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Since establishing the Zimmer Pre-school nine years ago, the Chabad Jewish Center in Basking Ridge had intended to expand the program into a full-fledged day school.

"Having a day school was always in our trajectory, it was just about the right time to do it," Malkie Herson, co-director of the Chabad with her husband, Rabbi Mendy Herson, told The Jewish State about the new Olam Academy, a 1st-5th grade day school that will open next September.

"The school will offer the best Judaically and the best educationally. These are not mutually exclusive things," she said.

The Olam Academy will commence next fall with 1st grade and add one grade each year after that, until reaching 5th grade. Each grade is expected to have approximately 12 students.

According to Herson, the school will follow the state's school standards and accountability requirements in math, language arts, science, and social studies so that all students will be prepared for standardized tests; integrate lessons about sustainability, arts, technology, project-based interdisciplinary learning, creativity, and critical thinking skills; develop students' English/Hebrew bilingual capacities; and promote Jewish literacy.

Herson said that both the Chabad Jewish Center's preschool as well as the future day school have been inspired by the Reggio Emilia educational philosophy that views children not as empty vessels but rather focuses on the process of a child's development.

In the Reggio Emilia approach, the medium typically employed is art. At the Chabad Jewish Center, however, Herson said that the school uses the medium of dialogue to facilitate "conversations with the child that stretches the mind and perceptions so they become more self-aware and aware of the world."

In this approach, three components form a "learner's imperative": learning, reflection, and action.

This education philosophy, Herson said, mirrors the talmudic lesson that the world stands on three pillars: Torah, prayer, and gemilut hassadim (love and kindness). In Hassidic philosophy, Herson explained, these three pillars represent learning, reflection, and action, respectively.

"It's about having a meaningful, purposeful education," she said.

While "vertical components" such as literacy, math skills, and the scientific method are essential to a child's education, these are not enough for his complete development, Herson said.

"We will make sure that it doesn't just stay in the textbook, that it becomes practical," she said.

Herson recalled as an example how at a wedding, her son, who is enrolled at the school, asked her to estimate how many chairs a waiter could place on a trolley without them falling down.

"He was able to use the concept of estimation in real life," she said. Located adjacent to a plot of woods and the Passaic River, the school is uniquely situated to use nature to teach students valuable lessons, according to Herson.

"We don't have to speak about hibernation as a purely academic thing, for example, we can go into the woods and see it," Herson said. "Through nature we will explore science, math, and literacy, as well as Judaism and spirituality."

The school will also incorporate technology, teaching students to be active rather than passive users.

Herson said that the Olam Academy, as the only Jewish day school in Somerset County, will satisfy an important need in the community.

"Our area needs a Jewish school. Too many families are not moving here because there is not a Jewish school here," Herson said, noting that the response from local community leaders has been "overwhelmingly positive."

Jackie Kraus, whose son is currently enrolled in the school's kindergarten, said that she is "thrilled" with the creation of the Olam Academy.

"I think that in the new Olam Academy, they have the kind of rigorous academic curriculum, which is important to me," Kraus said. "I'm just impressed by the secular curriculum and the wonderful Jewish environment for my son."

Asked where she would send her son next year if the Olam Academy had not been established, Kraus, a Bridgewater resident, said she was not sure.

"This is the only Jewish day school in Somerset County and so it really serves our needs right now," she said. "I'm starting to see that a private school education can reinforce Jewish values and Torah values, which is harder to do in a public school with Hebrew school once a week."

For parents interested in learning more about the Olam Academy, contact Malkie Herson at (908) 604-8844 ext. 125.