Shevat 5748, February 1988 Aleph Zadik Aleph (AZA) B'nai B'rith Youth Organization (BBYO) B'nai B'rith Girls (BBG) The B'nai B'rith Beber Camp B'nai B'rith Teen Connection B'nai B'rith Perlman Camp 2,000 BBYO Members Attend Soviet Jewry Rally By Neil Rubin timated the rally's crowd to be more Throughout the 45-minute march point for the many BBYO members Editor than 200,000, one of the largest ever from the White House Ellipse to the who were marching with their BBYO's presence was felt in force for such an event. The day, billed as U.S. Capitol Building, the spirited various communities. during the huge December 6 Soviet "Freedom Sunday," was a remarkable BBYO members led much of the sur- BBYO leaders present included In- Jewry rally held in Washington, D.C. display of unity and solidarity on be- rounding crowd in singing "Oseh ternational N'siah Michelle Blu- Approximately 2,000 BBYO members half of virtually every Jewish group Shalom," "Hineh Ma Tov Umaniym" menthal and Grand Aleph Godol came by auto, subway, bus, train and in North America. and "Am Yisrael Chai." They also Marc N. Blattner. The international airplane to the nation's capital for the It was also a day when BBYO chanted, "Let them go!" and "One- officers helped greet BBYO members historic event. showed its full commitment to the So- two-three-four, open up the iron door! before the rally as they met by the They joined in the broad coalition of viet Jewry struggle. Among the cities Five-six-seven-eight, let my people White House Ellipse. There everyone Jews and other groups expressing represented by BBYO were Toronto, emigrate!' received special posters that pro- support for cultural freedom and emi- San Francisco, Los Angeles, Dallas, The presence of BBYO could be claimed "B'nai B'rith Youth Organi- gration rights for the Soviet Union's New York, Washington, Richmond, seen from afar as a 40-feet-wide ban- zation Demands Open Up Your Iron nearly 2 million Jews. Cleveland, Youngstown, Allentown ner, proclaiming "BBYO Says Let Our Gates." The U.S. National Parks Service es- and Minneapolis-St. Paul. People Go" served as the rallying See Soviet Jewry page 3 Playing the College Game: How Grades and BBYO Enhance Your College Admissions Application Many BBYO seniors are in the school is the most important factor, midst of choosing colleges while says a College Board survey of more 11th graders are gathering informa- than 2,600 institutions. tion on them. This article, the first in A core of required subjects should a series coordinated by Dr. Max include: English. four years; math. Baer, shows how BBYO helps pre- two to three years-including pare you for college and careers. gebra and trigonometry; laboratory Dr. Baer served for 29 years as sciences, two years - including biol- BBYO international director and 24 ogy, physics or chemistry; foreign lan- years as B'nai B'rith Career and guage, two to three years; and history Counseling Services (BBCCS) direc- and social science, two years. Re- tor. He thus bridges two fields, quirements of colleges vary, so you bringing BBYO members informa- should check their catalogues before tion and guidance on higher educa- applying. tion and career opportunities. The Sorry, but A's in non-academic BBCCS was founded by BBYO, the electives, such as typing, shop, etc., AZA and BBG international officers compare notes during a break at the B'nai B'rith Hillel Foundations and won't help a mediocre high school B'nai B'rith Youth Commission meeting, held from Dec. 12-14 in the Anti-Defamation League of B'nai record. This is because some admis- Washington, D.C. B'rith. sions offices recompute your record, Save these articles and refer to excluding non-academic subjects. them as needed now and in the Furthermore, don't take it easy in Youth Commission Highlights Ties future. your senior year; some admissions of- fices believe the most recent grades Between B'nai B'rith and BBYO By Dr. Julius Romanoff are the best indication of your read- Executive Director iness for college. Pennsylvania B'nai B'rith Career Had you walked into the recent B'nai B'rith is 500,000 strong and Standardized tests, such as the has members in more than 40 coun- and Counseling Services meeting of the B'nai B'rith Youth SATs or the American College Testing tries. For countless Jewish commu- "What are you going to do after Commission, you might have mis- Program (ACT) are used to reduce to a taken the room as a BBYO 20-year nities across the world, membership high school?' manageable number the admissions decided to go to college." reunion. in B'nai B'rith is membership in the applications reviewed. The scores are That frequent reply is a decision Many members of the commission, Jewish community. While some fairly good predictors to how well you things, like the daily operation of that causes tremendous anxiety. That the highest policy-making body of will do academically in your fresh- BBYO, are taken for granted, it's B'nai anxiety revolves around the question: BBYO, were past BBYO regional presi- man year of college. B'rith members that ensure that the Will the college of your choice accept dents and even international officers. These scores measure one's ability you? But it was more than a gathering of hundreds of thousands of Jewish to concentrate over a long period. past BBYO leaders; it was a group of teenagers who have participated in Colleges look primarily at four They do not measure specific knowl- things in the admissions selection people who have dedicated their lives BBYO continue to receive top-level edge, such as the president during to furthering and strengthening Jew- cultural, educational and social process: grades; standardized test the Civil War, causes of the French scores; extra-curricular activities; ish youth and Jewish values. They programming. Revolution or the author of War and and out-of-school activities. are the ones who know that the past Many of those half-a-million B'nai are memories and it's the present B'rith members are BBYO alumni. Your academic performance in high See Colleges, page 3 that counts. Because BBYO opened the door to For them, and countless others on Judaism for them, they want to give BBYO regional boards, the most something back to the program. The meaningful way to strengthen today's best way to do this, they decided, was INSIDE THIS ISSUE Jewish world is through membership through membership in B'nai B'rith in the B'nai B'rith family. International or B'nai B'rith Women. Leadership Letters Page 2 While many BBYO members know It the easiest and most natural way Summer Programs Page 4,5 that B'nai B'rith sponsors BBYO, not to continue their Jewish identity in a Reach for the Stars Page 6 enough realize that, just like BBYO, warm and familiar framework. Happenings Page 6,7 B'nai B'rith is a membership organi- Seymour D. Reich, the Interna- Regional Updates Page 8,9 zation. It is composed of a group of tional President of B'nai B'rith, takes Teen Connection Page 10 people who deeply care about the fu- special pride in this strong relation- BBYO Around the World Page 11 ture of the Jewish people and Jewish Potpourri Page 12 youth. See Youth Commission, page 12