Batsheva Learning Center:
It’s been four years since the Batsheva Learning Center launched and they are excited to announce their newest project to take women’s Torah learning to the next level. This summer, Batsheva presented their first semester-long certified courses to the public. These 8-week courses are a unique opportunity for women to develop their skills in studying the original texts of halacha and chassidus.
Each course comes along with a textbook created by the instructors to guide the students in their learning process and help them build the skills they need to master the original Torah sources. The participants of the course will meet with the instructor one evening a week for 2 hours. Each two-hour lesson is carefully designed to give the student the maximum learning experience.
Classes will begin with the instructor introducing the text and opening a discussion around the topic they will be studying. Students will then tackle the text together with a chavrusa and the provided course textbooks, designed to aid and advance a student at any level, from beginner to pro. There will be a ten minute break for refreshments in middle, followed by the second round of chavrusa learning and discussion.
Participating students will be required to take a short exam at the conclusion of the course to demonstrate their mastery of the material and will be awarded a certificate of completion.
The upcoming Fall Semester Chassidus Course will explore the maamar “Heichaltzu”, a fundamental maamar of the Rebbe Rashab that offers a practical and relatable approach to the mitzvah of ahavas yisrael. It discusses the root of our inability to get along with other people and how that expresses itself in every area of our lives. This course will give the students a thorough exploration of the text of this maamar, allowing them to discover the depth and beauty of the Rashab’s original words. They will walk out with a mastery of fundamental concepts in chassidus, as well as the tools to tackle any text of chassidus on their own. This course is being offered in Crown Heights, Chicago and Los Angeles.
The Fall Semester Halacha Course will offer a comprehensive analysis of the underlying reasons for the chachomim’s institution of pas yisrael and bishul yisrael. Students will study how the parameters of the halachos developed by studying the original sources in the Gemara and the Shulchan Aruch. Then, they will learn how to apply these halachos to modern day scenarios. They will walk out with a mastery of these halachos, a deeper understanding of the halachic process, and basic tools to tackle any halachic text on their own.
The instructors for the courses have been spending the last few months hard at work developing the course curricula.
Mrs. Natalie Rice has been teaching advanced Chassidus classes to women in Crown Heights for over a decade. She has been developing the Chassidus curriculum and will be teaching the pilot course at Batsheva Leanrning Center’s New York City branch.
After teaching beginner’s Gemara classes for Batsheva Learning Center last year, Mrs. Mushky Gershon has been working on writing a textbook for the upcoming halacha course that will introduce its students to the original texts of Mishna, Gemara and Shulchan Aruch, giving them tools to tackle these halachic texts on their own.
Rabbi Yitzchak Hanoka is the Tri-state Rabbinic Coordinator at OK Kosher. He has been working with Mrs. Gershon on developing the course material for the halacha course and will be teaching the pilot course at the New York City branch this fall.
Ready to hit the books again this fall? Registration deadline is September 6. For more details and to sign up, visit batshevalearningcenter.com/courses
