At its inception, its quarters were modest; its student body was less than fifty. In 1947 there were six grades in the school; in 1949 this was expanded to the eighth grade; and in 1960 a complete junior high school with nine grades was established, with 150 students attending. The school has grown to be a well-respected institution of learning and is highly acclaimed for its accomplishments.

In 1968 the Providence Hebrew Day School, Inc. established a senior high school division. At the same time, several individuals formed the New England Academy of Torah, Inc. for the purpose of providing dormitory facilities for both out-of-town students, as well as in-town students who wished a total academic environment.

The first tenth grade class entered the school in September of 1968 and has had an extraordinarily successful year. The eleventh and twelfth grades will be added, with the help of G-d, in September, 1969 and September, 1970 successively.

LOCATION

Centrally located in southern New England and only a few minutes from Interstate 95, the school is situated in the East Side of Providence, a prosperous residential area which is quiet, countrified, and ideally suited for academic pursuits. Its buildings are in the heart of the Jewish community, not far from the proposed new two million dollar Jewish Community Center. There are a number of congregations near the school which make their extensive Judaica collections available to our students, and neighboring institutions of higher learning, such as Brown University, provide library research facilities and intellectual leadership for the community. In addition, there are public libraries, museums, parks and other recreational facilities at convenient distances from the school.

PHILOSOPHY

The primary goal of the school is to produce a student who is an asset both to Judaism and America, a young adult who will function, to his utmost capacity, as a good Jew and good American. To achieve this, the school couples an intensive study program, sacred and secular, with a strong "mussar" and counseling program.

The Religious Studies program is directed toward abstraction of the concepts of our great Jewish heritage which are found in the Torah, Prophets, Talmud and Midrash; updating the terminology, and generating, from these concepts, laws and modes of behavior which are applicable to contemporary life.

Judaism, in its fullest sense, requires a thorough knowledge of the physical world and society. Thus, over and above offering a strong college preparatory secular program, the school endeavors to relate, wherever applicable, these disciplines to the Judaic program.

The program does not permit the student to stumble into society; rather, he is trained to understand environment, is shown his place in it, and is directed in a manner which will encourage him to take his proper place in society and contribute to it as much as he possibly can.

The institution, furthermore, aims at creating a true Torah atmosphere within its portals, an atmosphere within which students take pride in scholarship and observ

ance.

FACULTY

The new High School Division has been very successful in attracting top level administrative and faculty members. Most faculty members have Masters degrees, and many are doctoral candidates. They are attracted to the school primarily because it offers them a strong academic atmosphere, where an understanding administration and an interested student body make teaching a satisfying experience.

The faculty functions as a unit and is involved in a constant evaluation of the curriculum; wherever applicable, modern approaches and techniques are implemented. It also meets at regular intervals to discuss the attitudes and progress of the individual student, and to recommend various approaches, assignments and responsibilities that may help the student to best realize his potential.