- Alumni Story
From an early age, Rivka Buchbinder (Heilicher ’12) knew she wanted to be an educator. Her mom was a teacher, and Rivka fondly remembers the connections she had with her teachers at Heilicher.
“My Heilicher teachers really inspired me to want to teach,” Rivka said. “I want to be able to connect with students on a personal level like they did. They always made learning fun and exciting."
From an early age, Rivka Buchbinder (Heilicher ’12) knew she wanted to be an educator. Her mom was a teacher, and Rivka fondly remembers the connections she had with her teachers at Heilicher.
“My Heilicher teachers really inspired me to want to teach,” Rivka said. “I want to be able to connect with students on a personal level like they did. They always made learning fun and exciting.”
As a college student in 2018, Rivka reconnected with Heilicher to do her fieldwork in the second-grade classroom with teachers Sheree Goldblatt and Crystal Reese. After that experience, Rivka knew she wanted to continue to work with the students in some capacity and got involved with the HaBonim after-school program.
Last spring, Rivka student-taught in Crystal’s second-grade class and graduated with an education degree from Augsburg University. When Heilicher’s School’s Out and HaBonim coordinator position became available, Rivka saw a great fit.
“I always felt comfortable at Heilicher because the school understands my religious needs and is always accommodating,” she said. “This school community shares my values.”
“I always knew, whether I was a student or staff, I would be taken care of. We work as an entire team where no one is left behind. Everyone jumps in to support in any way they can. I felt it as a student and now feel it as a staff member.”
Rivka learned this firsthand when she was faced with difficult times while a student at Heilicher. Rivka is a three-time cancer survivor; she was first diagnosed in seventh grade. The immense support she and her family felt from the Heilicher community is something she will never forget.
“When I got sick, everyone had my back and rallied around me,” Rivka recalled. “My friends at school weren’t just my classmates; they were my support system.”
She still keeps the cards that her seventh-grade classmates made for her that adorned her hospital room in Boston, where she spent three months in treatment. When she finally was able to return to school, she wore a wig with a hat because of hair loss. She still remembers walking into her classroom on her first day back and seeing her classmates in baseball caps to show their support. “I was surrounded by the love of the school,” she said.
Rivka is the first alum to join the staff in an educational role. Her return in a professional capacity was an easy decision. “You don’t think about how much your community means to you until you are in a real need,” she explained. “The Heilicher community shows up.”