Support Services – Bais Yaakov of Baltimore

Bais Yaakov provides many Support Services to address student development in areas of academics, adaptive skills, physical supports, social interactions, emotional growth, and other special education areas.

Recently, Bais Yaakov began to share a wonderful bond with JEWELS, as we host an integrated classroom for students with developmental disabilities on campus. We are proud of this relationship, and look forward to continuing to allow all girls an opportunity to feel proud to be a part of Bais Yaakov!

Bais Yaakov is proud of our long-standing relationship with SHEMESH, and the support they provide our school in the areas of student consultation, behavioral interventions, and teacher training, to name a few. SHEMESH also provides us with a trained therapist to help students in the area of Executive Functioning.

Elementary School

Our Learning Center has highly trained and effective Special Education teachers working collaboratively with our classroom teachers to ensure that every student is given the opportunity to thrive in the classroom.

Miss Penina Goldstein, our coordinator of Special Education, organizes and directs all of these services together with the curriculum coordinators and teachers to ensure each child receives the needed interventions.

We are fortunate to have on staff two outstanding Guidance Counselors, Mrs. Libby Kraft, MS, and Mrs. Rachell Tajerstein, MSW who teach social skills training classes at each grade level and provide both individual and group support for our students.

We partner with the state and local education systems to identify students with specific needs, and assess and develop plans to meet the child’s individual needs. We run numerous TITLE I sessions for our younger students and have on-site reading and learning specialists to support our students’ growth and development.

We also work with numerous local vendors who provide in-school therapy sessions in the areas of Speech and Language, Occupational and Physical Therapy, and Behavioral Therapy, in addition to Mental Health professional visits.
Middle School

Our Learning Center supervised by Mrs. Malka Yasnyi provides one-on-one support for students who have a specific diagnosis which affects their learning, thereby requiring academic support.

Students who may not need the Learning Center, but require support outside of the classroom to succeed academically, may be supported by one-on-one tutoring during the school day. Our Coordinator of Students, Mrs. Chana E. Felder, LCPC, supervises the Tutoring Program.

Mrs. Felder also conducts a series of multi-year workshops for the students, where they learn and practice communication and social skills. Students are empowered and learn how to deal with bullying behavior.

Upon request, a student is paired up with a post-High-School young woman who serves as a positive role model, or “Big Sister”, by spending one hour each week together in our Mentor Program. There is a limited number of young women available for the mentoring program, and the number of “little sisters” is determined based on availability and need.

“Girl Talk” is a social skill building program designed to help students build friendships and to adopt positive communication skills. Small groups of students meet once a week for six weeks, usually during lunch time. These sessions are facilitated by a trained facilitator (in cooperation with “Shemesh”).

We have developed a series of workshops, integrated into our regular school program, designed to help students develop solid organizational and study skills.

Baltimore County Speech Therapists provide services for students who qualify through the PEN Project testing process.
High School

Bais Yaakov High School provides support both in the academic realm and for personal matters, to students at various need levels. Students who require academic support can access this through the High School Tutorial Program, or through the Learning Center. Our Learning Center provides learning opportunities on various levels. In addition to these, there are some classes within the regular High School program that are uniquely designed to provide help on a remedial level, targeting specific student groups.

Our High School Guidance Counselor, Mrs. Chayala Isbee, MS, has office hours during the week when students may seek her guidance on personal matters. Except when there is a question of safety or health, such meetings are kept completely confidential.