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Admissions FAQs

Admissions FAQS

What are the grades and ages of the students at Hannah Senesh?
How many students are enrolled?
Hannah Senesh starts in Kindergarten and goes all the way through the Eighth grade. The children range in age from 4 to 14 year. There can be up to 30 students in each grade and there are two class groupings per grade. There are 210 students enrolled at Hannah Senesh for the 2022-23 school year.

What are the school hours?
See current school hours by grade here.

Is there early morning drop-off?
Yes, children can be dropped off as early as 8:00am. There are supervised activities. Children are then escorted by a teacher to their class for the day.

Is there an afterschool program?
Yes. Afterschool programs run Monday through Thursday from 3:30-5:00pm and on Friday from 2:30 to 4:00pm or 1:30-3:00pm (depending on the time of dismissal). There are two afterschool sessions per year, September-January and January-June. There are options of different classes everyday by age.

Is there a lunch program? Where do children eat lunch?
Do children eat snacks throughout the day?

Students have the option to purchase a hot lunch from school (subject to change due to COVID) or are welcome to bring their own dairy or pareve lunches (no meat) to school. Hannah Senesh is not a nut-free school but if there is an allergy in a specific grade or class, certain tables and classrooms will be nut-free. All students have a designated snack time during the morning or are allowed to eat during or between classes. Snacks are not provided by the school.

What is the teacher to student ratio?
K-2nd– 1:8
3rd-4th-1:12
5th-8th– 1:14

Where is Hannah Senesh located?
Hannah Senesh is located in Carroll Gardens on Smith Street between 1st Place and 2nd Place. The F and G Carroll Street stop is located less than a block from the school.

Is there transportation to and from school?
There is a free bus service provided by New York City Department of Transportation. The routes are created in August based on student addresses. MetroCards are provided for students who live a certain distance from school and either opt out of the bus route or do not live near one of the preexisting bus routes. New bus routes can be formed based on the number of students living in a certain neighborhood and their interest in using a bus.

How does High School placement work at Hannah Senesh?
Where do students go for High School?

The Director of Outplacement facilitates the high school admissions process throughout 7th and 8th grade, meeting with families to explain the process and to discuss prospective high schools and next steps for individual students. The Director of Outplacement also coordinates teacher recommendations, report cards, and transcript delivery to high schools. You can view the high schools and colleges that Hannah Senesh graduates have attended here.

Are there sports teams for students interested in participating?
Yes, official sports teams start in 5th grade. Hannah Senesh offers both basketball and soccer. The soccer team is coed and the basketball teams are divided between boys and girls.

Are children assigned homework?
Judaic studies and general studies teachers coordinate homework so that children are not overwhelmed with homework. Homework is assigned four times a week for grades 1-8, there is no homework assigned for Kindergarten. Extensive homework is not assigned over weekends or holidays. First grade assigns approximately 10 minutes of homework a night. Ten more minutes are added to each subsequent grade. The middle school has between 60-90 minutes of homework each night.

How do parents communicate with their children’s teachers and receive updates from the school?
Newsletters are emailed out to the entire school every Tuesday morning with important information and upcoming events. Parents are encouraged to regularly check the Hannah Senesh website, Facebook page, and Instagram account for more updates and pictures. Teachers post frequently on classroom blogs and are in contact with the parents through email, phone calls, and in-person meetings. Teachers make every effort to respond to parent communications within 24 hours. The school administration is also easily accessible via email.

Are there opportunities for parents to become involved?
Parents are encouraged to get involved at the school and serve as volunteers on committees. Parents are frequently invited to visit classrooms and attend celebrations throughout the school year. Parents can volunteer in the classroom and at school events based on their interests and expertise. All parents are automatically part of the Parent Association, which offers many additional volunteer opportunities.

Is there a birthday cut-off for applicants?
Our birthday cut-off for applicants is December 31st, which means that children entering Kindergarten, must turn five on or before December 31st of that school year.

What is your application deadline?
Applications are accepted beginning in September through December 31. We accept rolling applications after that date. We encourage applicants to apply early in the process in order to have more options of dates to schedule visits and opportunities to get to know the school. Student visits start in November and run through January. 

Are any applicants given special consideration?
Yes, sibling applicants and the children of staff are given special consideration. As a community day school, we value keeping families together. It is important to us that the school is a good fit for each child and we take the application process for siblings and staff children as seriously as we would for any other applicant. Early notification is provided to sibling and staff families.

Do I need to submit an application fee?
Yes, there is a $100.00 processing fee.

Do parents/caregivers need to visit before applying?
We encourage all parents to complete an inquiry form before a tour. Parents are welcome to complete either the application or schedule a tour as the first step of the process. 

Do most children at Hannah Senesh live in Carroll Gardens?
No. Children at Hannah Senesh come from a range of neighborhoods throughout Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Queens.

Is there a school visit?
Yes! It is very important for students to have the opportunity to familiarize themselves with Hannah Senesh and for our staff to meet with our applicants. There is a different process for families who do not live close to New York City. Please email the Director of Admissions at admissions@hannahsenesh.org to inquire.

How do I apply?
Please spend some time looking through our admissions page. This will provide you with a detailed description of what is required.

I completed my application on time. When will I hear back from Senesh?
If you already completed your application, you will hear back from us on the dates determined by the Independent Schools Admissions Association of Greater New York (ISAAGNY)