Frisch offers prospective students a variety of specialty tracks, as part of their required curriculum. Applicants can choose to pursue an area of personal interest in a daily specialty course from the options below. (Selections can be made on the online admissions application, where requirements and responses to application questions for individual tracks can be submitted.)
The Art Track is a four-year course of study, developed by our Director of Visual Arts, Mrs. Ahuva Winslow. The track provides a dynamic curriculum within an environment conducive to artistic risk-taking and student expression. It enables students to acquire the skills necessary for lifelong artistic learning and application. The Art Program accommodates individual learning styles and develops students’ skills working in a variety of techniques. Students have the opportunity to learn from contemporary artists and lecturers through the program and gain exposure to many art related opportunities and experiences. Implementing the elements and principles of design, students in the Art Track create a portfolio of work of the highest standard.
For more information: ahuva.winslow@frisch.org
For more information:
Gemara Track: yosef.weinberger@frisch.org
Tanach Track: rachel.besser@frisch.org
Frisch’s Culinary Arts and Food Science Track provides students with instruction in culinary arts, food science, nutrition and food technology. Students learn the theory and practice of cooking, examine the chemistry and nutrients of the ingredients and gain exposure to technology that contributes to innovations in the food industry. Students gain skills and techniques to produce their own unique culinary creations.
For more information: admissions@frisch.org
Engineering students are challenged to expand their intellects and to develop skills in the areas of inquiry, critical thinking, problem seeking, problem solving, research, and presentation. Students develop the ability to access and analyze information, to view the world through multiple perspectives, and to make connections between the disciplines of science, technology, mathematics, and engineering (STEM). Freshmen in the Engineering Track learn foundations of engineering and electronics, followed by bioengineering in the 10th grade. Juniors have the option of courses in Computer Science, Robotics, Digital Design and Fabrication, and seniors can choose from interdisciplinary electives which merge Halacha with technology.
For more information: rifkie.silverman@frisch.org
Frisch’s Entrepreneurship Track motivates students to think and act like entrepreneurs by fostering innovation, experimentation, critical thinking and problem-solving. Students learn how to identify, create and shape opportunities by generating ideas that address real world needs and then developing the skills of market research, product development and project management to bring their vision into fruition. Students gain competencies that are vital to the success of any business as they gain the capacity to differentiate their venture from its competition, assess its financial feasibility, understand the forecasting and budgeting process and develop viable business models. Topics including strategy, sales, marketing, operations and accounting are covered. Entrepreneurship Track students collaborate on a project of social entrepreneurship in which they create and execute a business plan for a product or service of social and economic value. They employ entrepreneurial techniques to develop, fund and implement solutions to affect positive, sustainable social change.
For more information: admissions@frisch.org
Frisch’s Medical Sciences Track affords students the opportunity to explore the medical field while engaging in rigorous studies in the medical sciences, in addition to the formal Frisch Science curriculum. This four-year course of study is supplemented with experiential components including clinical opportunities in hospitals, hands-on labs and research projects, guest lectures and internships to familiarize students with many specialties within the medical profession. The track is composed of a sequence of science courses and experiences aimed at advancing students’ knowledge, skills and exposure to medicine.
For more information: admissions@frisch.org
Under the guidance of Mr. Steve Bill and Mrs. Randi Wartelsky, the Music Track is designed to help students develop the skills necessary to compose, arrange, record, and perform music (instrumental and/or vocal) on a professional level. Students gain exposure to the latest recording technologies and composition techniques. The track also includes demonstrations by professional instrumentalists in the skill of writing music for the students’ specific instruments. In addition, students have the opportunity to compose music for film and video, as well as for the Frisch Performance Ensemble and Jazz Band. Vocalists arrange music for four-part voice, write harmonies that fall within the chordal structure, and study techniques that enable them to grow and develop their singing. The goal of the four year Music Track is to equip students as professional performers, composers, orchestrators, music producers, or educators.
For more information:
randi.wartelsky@frisch.org
steve.bill@frisch.org
Frisch’s Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE) Track (offered in partnership with The Tikvah Fund) will explore the most pressing political and social issues of the modern age and the most important thinkers and texts of political philosophy and modern economics. Modeled after similar PPE programs at elite universities around the world, students will explore the deeper roots of the great debates of our time—such as freedom of speech and freedom of religion, health-care policy and immigration, nuclear proliferation and cyber-warfare, the clash among great world powers and the future of Middle East diplomacy, free markets vs. socialism, and the moral challenges facing communities and families. This program aims to prepare future leaders interested in politics, journalism, diplomacy, world affairs, and social entrepreneurship, by grounding our students in a mix of core American and Jewish values. We will draw upon the most advanced current analysis of public policy (from journals, newspapers, television, and film) and the most enduring works of political and economic thought. We will engage in spirited town hall debates, will be joined regularly by leading thinkers and public figures and will explore real-life policy issues on the ground and in the civic arena on off-campus trips. And we will pay special attention to how these great questions affect both American Jews and Israel.
For more information: admissions@frisch.org
In the Sports Management and Business Analytics Track, students learn about global sports business and administration. Through an industry-centric approach, students gain an understanding of the essentials of finance, accounting, management, marketing, media, communications, business operations and analytics that can then be applied more broadly to other industries. Managerial and leadership skills are developed as they apply to the $200 billion sports industry with an overview of the business dealings of amateur, collegiate, professional and international sports enterprises. More advanced courses in Corporate Marketing and Communications, as well as Finance, Negotiation and Labor are offered in subsequent years to further students’ knowledge and skills.
For more information: admissions@frisch.org
Frisch’s Writing Track affords students the opportunity to develop strong writing skills in a variety of forms and genres, in addition to the rigorous English curriculum. Techniques are taught to help students express their unique voice through writing fiction, nonfiction, short stories, poetry, screenplays, speeches, podcasts, social media content, and journalistic articles. Students hone their narrative craft as they work on the style, structure and substance of self-expression which can be applied to multiple genres. Genre-specific workshops are held in Frisch’s Writing Studio in which students learn diverse tools, rhetorical conventions and discourse practices to write in a variety of mediums and for an array of audiences.
For more information: meryl.feldblum@frisch.org
Frisch offers a variety of world languages including Arabic, French, Italian, Mandarin, Spanish, and Yiddish. In freshman and sophomore years, the goal is to provide students with the skills to become proficient at a novice to intermediate level in the language that they choose in the three modes of communication: interpersonal (person to person), interpretive (listening and reading), and presentational (spoken and written production). Students also learn about various aspects of the culture of those language communities. Skills are emphasized through videos, audio activities, class conversation, readings, and writing assignments in which students employ grammar and vocabulary. Electives for the advanced study of each language are available for 11th and 12th graders and seniors have the option to take the AP exam. Introductory courses in each of the six language options are also offered in 11th grade for students who were in a different track in 9th and 10th grades, but want to embark on the study of a new foreign language in their junior and senior year.
For more information: yair.shahak@frisch.org