Travel Blog
A Reflection from the Jewish Heritage Trip
April 22, 2026
This spring, I had the opportunity to be a part of HBHA's capstone experience: the Jewish Heritage Trip. I feel immensely grateful for this opportunity, as I have been a part of the HBHA community for 23 years.
I found my way to HBHA as a fourth-grade teacher who assisted in pioneering the IMAC classroom — a combined, multi-age classroom (fourth and fifth grades) with a rotating curriculum when class sizes were small. During this time, in addition to teaching in the general studies classroom, I found myself subbing for prayers, learning and leading birkat after lunch, learning and leading the prayer for hamotzi before lunch, and some of the Jewish Studies curriculum. The reason: a rotating door of young Israelis who would not stay the duration of the year. I also worked in math and reading enrichment for first and second grades. This exposure led me to work with just about every student in the Lower School each school year.
When the class sizes grew and IMAC split apart, I was asked to continue teaching fourth grade, teach Middle School drama (at that time it was an after-school program, not an elective), and take the sixth-grade students on their week-long experiential trip to Camp Sabra. Again, I found myself working with students across the divisions of the school and building relationships that last to this day.
Eventually, my teaching path led me to teach 6th-grade science, math, mentoring, and Upper School PE. I taught the same students I had taught in the Lower School. Again, strengthening my relationships with them to enhance their learning and building partnerships with their parents, again, all in the interest of the students.
At the push of Howard Haas and Todd Clauer, I interviewed (I thought for practice) for the position of K-8 Principal. While it was a mountain to climb, I felt incredibly supported, as I had taught so many of the students who were in Lower and Middle School. Many of the teachers were colleagues and collaborators.
Why write all this?
Going into the trip, it was hard to know how I felt. Beyond all else, I felt immense gratitude. I am not an anxious person, and simply put, I did not know much about what would happen on the trip. I felt secure in my travel knowledge, as I was once (before having my own kids) an experienced traveler. I had known almost every student on the trip since kindergarten, and I felt confident in my abilities to work with Zohar and Sam as well as help the students through any obstacle that occurred (there were a couple).
Traveling with these students was nothing short of incredible. While they are much taller and have expanded vocabularies, they are still very similar to those nervous/shy incoming kindergarten students with totes larger than they were. One student said to me, “Do you remember when I used to cry in Kindergarten?” I replied, “Sweetie, you cried every morning till second grade. What did we do? We sat together in the hall, outside the classroom window, so we could hear and see what was going on. You and I would have the same conversation as the class, but just the two of us, so that it wouldn’t be scary. Then, at snack, which was also recess, you rejoined the group.” This student smiled and said, “Wow. I do not remember all that.” I just smiled back and said, “We have a lot of memories together, and I am proud to see how confident you are today!”
Another student said, “Do you remember when I came to the office crying in second grade?” I said, “Of course I do. Just about every day after lunch, you were really tired and emotional. We would go to the science lab together and look at the fish, lizards, and snakes until you were ready to rejoin class.” The student said, “Really?! I don’t remember that.”
Hearing the trip down memory lane, another student said, “Dr. Kyanka, remember when I would come to your office and we watched videos of my dance competitions together? You also let me sit and journal in your office when I was mad at my teachers.” I nodded and said, “I do remember, and I almost brought your old journal on the trip for you to read.” The student laughed and said, “Those were good times.”
These are just a couple of examples where many more exist. Where else can such care and attention occur? Every individual at HBHA is deeply committed to this style of care and attention. It is the attention to the whole person. The students need to feel cared for before learning can happen. They need to feel and be seen as more than a test score. This is HBHA.
Traveling to the most emotional sites of Poland and Prague was an entirely different experience. The students connected deeply to their Jewish Heritage, feeling the feelings that only they could. In some places, we were alone; in other places, there were other groups. I watched the way other students/groups/families interacted with such places as Majdanek; observing their surroundings as museum-like and seemingly a faraway time in history. Whereas our students were personally connected, rooted to the place where cruelty reigned. Some students were angry, others felt immense sadness. There is no one way to feel in such places of agony. This is an impactful point of the students' Jewish History. However, there is also hope. Visiting synagogues where prayer has been absent, the students prayed. Two students who had never wrapped tefillin did so when they felt the personal pull and connection.
This extensive trip was more than just three weeks away from home — it was exposure to life away from their bubble. In one such situation, a student asked me, “Are we the first Jewish people you have ever met?” While at first my response was to chuckle, I realized that many of these students live and breathe only in their Jewish world. I am not Jewish, and therefore have experiences different and unique from theirs. I told them, “No, I grew up with many Jewish children and attended many bar and bat mitzvahs during my own Middle School years.” This, perhaps, broadened the scope of their small world.
Visiting a synagogue preserved and restored over time was my greatest point of connection. We met a Polish man who made it his life’s work to care for the synagogue and teach the history of the Jewish people of the small town of Łańcut. He was not Jewish. His family lived in this town, cared for the synagogue when the Nazis tried to destroy it, and worked with his fellow townspeople to put the flames out when it was set on fire. He spoke to our students about how wonderful it was that they were visiting, bringing Jewish life to a place where life had been exterminated. Before opening the doors to the sanctuary, he said to us, “Am Yisroel Chai.” This experience had a profound impact on me, and I hope the students as well. It is incredible to learn of your own history, deeply rooted in the tragic events of World War II, but in the essence of the way Jenny Safir (fourth-grade teacher) teaches her students about Holocaust heroes, this man was a true hero. He was educated and compelled to educate others. He was a champion of the Jewish people, though he was not Jewish himself.
It is also important to note the character of the students on this trip. Within the three weeks, they were typical 17- and 18-year-old students. However, their character stood out in moments when they thought no one was watching. Upon visiting a mass grave memorial (our first), the students reflected on their conflicting feelings. Here we stood, in a beautiful forest. Tall trees were all around; it was a cloudless, blue sky; birds were singing, and there was a soft breeze. When thinking of the Holocaust and the various black and white images, it is hard to imagine that any day during the war was this beautiful while something so terrible was occurring. The tour guide brought dirt from Israel for the students to spread around in areas they felt connected to. Students wandered on their own, stopping to visit different graves, reading the memorials of the families and people who were buried there, intentionally placing sacred dirt upon the hallowed ground. Some students sat and reflected. Some walked hand in hand. Here, we prayed together and sang together. When it was time to leave, one student walked to the outskirts of the grounds, near the trees, and picked up trash left behind. In that trash was a song that someone had brought to sing.
I observed students consistently being present when intention was called upon, not by the adults, but by the moments themselves. I observed many students picking up trash throughout our visit, either in the city centers themselves or at the memorials we visited. I saw students supporting one another, guiding each other through challenging and spiritual times. I listened as students gave d’var Torah at dinner and connected it to the events of the trip. I listened to many Shabbat songs in which students lifted their voices (and sometimes stood on chairs), bringing ruach through music at the close of Shabbat. The impact of these moments is what will stay with me and certainly them for a lifetime.
Experiencing the Jewish Heritage Trip with these smart, talented, self-aware young adults was a gift that I never imagined being given. I do not take it for granted that I was asked to attend. I am thankful to the donors and the school for allowing me to go, and of course, I am grateful to my family, who supported me in being away for three weeks.
HBHA is not a factory education. There are few schools in this country where teachers and administrators can say to a graduating student, “I have known you since you were five.” When I reflect on the trip with fellow educators in the public school system, they marvel at the knowledge we have of the students, of the independence we have in educating each student to meet their individual needs, and the support we have from the families as we differentiate and problem-solve together. With each story I tell, I experience the magic of HBHA all over again.
Stories of Spain
March 29, 2026
Though the Jewish Heritage Trip was originally set to include Bulgaria and Israel, unforeseen travel challenges took the group in a different direction. As they did in Prague, our faculty reimagined the final leg of the journey in Spain with care and intention. What unfolded was not a substitute, but a continuation — another chapter in the students’ journey of learning, discovery, and connection to Jewish history.
The group arrived in Madrid early in the morning and headed from the airport to a park built on the grounds of a former royal palace.
After lunch, they spent time walking through the park and its gardens, where many of the trees were beginning to bloom. They concluded the day with a brief bus tour, some free time, and dinner at a kosher steakhouse.
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The next day brought them into the center of Madrid, where they walked for miles through the city’s streets, encountering both Spanish culture and Jewish history along the way. They learned about Ángel Sanz Briz, who saved thousands of Jews during the Holocaust, and stood before memorials honoring those who were lost.
They also experienced the rhythm of the city itself, stopping in gardens near a castle for lunch, taking in sweeping views near the ancient Templo de Debod, and even stepping into the world of soccer with a visit to Real Madrid’s Stadium.
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That evening included dinner of kosher pizza and risotto, followed by a visit to the Comunidad Judía de Madrid. There, students saw a 19th-century Sephardic Torah scroll and learned about the growth of the Jewish community in Madrid after Francisco Franco's rule.
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While in Madrid, twins and alumni Avi & Illy ‘23 Hammer connected with current students Gabby S. and Naftali T. for a little HBHA reunion! Avi is spending a semester abroad, and Illy was visiting him over spring break, making for an unexpected opportunity to see their fellow Rams in Spain.
From Madrid, the group traveled by train to Barcelona, beginning their time with a bus tour that ended at a panoramic lookout point, where they stopped for lunch.
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After taking in sweeping views of the city and the Mediterranean coastline, the group walked onto the beach and dipped their feet into the cold water.
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That evening, the group headed to Chabad Barcelona for Shabbat. There, they experienced a Sephardic-style service that was unfamiliar to many, yet deeply meaningful.
Junior Shai F. shared:
“It was a different experience because I have never been to a Sephardi shul… I wasn’t familiar with a lot of things they were doing, but it was a good experience. We were really experiencing Jewish culture.”
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Saturday morning’s Shabbat at Chabad Barcelona was filled with singing, reflection, and connection. Students led, participated, and brought their own energy into the space — so much so that other visitors commented on the visible sense of ruach the group carried with them.
After lunch, the students spent time outside before returning to Chabad for Havdalah.
The next day, the group visited Casa Batlló, where they explored the work of Antoni Gaudí. His architecture, filled with symbolism, storytelling, and intricate design, offered a different kind of lens on how culture and narrative are preserved and communicated across generations.
During their time in Barcelona, the group walked through the Gothic Quarter and into the historic Jewish Quarter, where they learned about the Jewish community that once lived there.
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Walking through the narrow streets of the old Jewish quarter, they learned about Nachmanides and the famous Disputation of Barcelona, where he defended Jewish belief in a high-stakes theological debate at the Catalan castle (pictured below). They also confronted the devastating reality of the 1391 massacres, which led to widespread destruction, forced conversions, and the eventual disappearance of Jewish life from the region.
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They then visited an 800-year-old, five-story house that had once belonged to a Jewish family and now serves as a cultural center. Once a month, the center hosts a Jewish music concert, and the group had the chance to listen and sing along to Sephardic music.
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They later traveled to Girona, often called the “mother city” of Jewish scholarship, where students visited the Museum of Jewish History, located on the site of a former synagogue and mikveh. The group learned about ongoing efforts to uncover and preserve Jewish history in the area. Artifacts discovered include a ketubah fragment, a seder plate, a haggadah, and a megillah.
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Six hundred years of history remain missing. And yet, the work of rediscovery continues.
In Toledo, students explored a city that was once home to a large and thriving Jewish population, with multiple yeshivot and synagogues. Today, only two synagogues remain, preserved as museums, offering a glimpse into what Jewish life there once looked like.
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The group concluded their visit to Toledo with a zip line over the Tagus River, a thrilling highlight and a memorable way to end their time in the city.
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Back in Madrid for their final night, students shared a kosher vegan dinner and spent time with representatives from the local Olami community.
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Over the course of the trip, students moved through multiple cities and centuries of Jewish history. Learning on-site, experiencing different traditions, and seeing firsthand how Jewish life has evolved and endured reinforced all they had studied in Jewish Studies classes at HBHA. Beyond the immersive education, students gained perspective, met people from different cultures, and explored Europe with confidence, empowering them to take future learning and travel opportunities into their own hands.
“As a senior, this trip has been an amazing experience involving all my Jewish learning. I feel grateful and proud of learning about the history of the Jewish people,” reflected Teddy Z.
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Preserved in Prague
March 24, 2026
After several intense and meaningful days in Poland, our Jewish Heritage Trip continued on to Prague, where Jewish history is not only remembered, but intentionally maintained throughout the city.
The group’s first day took them just outside Prague to Lidice, a village destroyed by the Nazis in retaliation for the assassination of a high-ranking official. Men were executed, women sent to concentration camps, and children either murdered at Chelmno or taken to be raised by German families.
But Lidice did not disappear. The Czech government, with support from around the world, rebuilt the village nearby, creating not just a memorial but a living community — a deliberate act of defiance against the Nazis’ attempt to erase an entire village from existence. Standing there, students were confronted with the scale of loss and inspired by the global effort to ensure that loss was not the final word.
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From there, they traveled to Terezin, a ghetto and transit camp through which more than 60,000 Jews passed. While many were eventually deported to Auschwitz and other extermination camps, Terezin also became a place of spiritual and cultural resistance. Prisoners created art, documented their experiences, and even composed and performed music. Students learned about the children’s opera Brundibár, which was performed multiple times (even for Nazi officials) and included the powerful line: “Every man must stand before G-d and account for his actions.”
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In Terezin, our students stepped into a hidden prayer room, also known as the “Secret Synagogue,” tucked away in what had once been a storage attic. Between 1942 and 1944, Jewish artist and prisoner Artur Berlinger covered the walls with murals and Hebrew texts.
In a space where Jews once gathered in secret, risking punishment to whisper those words, students sang Acheinu loudly and without fear.
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That evening, the group gathered at Chabad for dinner, marking a joyful contrast to the day’s heavy themes as they celebrated David’s birthday together.
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In Prague itself, students explored a city uniquely preserved. Unlike many other European centers of Jewish life, Prague’s synagogues and historic sites remain intact. Hitler intended to turn it into a “museum of an extinct race,” a chilling goal that ultimately resulted in the preservation of one of the most complete Jewish quarters in Europe.
Students walked through the Old-New Synagogue, the oldest active synagogue in Europe, long associated with the Maharal and the legend of the Golem.
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As they explored Prague’s Jewish Quarter, students saw how Jewish identity has been expressed and preserved over the centuries. One of the earliest known uses of the Star of David appears on a 1439 tombstone, a symbol of pride long before it was used as an identifying mark during the Holocaust. They also learned how other imposed markers, like the yellow hats Jews were once forced to wear, were later reclaimed and transformed into symbols of resilience and pride.
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Beyond these sites, students explored the vibrancy of Prague itself. They admired the city’s architecture, earning it the nickname “the city of spires.” They also learned a fun fact: the containers used to hold b’samim (spices) for Havdalah are often shaped like spires because, historically, the valuable spices were stored at the tops of these towers.
They also enjoyed the local cuisine and made a stop at the John Lennon Wall, adding their names to a colorful display of peace, expression, and freedom.
In Prague, students saw history preserved in stone, art, and tradition — synagogues that have stood for centuries, streets that carry stories of resilience, and symbols of identity reclaimed after persecution. Every step through the Jewish Quarter offered a vivid reminder that culture, Jewish identity, and community endure, even in the face of unimaginable loss.
Junior Sabra B. reflected:
“This trip is intense and stressful at times, but has been a lot of fun. I have been able to build stronger and closer relationships with other people. I feel more connected to my Jewish roots, and I am grateful to have had this experience outside the traditional classroom.”
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Bearing Witness in Poland
March 17, 2026
Over the past several days, our Jewish Heritage Trip group traveled through Poland, encountering a complex and deeply layered chapter of Jewish history.
The group visited Chełmno extermination camp, the first site of mass murder using gas trucks. Students learned how entire communities, including those from nearby towns, were sent there under the guise of relocation. Through a survivor’s testimony — a 13-year-old forced to sort through victims’ belongings — they were confronted with the human reality behind the history. The visit concluded with Kaddish and the singing of Eli Eli.
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From there, the group continued to Warsaw, once home to 350,000 Jews. Established in 1806, the Warsaw Jewish Cemetery is one of the largest Jewish cemeteries in the world. “It was sprawling,” Eric F. reflected. “It really illustrated how large our faith is.”
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That understanding deepened at the Warsaw Ghetto Monument at Mila 18, where they learned about the uprising and resistance. Sitting on the steps above a bunker where the leader of the Warsaw resistance hid, they considered not only what happened there, but how Jews responded with organization, courage, and defiance.
The journey through history continued at Majdanek concentration camp. Walking through preserved barracks, gas chambers, and crematoria, students encountered the physical reality of the camp.
“It put into perspective the number of people who died,” Eric F. said.
Others noticed something else: “People visited Majdanek like it was a museum… we have such a strong connection to this, and it is inconsequential to 99% of the world,” shared another student.
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In Łańcut, students stepped into an 18th-century synagogue that still stands despite having no Jewish community left.
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Legend says that when construction began in 1761, the rabbi came each day to bless every stone. Because of this, the building endured through time, even when the Nazis set it on fire. Local non-Jewish residents put out the flames, hoping to preserve it for the Jewish families they believed would return. None did.
Today, the synagogue is maintained by a non-Jewish caretaker who told the group, “The biggest miracle is that there are Jews here now.”
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“It’s beautiful—much bigger than I thought it would be,” Eliezer R. shared. “I’m in awe of the beauty a sanctuary can have,” added Dani G.
In Tarnów, once a vibrant shtetl, the group stood at the remains of the burned bimah of the synagogue and sang Aleinu together.
Nearby, in a forest where the children of Tarnów were murdered and buried in mass graves, students lit candles and read letters from home.
“Seeing the mass graves was jarring. You couldn’t see anything left. If we hadn’t had a tour guide, you would never have known it existed,” one student shared.
“Reading my parents’ letter was so hard at the mass grave,” shared another.
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After days spent learning about a dark time in our history, the group welcomed in the light of Shabbat in Kraków.
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Friday night services took place in a historic temple that stood through World War II after being used by the Nazis as a horse stable. While it is no longer an active synagogue due to the small remaining Jewish population, that evening it was filled with ruach and prayer. HBHA students, together with students from a Modern Orthodox school in England, brought energy and joy into the space.
“The other Jewish students from England were experiencing the same things as us,” shared a student. “It was nice to have that connection.”
The next morning at the Remuh Synagogue, built in 1558, the students walked in to find only five other Jewish men: two Israelis living in Poland, one Ukrainian refugee, and two Poles. HBHA students not only completed the minyan, but also helped lead the service.
Eliezer, Shai, Ethan, and Eric took active roles in the service, standing on the bimah, holding, wrapping, and reading Torah. In a place where Jewish life is small and fragile, our students became essential to sustaining it in that moment.
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During Shabbat, the group continued exploring Kraków. Lunch included cholent, pierogi, potato kugel, rice, salads, and challah. The students sang a niggun and other songs to build ruach.
As they walked through the city, the group passed through a large square in the Kraków ghetto, marked by many oversized chair sculptures. A memorial to Jews of Krakow who were murdered, each of the 70 chairs represents one thousand lives.
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After some shopping, dinner, and Havdalah, the students ended their Sunday by journaling about their experience.
For chaperone Sam, an HBHA alumnus who once took this trip himself, the perspective has shifted. “There is a significant difference between how I interacted with it as a student versus now as a teacher,” he shared. “I feel very protective of the students and how they are doing emotionally as we go through these experiences together.”
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The group concluded their time in Poland at Auschwitz & Birkenau, beginning the day with prayers under the camp’s entrance. As they moved through the site, they carried not just what they had learned, but how they had learned to approach it — with focus, questions, and a growing sense of responsibility.
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They continued from Birkenau into Auschwitz I, immersing themselves within the sites and listening to testimonials of survivors (read by their tour guide). The group eventually came upon Yad Vashem’s collection of 5 million names of those mercilessly murdered during the Holocaust. Students were able to touch the lists, looking for traces of their own families.
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At Auschwitz, Naama R. found her great-great-grandmother’s name in the records, connecting her family directly to the history around her.
“We talk too much about how they died; we need to remember how they lived,” their guide reminded them. “The acts of defiance, smuggling in tefillin, celebrating Chanukah… we must remember.”
That balance between memory and continuity, history and responsibility, continues to shape the journey as the group moves forward.
Walking Through History
March 12, 2026
Over the past several days, our Jewish Heritage Trip group explored Berlin and continued their journey across Europe, moving through places where Jewish history is woven directly into the landscape.
One of the first stops in Berlin was the “Block of Women” monument, which commemorates a powerful moment of resistance during the Nazi regime. When Jewish men and their children were arrested and separated from their non-Jewish wives, thousands of women gathered publicly to demand their release. For days, the growing crowd of women stood together in protest — and eventually, the men and children were released.
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While exploring Berlin, the group stopped at the Bundestag, Germany’s parliament building, formerly known as the Reichstag.
The students also saw the New Synagogue of Berlin, once one of the largest synagogues in the city, capable of holding nearly 2,000 people. After being damaged during the war, the synagogue was rebuilt and today stands as a symbol of the resilience and continuation of Jewish life in Berlin.
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That evening, the group had dinner at a local Chabad house. The room was full of singing, clapping, and excitement. The rabbi, who happened to be the brother of our own Rabbi Tiechtel, spoke about how meaningful it was to see young Jewish adults gathered in Berlin — a place where, not long ago, Jewish people had been driven out — and shared his joy in witnessing students bringing life into the space once denied to them.
The next day brought the group to Platform 17, a quiet train platform that once served as a departure point for tens of thousands of Jews deported from Berlin to ghettos and death camps across Europe. Today, the memorial is built directly into the tracks. Each steel plate is engraved with a date, the number of people deported, and the train’s destination.
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Some victims threw letters from the train windows as they were taken away, hoping someone might find them. Standing on the platform, students honored this act by writing letters to their loved ones.
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“Attending Platform 17 was a surreal experience to say the least. Absorbing our surroundings while understanding the significance of them to our history is a difficult task, but this location really allowed the overlap to begin,” shared senior Gabby S. “Our tour guide brought to our attention the impact and the reality of our ability to leave Platform 17 and move on with our trip — something all Jews brought there in 1941-45 never did. This was one of the most memorable and impactful experiences of the trip so far.”
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The group then traveled to the lakeside town of Wannsee. Despite its peaceful surroundings, the villa there was the site of the infamous Wannsee Conference, where Nazi officials formalized plans for the “Final Solution.” Inside, students toured the rooms where the decisions were made and saw firsthand how ordinary spaces were used to plan extraordinary atrocities.
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On Tuesday, the group made its way into Poland. Upon arriving in the city of Poznan, they visited a synagogue with a remarkable history. Before the Holocaust, the shul was the heart of the Jewish community. During the war, the Nazis repurposed the building as an indoor swimming pool, since it was too large to destroy. After the war, the small community (around 40 people) raised enough money to buy back their old synagogue and begin its restoration. Today, the building has been reclaimed and restored, with weekly Shabbat services held in the nearby community center.
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Junior Ruby S. reflected on the visit: “It showed me how important it is to value our heritage and to take back what is ours. These Jews did everything they could just so that they could preserve Jewish buildings for their small community.”
As the trip continues, the group is experiencing firsthand the resilience, dedication, and enduring spirit of Jewish communities across Europe. From monuments to synagogues, each stop offers a chance to connect with history, reflect on its lessons, and see how Jewish communities have preserved their heritage against incredible odds.
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Experiencing History in the South
March 26, 2026
The second half of the Civil Rights Trip took students from Birmingham to Memphis, continuing an immersive exploration of the Civil Rights Movement through site visits, service work, and conversations with those directly connected to this history.
Birmingham, AL
Students began in Birmingham at the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute, where exhibits and artifacts examined the realities of legal segregation in 20th-century America, grounding the group in the city’s historical context.
Before moving on, the group bid a sad farewell to chaperone Micah Margolies, who traveled home to Kansas City.
At their next stop, students continued a circle of service that began months earlier in Kansas City with work at Kanbe’s Market. Partnering with Birmingham Urban Ministries’ WE Garden program, they participated in gardening and pantry work while learning from program leader Stacie Person about cycles of poverty and systemic inequality, connecting their historical learning with its present-day impact.
“At WE Garden… we learned about food insecurity and the effect it has on communities. This ties into the Civil Rights Movement learning because food insecurity disproportionately affects African-American communities due to unequal access to resources and generational hardship,” freshman Rhys P. reflected. “Learning about this topic makes us realize the effects racism and slavery can still have on communities, even decades after the Civil Rights Movement.”
In the afternoon, the group traveled through Birmingham with historian Barry McNealy, visiting sites connected to the KKK and White Citizens’ Council bombings. During the bus tour, an unexpected moment brought history into the present when Barry spotted Jeff Drew, an actual participant in the Children’s March, where police released attack dogs and fire hoses on children peacefully protesting for desegregation of public spaces. Mr. Drew joined the group to share his firsthand experience and words of inspiration about standing up to injustice.
Reflecting on that encounter, sophomore Simon G. shared, “When Jeff Drew got onto our bus, it really changed my perspective on our trip, and the Civil Rights Movement didn’t feel so far away anymore. People who protested for their rights are still alive today and had personal connections with Dr. MLK.”
Students then walked through Kelly Ingram Park, where Barry McNealy connected the events of Birmingham to broader struggles for civil and human rights, including links to Jewish and Holocaust history, highlighting how different histories of oppression and resistance often intersect.
That evening, Head of School Annie Glickman surprised the group by joining them for Shabbat. Students participated in services and meals at Temple Beth El while spending the rest of Shabbat relaxing at the hotel. After a restful Shabbat and a special Havdalah together, the group headed to Breakout Birmingham for a series of escape room challenges, giving students a chance to collaborate, problem-solve, and simply enjoy time together after an intense few days of learning.
Montgomery, AL
On Sunday, the group traveled to Montgomery and spent the day at sites operated by the Equal Justice Initiative (EJI). Beginning at the Legacy Museum and continuing to the National Memorial for Peace and Justice, students engaged with the history of slavery, racial violence, and systemic discrimination in the United States. Here, Rabbi Elizabeth Bonney-Cohen joined the group, bringing fresh energy to the second half of the trip.
The last EJI site they visited was the Freedom Monument Sculpture Park, which they traveled to by boat along the Alabama River. The group walked through powerful large-scale sculptures by artists including Kwame Akoto-Bamfo and Kehinde Wiley, dedicated to remembering slavery and celebrating freedom.
Selma, AL, and Return to Montgomery
On Monday, students traveled to Selma, the site of the 1965 voting rights marches. There, they met Joyce O’Neal, a foot soldier of the movement, who shared her experiences participating in the fight for voting rights while she was the same age as our student participants are now.
Students then crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge, connecting their experience to their pre-trip learning about Freedom Summer and Rabbi Morris Margolies’ (formerly of Beth Shalom) brave participation in the Civil Rights Movement.
The group also visited Temple Mishkan Israel, where they grilled kosher hot dogs and met the two remaining members of the congregation, who taught the students about the synagogue’s 120-year history as “the Selma Temple.”
On the way back to Montgomery, students visited the Judge Frank M. Johnson Institute, touring a restored federal courtroom where major civil rights cases were decided. Executive Director Thomas Raines spoke about the impact of Judge Johnson’s rulings, and students met a current law clerk who shared how he integrates Jewish values into his legal career.
“Though it’s not always obvious, our [the Jewish people’s] ties to the Civil Rights Movement are and always have been there. Through brotherhood, shared frustrations, or shared pain. Jewish and African American… we still fight injustice today,” shared sophomore December V.
Notasulga and Tuskegee, AL
On Tuesday, the group visited the Shiloh-Rosenwald School in Notasulga, where former students from the 1950s and 60s shared how their lives were changed by the opportunity to receive an education. Our students learned how Julius Rosenwald’s philanthropy supported the construction of more than 5,000 schools for black students during segregation, providing access to education when it was otherwise denied.
As freshman Jaxson R. reflected, “They would not be where they are…without the building of this school during such a time when African Americans did not have equal rights to get a proper education.”
On their way out of Alabama, the group stopped at the Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site before continuing to Memphis, including a roadside lunch on the campus of Tuskegee Institute. After a five-hour drive to Memphis, the group enjoyed dinner at Beth Sholom Synagogue.
Memphis, TN, and Return to Kansas City
The final day of the trip brought students to the National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel, where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated on April 4, 1968. There, students traced the full narrative of African-American history, from the origins of slavery through Jim Crow, the Civil Rights Movement, Black Power movements, and beyond, bringing together the themes they had encountered throughout the trip.
The journey back to Kansas City included stops for meals, outdoor games, and time to unwind after an intensive week of travel and learning.
By the end of the trip, students had not only visited key historical sites but also engaged directly with the people, places, and ongoing issues connected to the Civil Rights Movement. The cumulative experience underscored how encountering history in person can deepen understanding and, in many cases, inspire a stronger sense of responsibility to stand up against injustice.
Tracing the Road to Justice
March 20, 2026
HBHA’s 9th and 10th graders have officially begun their Civil Rights Tour of the American South, a journey designed not just to study history, but to encounter it face-to-face, in the very places where it unfolded.
After months of preparation, students departed early Wednesday morning, beginning their journey by reciting the traveler’s prayer, led by JFS Chaplain and HBHA parent, Rabbi Yonatan Rudnick, before setting off from Kansas City through Arkansas and into Mississippi. Their first major stop was Little Rock Central High School. There, National Park Service Ranger Alex told stories about the Little Rock Nine, the nine black students who faced intense hostility when they integrated the school in 1957.
The stories weren’t just about the students themselves. Alex also talked about the people who risked their safety to support them — and the thousands who did nothing at all. The students weren’t just asked to think about that history, they were challenged to wrestle with it, to understand the cost of staying silent, and to consider what it means to stand up to hate today.
Freshman Lia F. reflected,
“Our visit to Central High School in Little Rock was both profound and empowering. I was surprised by the scale of the school, and it was deeply moving to stand on the same ground where history was made, rather than simply learning about it in class.”
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After absorbing the weight of Little Rock, the group hit the road for Cleveland, MS, where a lighter stop at the Grammy Museum gave everyone a chance to stretch, have some fun, and recharge. Students enjoyed exploring the history of American music through hands-on exhibits and interactive displays.
Thursday morning, Rosh Chodesh Nisan, started at Temple Adath Israel, a historic synagogue on the National Register of Historic Places. Students prayed, read Torah, and learned about the local Jewish community from Rabbi Scott Kramer and longtime congregant Barbara Livingston. The visit gave them a deeper understanding of the enduring presence of Jewish life in the area and the role of community in sustaining it.
Later that day, the group visited sites connected to the 1955 lynching of Emmett Till, murdered at only 14 years old–the same age as many of the students on this trip. In Ruleville, Money, and Sumner, they encountered a history that is difficult to process from a distance — and impossible to ignore up close.
Sophomore Eitan S. reflected:
“Being at the Emmett Till sites felt different than just hearing about a hate crime because I was there. I stood where he got tortured, sat in the courtroom where they argued for his innocence, and took pictures where his body was dragged out of a river… He wasn’t just a story I briefly heard about. He was an innocent person that was a victim of the evils of racism… Being there made me feel the significance of Till’s murder, and it definitely was an eye-opening experience.”
Moments like these are at the heart of the Civil Rights Tour. They are not easy, but they are essential. From the teenagers of the Little Rock Nine to 14-year-old Emmett Till, students are encountering a history shaped by people their own age. In Little Rock, they saw what it meant to stand up. In Mississippi, they saw the consequences when hatred went unchecked. These experiences challenge students to step into history, understand the choices people made and their consequences, and recognize that the actions young people take matter. Not someday, but now.