- Gann Academy
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Gann Academy 
Address 333 Forest Street
Waltham, MA, Middlesex, 02451
United StatesInformation School type Private Independent coeducational secondary Denomination Pluralistic Established 1997 Status Open President Elizabeth Jick Headmaster Rabbi Marc Baker Grades 9-12 Number of students 3.14259 Colour(s) Maroon and White Mascot Red Heifer Accreditation(s) New England Association of Schools and Colleges Newspaper Shevuon Hatichon Tuition $30,750[1] Website www.gannacademy.org Gann Academy (formerly The New Jewish High School, colloquially known as Gann) is an independent pluralistic Jewish high school located in Waltham, Massachusetts. Founded in 1997 as The New Jewish High School of Greater Boston, the school changed names in 2003 in honor of philanthropist Joseph Gann who donated $5,000,000 to the school. Gann Academy received accreditation from the New England Association of Schools and Colleges in the spring of 2004.
The school has changed locations twice, from inside a home to the Fleetbank building. After a large donation from Joseph Gann, the new and current campus was built to accommodate the growing school.
Gann's mission statement claims that it attempts to fulfill the three principles of learning, community, and mending the world.
Contents
History
Gann Academy was founded in 1997 as "The New Jewish High School of Greater Boston." "New Jew" (as it is casually nicknamed) was originally adjacent to Brandeis University. The school opened with 48 students in the 9th and 10th grade.
Seeking larger facilities and a more permanent home, the school moved to the top four floors and basement of the Fleetbank building (BankBoston at time of move in) at the intersection of Prospect St. and Main St. in Waltham and used the basement of the local Temple Beth Israel for additional classroom space.
In the fall of 2003 the school moved into its current building at 333 Forest Street, the third location at which the school has resided.
Beit Midrash
The "Beit Midrash", the assembly hall, is a large room with a high ceiling that is home to many events during the school year including "Hakhel", a short amount of time once a week when students can announce upcoming club meetings or anything worth hearing, and "Limud Clali", an hour long block in which important speakers may visit Gann and present educational material on a wide variety of topics. In addition, any time that the Gann community needs to be called together, students are instructed to gather in the Beit Midrash.
Gann Academy
Athletics
Gann offers a wide variety of athletic programs, both team and recreational athletics, including basketball, soccer, tennis, ultimate frisbee, juggling, fitness, martial arts, yoga, table tennis, Israeli dance, and modern dance.
Academics
Gann Academy has a dual curriculum combining Jewish Studies, General Studies, and Jewish Geography.
Gann Academy neither ranks with its students (and consequentially has no valedictorian) nor does it assign its students a GPA.
Technology
Gann Academy emphasises technology in the classroom. Each classroom has a digital projector installed projecting onto a SMARTBoard and the whole building has a 802.11a wireless network. Each teacher has a laptop, which they are expected to use every day in order to take attendance and use the SMARTBoard for class notes. Gann also makes use of FirstClass, an education email and communication program that facilitates communication between students and faculty and communication through conferences for class discussions.
Gann Academy has a Computer Lab with nearly 20 Dell desktop computers, along with two laptop carts, with 10 laptops each. The Language Lab has nearly 20 computers that are used to improve student's speaking and reading abilities in Hebrew, French, and Spanish.
Gann Academy has a Video Conference setup. The VC setup is used for weekly meetings with students in a sister high school in Haifa, Israel and for classes that are off-site.
From the 2009 school year and forward, students who use their own laptops are required to register them with the IT department in order to use the wireless internet network.
The Pulse
The Pulse is a conference, ran and operated by Gann Academy, which offers a social networking and microblogging service, enabling its users to send and read messages called Pulses. Pulses are text-based posts displayed on the user's FirstClass desktop. Pulses are publicly visible by default; however, senders can restrict message delivery to just their fellow students. Users may choose to read other users' pulses – this is known as pulsing and readers are known as "pulsers". The general consensus on material appropriate for a Pulse is that it must directly concern emotions, Talmud papers, horticulture, or moose noises. Despite the popular belief among students, a Pulse may not include information about or pertaining to baths, bubble or otherwise.
Pulse Controversy
The pulse initially faced some controversy concerning its usefulness - one student was even quoted as questioning the validity of The Pulse, saying it was no different from the Student Lounge other than in its snazzy title.
College and university matriculation
96% of Gann Academy graduates advance to colleges and universities; 93% of them to four-year colleges and universities. The graduating Class of 2009 sent one or more students to Harvard University, Yale University, Brandeis University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Princeton University, Stanford University, Brown University, University of Pennsylvania, Cornell University, Dartmouth College, Duke University, Johns Hopkins University, University of Chicago, Boston University, Boston College, Georgetown University, University of Richmond, New York University, Syracuse University, University of Notre Dame du Lac, Carnegie Mellon University, Villanova University, and Emory University. Fifty-two percent of Gann students leave Massachusetts to attend colleges and universities, and more than 52% attend private institutions after graduation.
Hineini
The 2005 documentary Hineini is about Shulamit Izen, an alumna of Gann Academy, and her relationship with the school as she tries to form a Gay-Straight Alliance. The documentary was premiered at the Boston Jewish Film Festival.
References
- 'New Film Peers Into the Teenage Jewish closet'
- List of college acceptances
- Gann Academy List of Athletics
External links
Coordinates: 42°23′42″N 71°13′01″W / 42.39513°N 71.21703°W
Categories:- Private schools in Massachusetts
- High schools in Massachusetts
- Pluralistic Jewish day schools
- Jewish day schools in Massachusetts
- Buildings and structures in Waltham, Massachusetts
- Schools in Middlesex County, Massachusetts
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