GOA Expands Arts Department

By Chava Herniter ‘23
Golda Och Academy’s arts department has grown bigger and better than ever with three new staff members. New art teacher Ms. Shapiro, music teacher Ms. Lynch and photography and drama teacher Mr. Yeshion will all be teaching classes in their respective subjects throughout the school year. 

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Ms. Shapiro has taught visual art for ten years with experience in all grade levels, although middle and high school are her favorites. Like any art teacher, she has many artistic hobbies, including painting, photography and embroidery, also enjoying reading, baking, traveling and dominating at game night.
Ms. Shapiro is immensely excited to work at GOA because “The arts department’s role at GOA is shifting a bit and I feel fortunate to be part of such a collaborative and supportive team.” Shapiro wants her class to be a space where students can practice problem solving, creative thinking and self-reflection. “Art skills are like any other discipline, be it academic, extracurricular, personal hobby, etc., in that skills need to be taught and practiced to improve,” Ms. Shapiro said. 
She believes anyone can become better at visual arts with enough patience and practice, and so her class is a space of support and fun. Ms. Shapiro also is currently advising several clubs, including the middle and high school art clubs and Artists Make Change, a club that helps students further progress in the art world and engage in artistic expression.
This is Ms. Lynch’s second year as a full-time teacher, and she has taught music in various capacities since high school. Besides loving all things musical, Ms. Lynch enjoys knitting, weaving, reading, writing and photography. She also loves the outdoors, especially, “when the leaves turn brilliant colors in autumn.”
Ms. Lynch enjoys the flexibility of the GOA curriculum and aims to incorporate Jewish texts and holidays into her classes, also helping out with the middle and high school choirs alongside Mr. Resmovits. 
“I hope that all my students come to think of themselves as musicians, even if they don’t consider music to be one of their main interests or talents,” says Ms. Lynch. “Music is so much a part of our daily lives that we all encounter and engage with it in some way – the more tools you have to discuss it and identify subtle details, the more meaningful those encounters can be.”
This is Mr. Yeshion’s first official year of being a teacher, and he has been educating students in the world of theater and opera for over ten years. A proud new father, Mr. Yeshion loves binging TV shows with his wife, daughter and little pooch, Alfie. He also loves singing and taking amazing photographs.
A major attraction of GOA for Mr. Yeshion is the wonderful Jewish community, along with the ability to teach his passions. His photography class offers exciting, unique projects, like scavenger hunts and a portrait workshop.  In his drama class, students engage in scene study and stage combat. Yeshion hopes that his students “will take on a greater sense of passion, hard work and dedication to the arts, which is extremely useful in all aspects of life.” This year, Yeshion is advising the Video club, where students have the opportunity to join in a creative and collaborative environment.
Many in the student body love the arts, and are excited to have even more opportunities and people to turn to for help in the arts department. These new members are continuously working together to create multimedia opportunities as well as enhance their separate classes, and all the students are excited to get to know them even more as time progresses.​