Mazal Tov to MTA sophomore Kovi Pahmer and junior Yehuda Snow, who are grand prize winners in the national Bronka Weintraub High School Bekius Program! Kovi Pahmer, of Passaic, came in first place in boys amud with a score of 99 and Yehuda Snow of Edison, tied for first place in boys daf with a score of 100.

Yeshiva University’s Bronka Weintraub High School Bekius Program provides students with the opportunity to advance their Gemara learning outside of the classroom. Each year, the program holds a competition to test the students’ knowledge, and this year saw record numbers of close to 500 students from 29 schools across North America participating. More than 200 of those students completed all five of the program’s tests. To prepare for the competition, each student can choose between doing the “Daf-a-Week” program, where they prepare half a masechta, or the “Amud-a-Week” program, where they prepare a full masechta over the course of the year. Students sign up to learn with a class or chevrusah throughout the year, utilizing materials provided on YUTorah, and take five challenging tests to display their knowledge on the material they have learned. For each test a student passes, they receive money towards the purchasing of seforim. The top three grand prize winners win up to $3,000. “We are incredibly proud of Kovi and Yehuda,” said Associate Principal Rabbi Shimon Schenker. “Their dedication to Torah learning both inside and outside the classroom is inspiring and we look forward to continuing to watch them grow and achieve more accomplishments in their learning.”