Our school begins with nursery for 3-year-olds and junior kindergarten for 4-year-olds. Both are 5-day, half-day programs, starting at 8:30 a.m. and ending at 11:30 a.m. An extended-day option is available until 3:30 p.m. for junior kindergarten students.
We are a “community” day school in every sense of the word—we welcome families who span the spectrum of Jewish backgrounds, beliefs and practices, and share traditions that can be incorporated into any household. We also support our immediate and extended community in times of joy as well as times of difficulty or need.
Our average class size is fewer than 18 students, and our faculty members are dedicated educators each with a wealth of knowledge and experience, and a passion for working with children, adolescents and each other. And while many hold advanced degrees or even multiple advanced degrees, in order to model lifelong learning, our teachers participate in professional development opportunities throughout the school year and during the summer.
Bernard Zell Anshe Emet Day School is committed to accommodating families of all economic backgrounds. The school’s need-based financial aid program, available to families with students admitted in junior kindergarten through eighth grade, enables us to enroll students who might not otherwise have access to an independent and Jewish education. The financial aid application process is separate from the application for admission, and does not influence our decision to admit a child to the school.
They ask us, time and again, what exactly we do for our students to help them become the young leaders they turn out to be. Our graduates are seen as confident critical thinkers and problem solvers who work well in teams and are at ease making presentations and leading discussions. They are highly desired by public and independent schools like Walter Payton, Whitney Young, Latin, Parker, Lincoln Park, Lane Tech and Northside College Prep. But it doesn’t end there... From those schools they go on to fine universities such as the University of Chicago, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Northwestern, Tufts, Penn, Dartmouth, Columbia, Yale, Stanford and Harvard.
