Religious School

Oak Park Temple Religious School Classes 2008-2009

Classes in the 2008-2009 school year will meet on this schedule:

Kindergarten through 6th grades meet on Sunday mornings, 9:30 – 12:00
3rd through 6th grade classes also meet on Wednesday evenings from 7:00-8:00 Some 7th graders may also attend Wednesday evening classes in the beginning of the school year.
For congregants in the western suburbs there is a satellite program for 3rd through 6th graders in Hinsdale on Tuesday evenings from 7:00-8:00.

Lunch is available at noon for students working as aides in the morning and staying for classes in the afternoon.

About the tuition form

Any of the following programming fees applicable to your family need to be calculated into your total tuition on the tuition form.

Students in 6th grade participate in a special program during the congregational retreat at OSRUI in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin. The retreat is scheduled for March 20-22, 2009. The cost is $105 per student.

10th graders go to Washington DC for an outstanding workshop on Jewish values and social justice. For more information on the Religious Action Center’s L’Taken Social Justice Program program, visit www.rac.org. The fee for this program is $850. This covers airfare, a fantastic educational program, meals and hotel accommodations. It can be paid in installments, contact Ellen Cope in the temple office for more information. The RAC trip is scheduled for Jan. 23-26, 2009. We must have payment in full by January 1st, 2009. There are penalties attached to late reservations or cancellations. Families making changes after December 15th are responsible for any penalties.

Students participating in the satellite Hebrew program on Tuesdays in Hinsdale have an additional $125 fee per student added to their total tuition. These students attend the Tuesday evening class instead of Wednesday evenings at Oak Park Temple.

For families with a B’nai Mitzvah date between July 2008 and June 2009 (generally this is the 7th grade class of the 2008-2009 school year): There is a B'nai Mitzvah fee payable to Oak Park Temple prior to the event. It represents a partial contribution toward the Temple's expenses in maintaining this program, and is not utilized as direct compensation to the Rabbi or Cantor for training the Bar/Bat Mitzvah student.

The SKIP (Send-a-Kid-to-Israel Partnership) is a unique savings program to help families send their high school or older children on programs to Israel. For each child enrolled the congregation and family together must contribute $170 per year to the plan. The Jewish Federation matches with an annual $85 contribution to each child’s account. If your child is already enrolled in SKIP, and they are entering 4th through 9th grade, simply add $145 per child enrolled to your tuition. New SKIP enrollment is limited to 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th grade students. Active SKIP contribution years are 3rd through 9th grades. SKIP contributions can not be made after 9th grade. Complete enrollment materials will be available in the fall. If you have any questions about the SKIP program, or if you are interested in additional scholarship opportunities for Israel Programs, please contact Robin Arbetman.

There are several team choices for parent volunteers on this year’s tuition form. Each of the team choices indicates a planning or initial meeting date. When you choose a team you are committing to that meeting date. Please mark the date of the planning meeting (and event) in your calendar now! Please do not sign up for a team if you cannot come to the planning meeting! If you choose not to volunteer for a team, please add the $50 non-participation fee to your tuition as well.

If you have any questions about the enclosed forms or Oak Park Temple’s religious school program please contact Robin Arbetman at 708-386-3937, ext. 13.