Rabbi Yonatan “Yoni” Olson is a third grade Judaic studies teacher at Ohr Chadash Academy in Baltimore, as well as a native Baltimorean. While he loves Ohr Chadash, he didn’t actually go there as a student — because it didn’t exist yet.
Instead, he attended the Talmudical Academy of Baltimore, and a now-defunct yeshiva that he said was replaced by his current employer.
“Years later, after I had been out of Baltimore, I came back and I investigated to see if OCA would be the place for me, and so far it has been great,” Olson said.
Olson majored in psychology at Yeshiva University in New York City, with his professional aspirations to help people. He didn’t know he wanted to be a teacher until one day when he realized that working with children was a passion.
“I never entertained being a congregational rabbi, although I did complete YU’s ordination program. Torah study is something I value very much, and I spent a lot of time doing it, but part of what drives me to be a teacher here in Judaic studies is because I want to share that Torah learning with my students,” Olson said.
In his role at Ohr Chadash, Olson gets to do just that. Judaic studies is the study of the Torah — Chumash, tefillah and anything else to do with Jewish liturgy. Each Friday, his classes examine the weekly parshah. When a holiday comes around, the classes focus on it and learn about the Torah through that context.
“There’s also a big focus at OCA in teaching the students how to reach Hebrew properly, which is an important skill. We make a very specific effort to teach all the nuances that come with being able to not only understand it, but to read it correctly and confidently,” Olson said. “[It’s important] that they’re able to do that because so much of what they’re going to need to do as functional Jewish adults is going to involve that.”
For some teachers, instructing 8- and 9-year-olds on material thousands of years old might be difficult. For Olson, the students’ willingness to learn makes it relatively straightforward.
“[They] embrace it. I think more of the issue that I have is making sure that I’m not teaching above them — that if I’m trying to explain something to them, that I explain it at a level that they’re able to understand,” he said. “I don’t usually have a problem with disagreements so much as, am I giving them something that is applicable? Is it understandable? Is it relatable? If I’m trying to explain it or go over a more abstract concept, then the problem becomes that I need to explain it in a way that’s relatable to them, because abstraction for a third grader isn’t second nature.”
For Olson, teaching at Ohr Chadash is also about improving the community that he grew up in and loves, as well. While he spent time in a yeshiva in Israel and at YU in New York, Baltimore has always beckoned him back home.
“It’s the community I grew up with. My parents, although they’re moving to Israel, live here now, and at the time we moved my sister lived here as well. So we definitely came back because there was family close by, but also because we really appreciated the Baltimore Jewish community and the schools and the [other] families. That really motivated us to come back,” Olson said.
Olson, a Pikesville resident, said that he will miss his parents when they move, but that he is excited to visit them in Israel when the appropriate time comes. For now, he and his wife and children will continue to soak up all there is to offer in the area. Olson said that spending time outside is his family’s favorite thing to do.
Olson feels so passionate about his work in part because of how great of a place Ohr Chadash Academy is.
“Teachers continue to collaborate with each other, it’s a growth environment for the teacher. On a regular basis, there’s professional development and on an even greater regular basis, teachers meet with their administrators and peers to work together to continue growing, to continue becoming better teachers,” Olson said. “That emphasis is such an asset, and I really think it makes a big difference in the classroom.”
