who needs it.”
Rabbi Meyers is teaching several Judaic classes this year-- some of which were previously taught by Rabbi Danishefsky.
Rabbi Meyers taught one semester of freshman girls’ Tanach last year, a class that he is resuming this year in addition to freshman girls’ Gemara, sophomore boys’ Chumash, and junior girls’ Chumash.
Rabbi Meyers is a Chicago native; he attended Arie Crown and then the Skokie Yeshiva, before attending Yeshivat Sha'alvim and then YU, where he majored in Psychology. Rabbi Meyers also earned a Masters In Education.
After being immersed in the Ida Crown community through participating in the YU Kollel for several years, Rabbi Meyers is excited to begin teaching. “I want to help my students become the best versions of themselves,” he said. “I want to transmit to my students a love for learning and Judaism, which my teachers once did for me.”
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