STUDENT SERVICES
The Student Services team at Northwest Yeshiva High School comprises a few broad areas of focus:
LEARNING SUPPORT
Faculty at NYHS are skilled in differentiating content and instruction according to students’ skill level, interest, and readiness. When a student’s academic success requires more than basic differentiation, the Director of Student Services and the Principal will partner with the student and family to pursue neuropsych evaluation in order to learn more about the student’s learning needs. Students with documented learning disabilities must submit documentation of any evaluation or testing to the school. Following this, the Student Services team will create a Student Support Plan.
Student Support Plans (SSPs) are created for students with document learning needs and outline the responsibility of the teachers, school administrators, family, and student. The SSP indicates the accommodations that will benefit the student’s learning, and faculty will make reasonable attempts to fulfill these accommodations. SSPs will be reviewed with the student and family at the start of the school year, at mid-semester, and at the end of the school year. These are meant to be living documents, and the student and/or family may request updates or changes to the plan at any time. Students are not required to utilize the accommodations outlined in the plan; though they are encouraged to become self-advocates for their learning.
NYHS partners with Mercer Island School District for individualized learning support through the Proportionate Share Program. The school may additionally ask families to seek private tutoring and/or learning support outside of the school day and the Student Services team can provide recommended tutors and professionals depending on the students’ needs.
SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL SUPPORT
The Director of Student Services has an “open door” policy for students during school hours. They can also schedule an appointment with their counselor.
Our Director of Student Services helps all students:
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apply academic achievement strategies
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manage emotions and apply interpersonal skills
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plan for postsecondary options (higher education, military, work force)
COLLEGE GUIDANCE
The College Admissions Office guides students through a process of carefully identifying and applying to colleges and universities that suit each individual student. This demystifies the college admissions process and allows students and their families space for reflection as they evaluate the diversity and quality that exists within a wide range of institutions of higher education. The combination of the strength of NYHS's program and the personalized, pragmatic approach of the College Admissions Counselor gives NYHS students their choice of undergraduate options. Indeed, 95% of our graduates are admitted to their first-choice university, and we boast a 100% acceptance rate at the University of Washington. Additionally, our students are admitted to Universities across the country, varying in size, program, and rigor.
ISRAEL GAP-YEAR GUIDANCE
Experiencing the land of Israel first-hand through a gap year between 12th grade and college is something that we expect all of our students and parents to seriously consider. There are a variety of programs for high school graduates to choose from. Our Israel Guidance Department, led by Rabbi Rothstein, assists our students and parents along the journey from getting to know the different options, through the application process, and checking in with our alumni while they are in Israel.
Our students receive individualized counseling and coaching to help them match their interests and needs with the right program. In addition, our Guidance Department organizes meetings and visits with different institutions from Israel and their representatives who travel to the U.S. While the process is primarily for Seniors, our Juniors are invited to start meeting with our Israel Guidance Department and/or join presentations as well, so that they can start learning about the process and begin to explore their post-high school options.