Akiba Hebrew Academy was founded in 1946 by Dr. Joseph Levitsky, and co-founded by Rabbi Simon Greenberg, Rabbi Elias Charry, and Dr. Leo L. Honor. The school was originally located at the YM & YWHA at Broad and Pine Streets in Center City, Philadelphia. The first year consisted of 20 boys and girls. The school graduated its first class of 14 students in 1951. After four years at that site, Akiba moved to the Har Zion Temple at 54th and Wynnefield Avenues, where it was located until 1958.
Merion, 1956-2008
In April 1956, Akiba purchased a estate on North Highland Avenue in Merion Station, on the Main Line for $105,000. The property had once been part of a large estate called "Ashdale," which had been built by William Simpson, a 19th-century insurance entrepreneur. After Simpson's death in 1909, his family broke up the estate, and the McMenamin family purchased a section on which they built a mansion that they named "Drake Linden Hall." After extensive renovations, the school dedicated its new foyer, classrooms, library, and science laboratory in December 1958. Student enrollment had grown to 290 in 1979. Following his retirement from professional basketball in Europe, Joe Bryant served as head coach of Akiba's varsity women's basketball team during the 1992–1993 season. His son, Kobe Bryant, went on to become an 18-time NBA All-Star and the 2008 NBA Most Valuable Player, was a freshman at Lower Merion High School and often met his father at the Akiba gym after practices. Akiba Hebrew Academy was originally named for Rabbi Akiba. The school was approached by the Perelman Family Foundation in 1999 and offered a $2.0 million donation on condition that the school change its name to honor the Perelman family. After vocal student objections, Akiba was compelled to decline the offer. In February 2007, the school accepted a gift of $5 million from The Barrack Foundation and renamed itself "Jack M. Barrack Hebrew Academy". The school was officially renamed on September 10, 2007 at the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia's Radnor Campus in Bryn Mawr. In September 2008, Akiba sold the property to the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia for $4 million. At the time of sale, the mansion measured, including additions made in the mid-1970s, the gym, and the "new" classrooms building. Kohelet Yeshiva High School purchased the mansion in 2010 and has since renovated it and the adjoining buildings.
Bryn Mawr, 2008-present
In July 2007, the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia announced the purchase of the campus of American College in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. The American College site is on Bryn Mawr Avenue in Radnor Township. The school inaugurated the new building with a "Hanukat HaBayit" on September 14, 2008 at which U.S. Congressman Joe Sestak addressed the crowd. Barrack dedicated a new multipurpose athletic field with artificial turf and high school soccer and lacrosse lines in September 2018. Following stints with the Philadelphia 76ers and Portland Trail Blazers as an executive, the school hired Ben Falk to serve as Barrack's boy's varsity basketball coach. He has coached the team since 2018. The Head of School is Mrs. Sharon P. Levin who has served in the position since 2011.
Notable alumni
David Agus - physician and New York Times bestselling author
