Teacher inspires students to raise money to rescue dogs

By KATHI MCFARLAND
Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, April 09, 2008

Dana Silbersweig wants to make a difference in her students' lives that goes beyond academics.

Silbersweig, 28, teaches math to sixth-graders at Christa McAuliffe Middle School in Boynton Beach. In February, she started the school's Animal Rescue Club. There are 100 students in the club, 40 of whom are in Silbersweig's classes.

Dana Silbersweig, a teacher at Christa McAuliffe Middle School, reaches down to pet a couple of small dogs that are up for adoption at the Tri County Humane Society in Boca Raton. She was on a tour of the facility with members of the school's Animal Rescue Club. The club raised $1,000 for the Tri County Humane Society from the sale of dog cookie treat bags on March 29 and from recent donations.

"I want to inspire them to rescue dogs, inspire them to make a difference," she said.

By early March, Animal Rescue Club members had collected $2,300 in their Dollars for Dogs fund-raising drive. The club is donating the entire amount to Manos por Patas (Hands for Paws), a nonprofit group that works to end the suffering of stray dogs in Puerto Rico.

The students decided to make their donation after reading "Escape from Dead Dog Beach," a story about Manos por Patas that was published in The Palm Beach Post on Feb. 13. The story revealed how these animals are neglected and often mistreated, sometimes falling victim to machete-wielding teenagers.

"When I read that story, I wanted to cry," Silbersweig said. "But I was at school and I couldn't cry there. If I had been at home, I would have cried."

The money raised by the Animal Rescue Club will help fly some of the dogs from Puerto Rico to South Florida to be adopted, she said.

Club members are seeing "real-life applications" of what they learn in the classroom, Silbersweig said.

For its next project, the club is planning a carnival on April 26. "We hope to raise a bunch of money," she said.

In addition to math, Silbersweig teaches her students the importance of saying please and thank you. "I teach my students manners," she said. "My kids respect me."

She also teaches them the importance of never buying a dog from a pet store, because so many of the animals are the products of puppy mills, dog-breeding organizations that often keep the animals in hellish conditions.

Silbersweig said she is always touched when she receives thank-you letters from former students. "It tears at my heart," she said.

Silbersweig, a native of Philadelphia, received her undergraduate degree in psychology from the University of Florida. She earned her master's degree in school counseling from Florida Atlantic University. She has lived in Florida since 1985, when her family moved here following her father's retirement.

She originally wanted to be a school counselor. But after taking her first teaching job five years ago, she discovered that she "loves being in the classroom."

She had always excelled at math, so becoming a math teacher was a natural fit. She taught at American Heritage School in Delray Beach for three years, and has been teaching at Christa McAuliffe for the past two years.

Silbersweig and her husband, Adam, live in Boynton Beach and will celebrate their third anniversary this summer. They have three "fur kids" — purebred Pekingese named Gizmo, Hubbell and Jack.

Silbersweig has had Gizmo since graduate school. She rescued the other two dogs. Hubbell was used for breeding in a puppy mill. Jack was born blind and later had one eye removed.

"They're just amazing dogs," Silbersweig said.