By the autumn of 1937 a new school was born. The Ramaz Academy first
opened its doors to six children.
Among these students was Rabbi Joseph H. Lookstein's son, Haskel Lookstein.
Classes met in the vestry rooms of Congregation Kehilath Jeshurun at 117
East 85th Street. There were altogether two teachers: one taught general
studies, the other religious studies.
Students began to enroll. By the end of that first year there was a total
of twenty students in grades one, two and three. Word of mouth, advertisements
and, ultimately, the ability of the Ramaz School to confound the pessimists
and sustain itself, brought increasing numbers of applicants.
As
darkness fell upon European Jewry, the light of European children began
to fill the halls of the Ramaz School. Jews from France, Belgium, Germany
and Holland were flocking to the United States. Their children came from
the Lycées of France, the Tachkemoni of Antwerp and a myriad of other
schools.
The refugee population especially concerned Rabbi Joseph H. Lookstein.
It was apparent to him that if the Ramaz School did not exist, these
children would have difficulty finding a suitable Jewish school. By 1938,
in order to ensure adequate space for these students, the Ramaz School
rented several rooms in the Central Jewish Institute building at 125
East 85th Street. Seventy-one boys and girls enrolled, creating the need
to lease the entire building as the school's new quarters.
The Ramaz School was becoming widely recognized as an institution known
for its academic excellence. The Teacher's Institute of Yeshiva University
began sending student teachers to observe and fulfill their student-teaching
requirements. In 1942, the school received its provisional charter from
the Board of Regents of the State of New York. Enrollment by this time
had risen to one hundred and twenty students.
The
roots had taken well. In 1943, the Ramaz School graduated its first elementary
school class, consisting of five students. Progress was rapid. By 1945,
to accommodate the new high school population, Congregation Kehilath Jeshurun
purchased the building they had been leasing.
Enrollment continued to increase, and the new high school attracted a
diverse group of students. In 1948, after the establishment of the State
of Israel, the children of Israeli diplomats who were on special missions
began enrolling at the Ramaz School.
Recognizing the academic excellence and integrity of the new school,
the State Board of Regents awarded the Ramaz School an Absolute
Charter in 1950. With the support of the community and of the Ramaz Parents
Council, another building was acquired at 22 East 82nd Street, to be
used exclusively for the high school.
