'Ruach Resurgence': How DJDS Has Changed Five Years Since COVID-19 Struck

We have therefore made the assessment that COVID-19 can be characterized as a pandemic,” said the World Health Organization on March 11, 2020. It was these 14 words that changed lives worldwide. 

That sentence prompted schools, businesses, and life as many knew it to shut down across the world. The Coronavirus, or COVID-19, pandemic changed billions of people's lives, and for a while, it was uncertain if the world would ever be the same. 

A lot has changed in the world: working remotely has been normalized, you can order groceries straight to your car, and you can make telehealth appointments from your living room.

However, while things have changed outside of DJDS, on this five-year anniversary of the start of COVID-19, many students have been wondering how DJDS has changed. What were the effects of being online for half a year and the lack of programming such as Color Wars, Shabbatons, and other traditions? What kind of impact did lockdown have on academics and the ruach of DJDS?

Academically, DJDS was not unique in trying to adapt to online learning and the challenges that come with that. Online learning was very tricky for many students, some were zooming in from across the country, others from the comfort of their own beds. 

“Being online was really difficult, especially as a middle schooler,” said Julia Perlmutter, DJDS Student Council president and senior. “Online class was just so difficult, I couldn’t pay attention. It was really hard to stay motivated and keep my grades up.”

However, something that set DJDS apart was the fact that it resumed in-person school in the fall of 2020, earlier than most other schools. Even after only six months away from the classroom, many wondered about the effects of the lockdown on the education of students. 

Sam Tluscik, an upper-division math teacher, did see a noticeable change in academic performance immediately following the pandemic. “I think right after COVID [lockdown], there were some gaps we were noticing,” he said. 

Now, according to Tluscik, students have caught back up, and students' gaps in education have essentially returned to the baseline.

Channa Schweid, current upper division Tzedek coordinator, Judaic studies teacher, and a 2008 alumna, observed similar academic patterns. “The year or two after COVID, we definitely noticed a difference…their reading comprehension isn’t as good, and attention spans are way, way less than they used to be…I think we’ve bounced back from it,” she said.

Today, looking back on the pandemic, Schweid is grateful to be back in person.“Remote learning and having to teach with a mask on versus now. It really made me appreciate those interactive elements and being able to see someone’s face,” she said. 

Dr. Jeremy Golubcow-Teglasi, known as Dr. G-T, the current upper division principal, agrees that he would never take in-person teaching for granted after not having it for so long. “It makes you aware that there just is something innate in us that makes being together, to talk through a question, just feels so much more satisfying,” he said. 

He explained how, despite the fact that you can teach the same information online as you can in person, the relationship you build with your students is not the same. In Dr. G-T’s eyes, it’s the little things that have nothing to do with the material at all that made him realize what he was missing while on lockdown. “I do think that I came back with a greater appreciation for the role schmoozing kind of plays in having a good class,” he said. 

When the pandemic struck, school events like Colorwar, the Shabbatons, and other DJDS traditions ceased to exist. “It wasn’t just those three months we were gone; we weren’t allowed to sing during COVID,” Schweid said. 

To abide by the CDC guidelines and to be as cautious as possible to not spread COVID throughout DJDS, students not only had to wear masks and social distance, but they could not sing. This meant no Shabbat table, no tefilah, and no extra programs. 

Beyond just singing in the 2020-2021 school year, everything that was not purely educational was cut. “A lot of that stuff that got cut was important,” Principal Dr. G-T said. High school trips, intensives, the in and out of town Shabbatonim, and tefilah were either totally gone or changed so much that they barely resembled the program. Between not being allowed to sing or congregate in large groups and cuts to DJDS programs, the school’s ruach took a hit. 

While a year may not seem like a significant amount of time, Dr. G-T identified how even just a year had serious implications on the spirit of the school. The first Color War after the pandemic, Schweid had seniors coming to ask her how the cheers went. “It feels like nails on a chalkboard trying to get it [the spirit]  back,” she said.  

Unlike academics, there are no textbooks, no classes, and no formal lessons on the traditions at DJDS. Senior Heather Kletzky remembers how, before COVID-19, the high school boys were constantly “energetic and getting us all riled up at the most random moments,” but today, Heather doesn’t feel that same ruach around the school anymore. 

This isn’t to say that all traditions were lost. For a while, DJDS traditions were weak; however, there were always students who attempted to “restore DJDS to the Old RMHA.”

“I think we're making strides at coming back. I think there is a wonderful school and student leadership who are working at bringing back some of that spirit that was lost five years ago,” Schweid said. Now, DJDS is taking deliberate initiative to teach the songs and melodies that make DJDS such a unique place.

One of the ways this"Ruach Resurgence” has come about is due to the Wednesday schedule. The Wednesday schedule, which has become a staple at DJDS, was born in the height of the lockdown. 

The upper division during the Spring of 2020, when classes were completely remote, had classes on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. On Wednesdays, all students had advisory, time to meet with teachers, and then the rest of the day was free for them to go outside and spend some time away from their screens.

“It definitely planted the seed,” Dr. G-T said, reflecting on the flex day they had during the pandemic. “I used that time to dream up what would eventually become the new schedule.” 

While the pandemic was a massive interruption, many things changed, but eventually came back. While many DJDS faculty members can agree that COVID-19 wasn’t the most ideal time, Dr. G-T embraced this change to dream up the Wednesday schedule as we see it today.