Community leaders and children pushed shovels into the ground on Monday to kick off construction of the new Hebrew Academy of Nassau County (HANC) campus on the site of its Early Childhood Center and the adjoining lot.
“It’s much needed, as now you will have the entire elementary school from early childhood through eighth grade on one campus,” said Jason Misher, who has three children attending HANC, and soon a fourth. “It will be state-of-the-art with a nice beis midrash. A big win for our community.”
The school recently celebrated its 70th anniversary, at a dinner where its story was told. In a time when potato fields and orchards on Long Island were redeveloped in favor of capes, ranches, and colonials, Rabbi Meyer and Goldie Fendel understood the importance of founding a yeshivah to maintain Jewish observance among the newcomers. From that founding class of 30 students in a mansion-turned-school, West Hempstead grew, as their children and grandchildren also enrolled at HANC in addition to thousands of others who joined them over the decades.
Without a sizable property, the school developed multiple campuses: Early Childhood inside a former Reform temple at 240 Hempstead Avenue, the high school on the former Mitchel Field Air Force Base in Uniondale, the middle school in the heart of West Hempstead, and an elementary school in Plainview.
As the student body grew, the administration of the school wanted to consolidate the campuses, and the opportunity came in 2018, when the plant nursery next to the Early Childhood Center was purchased by HANC. Three years later, the Plainview campus was sold to Mercaz Academy, followed by the sale of the campus at 609 Hempstead Avenue to the Young Israel of West Hempstead.
“I cannot help but think that we all stand on the shoulders of incomparable educators and community leaders whose legacies continue to inspire HANC and the West Hempstead community: specifically, Rabbi Meyer Fendel, Rabbi Moshe Gottesman z”l, and Rabbi Yehuda Kelemer z”l,” said Aaron Malitzky, Chairman of the Board at HANC, in his remarks at the groundbreaking.
“For Jews, education is not just what we know, it is who we are, and no people ever cared for education more. Our ancestors were the first to make education a religious command, and the first to create a compulsory universal system of schooling.”
The campus will carry the name of the Reinstein family, longtime supporters whose children attended HANC. It will include sports fields and a playground next to the sizable new building.
“I was the president of HANC six years ago when the future campus property was bought. Covid threw us a curveball, but we have talented and motivated HANC board members, lay leaders, administrators, parents, and alumni,” said Ruchi Kushner, a mother of five whose youngest two children attend the yeshivah’s kindergarten. “We currently have over a thousand students, including the high school. The new campus will be ECC through eighth grade. It will mean savings for the school district as it would reduce transportation costs.”
At the groundbreaking, the rabbis of local shuls spoke of unity and sharing in the celebration as the HANC principals and many teachers live in West Hempstead. They daven and learn among the parents and students, creating a sense of family that extends outside of the classroom. Nassau County Executive and former HANC parent Bruce Blakeman, Town of Hempstead Supervisor Don Clavin, Councilman Tom Muscarella, and County Legislature Chair Howard Koppel, congratulated HANC on the historic groundbreaking, recognizing the role of yeshivos in the development of a strong and lasting Jewish community.
Public school district Supervisor Daniel Rehman and members of the West Hempstead School District also took their turn shoveling earth. Perhaps a surprise to some, but not to the school administration, which works with the district on transportation, providing services, and other functions. The school’s role in the neighborhood’s civic scene includes the Color Guard marching in the Memorial Day Parade.
“The expansion means one united school. It gives a unity to the whole school, where everyone can feel part of the big picture and one family,” said Devorah Nadelbach, co-president of HANC’s Parent-Teacher Association. “Leora Elefant, the incoming PTA president, and I are both HANC graduates, with our children being third generation students.” They both have three children currently enrolled at HANC, as does Or Guy, the outgoing president.
Following the grown-ups, the youngest students took their turns with the shovels and then spray-painted stenciled words onto a backdrop that hangs on the construction fence. “This is our future,” the banner declares.
“It’s incredibly good for the community, its enrollment does not fit in the present building. The new classrooms are exciting,” said Aaron Zelig, who has four children enrolled at HANC. “It’s state-of-the-art and combined for efficiency.”
For disclosure, I am also a HANC parent. I enrolled my daughter at HANC for the high quality of its secular and religious education, and having her educators and classmates close to home, creating an unmatched feeling of the school as a community.
By Sergey Kadinsky
