Your journey begins here

Dear Student,

Welcome to Bnot Torah/Sharfman's! It gives me great pleasure to finally welcome you to Eretz Yisrael and have you join our school family.

We have waited months for this day and have planned extensively for it and the days ahead. Baruch HaShem, despite the overwhelming challenges that we faced, you are finally here in Eretz Yisroel!

This Bnot Torah/Sharfman's Student Welcome Guide is replete with important and useful information. Please read it carefully, as it contains information which you will need and will be held responsible for throughout your stay with us. It also contains telephone numbers and other information that you will find helpful.

The school year is before us. We look forward, and pray to HaShem, that it will be the most meaningful, productive and exciting year you have ever experienced.

I hope that any questions you may have will be answered during our Orientation Week. If I can be of any assistance to you, please do not hesitate to call on me.

With best wishes of Hatzlacha, I remain,

• Rabbi Moshe KohnOverseas Director
• Mrs. Debbi NisselHead Aim Bayit / Dorm Mother
• Mrs. Rachel SmithMental Health Coordinator
• Mrs. Sara MonczykOffice Administrator
• Mrs. Raizel LeidnerProgram Coordinator
• Mrs. Shoshana KohnHead of Kitchen / Shabbos Placement
• Ms. Basya GreenbergerKitchen Manager / Technical Assistant
• Mrs. Thelet BirnbaumNight Aim Bayit

• By choosing Bnot Torah/Sharfman's, each student commits to continued growth in Torah and Middos in a Torah atmosphere. These rules clarify those expectations and apply throughout your stay in Israel - including vacations - on and off campus.
• Students must maintain the Tznius and conduct expected of seminary students in dress and behavior. Beyond following Halacha, this lifestyle excludes vaping; smoking, including hookahs; drinking; and socializing in or near bars or clubs. These standards apply at all times and in all places throughout the year.
• For safety, students may not enter the Shuk after 7:00 PM.
• Skirts and dresses must cover the knee while sitting; slits must end below the knee. Shirts must overlap the skirt waistband, cover the collarbone, and have sleeves covering the elbows. Socks, stockings, or closed-toed shoes are required. Sheer or form-fitting clothing, pants, body piercing, and other fashion inappropriate for a seminary student are not allowed.
• In keeping with neighborhood standards, students may not socialize with or speak to boys on the streets of Sanhedria HaMurchevet or Sanhedria, especially Rechov Yam Suf and Ophira.
• Men are never permitted in the apartments.
• Students may not rent or drive a motor vehicle in Israel.
• Students must attend classes and Beit Midrash sessions regularly.
• Grounds for dismissal include, but are not limited to: violating the Code of Conduct or curfew; excessive absences; incomplete class assignments; drug or alcohol use; visiting pubs or bars; or other conduct unbecoming a seminary student.
• Students may join only an all-women's gym. Co-ed gyms are prohibited, even during women-only hours. Obtain Mrs. Fuld's approval before purchasing any membership.

• The school may restrict travel within or outside Yerushalayim because of health or security conditions. Notices may be posted on the bulletin board, announced in school, and/or sent to the official WhatsApp group. Students who disregard them do so at their own responsibility.
• Parents may authorize travel to a school-restricted area by emailing office@BnotTorah.com. This cannot override Ministry of Health restrictions.

• Keep your apartment door locked at all times, even when inside. Bnot Torah/Sharfman's is not responsible for money or valuables left in apartments or school. Never share your apartment or elevator code with anyone unaffiliated with the school.
• Each student receives a school locker and combination lock. Keep it locked and store jewelry, money, passports, and other valuables there.
• Post repair requests on the "Apartment Maintenance" chat; they will be handled as soon as possible.
• Admit a repairman only when he presents authorization from a school representative.
• Do not remove furnishings, silverware, dishes, or other items from apartments or school. Students are responsible for damage caused by negligence.
• Wash all silverware, dishes, pots, and pans immediately after use; do not leave them for later.
• Living respectfully with others is part of the Sharfman's experience. From 12:30 AM, bedroom lights must be off and all conversations - including phone calls - must move to the well-lit public areas available 24/7 so others can sleep. Apartment speech, posters, pictures, and activities must reflect seminary standards. Only Jewish music may be played aloud; listen to any other music only through headphones or earbuds.
• Hookahs, vapes, and all alcohol - including beer - may not be brought into or used in apartments. Any found will be permanently confiscated.
• Hang posters and pictures only on the personal bulletin board by your bed. Do not use blue tack, pink tack, or glue; they damage the walls and require repainting.
• Guests may not stay overnight in school apartments.
• No pets are allowed in the apartments except fish.
• Each student receives a cleaning assignment to keep the apartment neat and orderly. Assignments rotate weekly or monthly and must pass inspection by the Aim Bayit; students are responsible for maintaining them.
• The Imahot Bayit inspect apartments weekly at 2:15 PM, and attendance is mandatory. Get prior permission from your Aim Bayit if you cannot attend. An Aim Bayit may call additional meetings as needed.

• Except Friday night, students must sleep in their own apartment and be home by curfew every night, including vacations such as Chol HaMoed.
• Weeknights, including Friday: 11:30 PM. Saturday night: 12:00 midnight. These times apply throughout the school year, including vacations.
• Because of security concerns, students may not sleep in a hotel, Airbnb, or similar lodging without prior permission from their Mechanechet.
• A student may use her family's apartment in Israel only when her parents are with her.
• Curfew violations are subject to disciplinary action; severe violations may result in dismissal.

• Key dates and major school breaks:
• Students may not travel abroad during Succot or Chanukah breaks (see Attendance). They also may not visit Chevron/Kiryat Arba for Shabbos Parshas Chayei Sarah or Beit Shemesh/Ramat Beit Shemesh on Purim or Shushan Purim.

• During class, smartphones, laptops, and tablets are not permitted in or outside the classroom. Smartphones must be silenced and placed in the school phone boxes from 9:00 AM-1:40 PM, 4:00 PM-7:00 PM, and throughout night classes. The school is a Digital Free Zone from morning through the end of the last night class. Using any digital device during class - for notes, calls, texts, games, or anything else - results in an absence for that period and removal from that class.

Lockers

• Each student has a school locker.
• Store all personal items there, including seforim, coffee, and cups. Anything left out at the end of the day will be discarded.

• Attend every class and Beit Midrash session on time unless illness or another compelling cause prevents you.
• Attendance is recorded for every course and factors into final grades alongside tests, papers, and class participation.
• To request an excused illness absence, speak with Mrs. Monczyk on the day missed, request an excused-absence note, and submit it to the office when you return. You are also responsible for seeing the PA during her school hours. Minor ailments, including headaches or tiredness, are not excused. Per class, excused absences each semester may not exceed twice that class's weekly meeting frequency. When the PA is unavailable - either not in school or during afternoons without PA hours - the school secretary may excuse the absence. Only approved absences count as excused.
• Students are not penalized for valid personal absences - such as family visits, a wedding or bris, other personal needs, or medical absences beyond the excused allowance - if they do not exceed 1.5 times the class's weekly meeting frequency each semester. Save these absences for unexpected needs.
• Up to 20 minutes late counts as half an absence; more than 20 minutes counts as a full absence.
• Per-semester excused and personal absence limits appear in the table. Each absence beyond either limit lowers the course grade by one grade, or by half a grade for each Beit Midrash period.
• Excessive absences can cause a failing grade in the class. A sufficient number of course F's, including Beit Midrash, may result in no credit for any Bnot Torah/Sharfman's courses. Excessive absences may also lead to dismissal.
• Personal absences do not excuse scheduled examinations. A teacher may deny a makeup exam; a missed exam then receives a 0. Students are responsible for completing every class requirement.
• Attend your Chessed activity unless actual illness prevents you. If ill, notify Mrs. Debbi Nissel as early as possible so she can make arrangements with the family or institution.
• Because extended trips disrupt school and leave substantial material to learn independently, travel abroad during the school year is permitted only for a sibling's wedding, Bar or Bat Mitzvah, or Pesach vacation - not Succot or Chanukah breaks. All travel abroad requires prior approval from the student's Mechanechet, including the absence dates, and must minimize missed school. A sibling's Simcha trip is limited to 10 calendar days. All missed classes count as personal absences.
• When parents visit, a student may miss no more than five class days; they count as personal absences.
• Students can access their attendance records and are responsible for tracking absences in every course.
• Fall and Spring semester transcripts are issued at the beginning of July.
• A Bayit Cham is a warm, fun get-together with your rakezet in her home. It is held twice monthly, and attendance is mandatory.

Library

• Bring your own required seforim to class and Beit Midrash; private seforim may remain in your locker.
• Only non-reference seforim may leave the building.
• All other seforim are for reference use only.
• Borrow no more than two non-reference seforim at a time.
• They may be borrowed for up to one week.

Health care

• All Sharfman's students must register for the AIM Gold or Platinum Plan.
• The AIM PA provides free consultations to all Sharfman's students.
• If you feel unwell, consult the PA first. She will determine whether - and which - doctor you should see and provide follow-up care as needed. Visits to an AIM Center General Practitioner during office hours are free. The plan also covers specialists and laboratory services ordered by the AIM office.
• AIM will provide further information about the plan.
• AIM's emergency physician is available 24/7 at 053-753-7111.

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