Making (and Keeping) It Real

The ghosts come alive at NAJDS.

Don’t know about you, but I keep meeting people—tons of 'em—I previously knew only in the digital sense. People who were, until this lively conference, an amalgamation of blog posts, comments, tweets, instant messages, and emails are now nibbling greasy fried green tomatoes and knocking back the odd glass of Merlot with me here in Atlanta. It’s superb.

There’s The AVI CHAI Foundation’s Alicia Post!
Here comes Noah Hartman!
Make way for Jane Taubenfeld Cohen!

I dig NAJDS so much because it shows the importance of real-time, real-world networking. It cements the day school field’s sense of community.

And why is that important? What’s so great about this kind of Jewish-ed social cement?

Simple: The better you get to know the dedicated professionals in our field, the more seriously you can collaborate with them. The deep sense of the communal responsibility is essential to long-term sustainability.

It took a while, but we have finally learned to recognize our interdependence. No doubt about it: We must band together (in an NAJDS-sort-of way) to figure out how best to survive. More than that: we must get the whole Jewish world to understand that what schools produce is not just good, competent Jews but the people who will—one day soon—be their leaders.

So our suddenly real-life conversations are just the beginning. An inkling of what can, and should, be happening in the way we approach the daily business of Jewish day school. Let's pledge to keep these conversations going once we scurry back home (and recommence our virtual conversations).

But in the meantime...

Shalom, Lisa Colton!
Dr. Eliezer Jones: What’s up?
That you, Rabbi Scott Bolton? C'mere. Let’s talk!

Reactions to Eli talks

Eli talks

Allow presenter's “ideas loose in real and virtual landscapes,” is the premise behind the Eli talks according to Michael Berger of Avi Chai. Launched for the first time at this year's North American Jewish Day School Conference, approximately 100 audience members sat riveted as three presenters shared their insights.


Rabbi Michael Broyde, professor at Emory University, spoke about “Learning Law Young.” He took us through an exploration of the impact that teaching Jewish law in the younger years has upon our children. Broyde posed that learning to think about law changes the way one thinks about all areas of thought not just law. It teaches students how to resolve problems across disciplines and life in general. Broyde focused on methodological approaches learned through law such as how to think like a lawyer, analytic reasoning, obedience to law, and how to deal with competing approaches through compromise. By starting to teach Jewish law at a young age in Jewish Day Schools, our students have an advantage of being able to “Law Think.”

The next speaker, Dara Horn (an author), spoke of a children’s story which she used to read her child which transformed the way she understands the Jewish world and its thinking. “Doctor De Soto” by William Steig, helped Horn diagnose a Jewish problem. The problem, as she referred to it, is the “Eicha Problem,” one in which Jews have historically blamed themselves for all problems that befall them. In this model, the destruction of Zion was not a catastrophe but rather a tragedy, where the Jews self perception was that they had brought it upon themselves because of their own sins. The tendency of Jews, as Horn explains, is to believe that Anti-Semitism is our own fault. Why is it a responsibility for Jews to teach about Anti-Semitism, she poses. Shouldn’t non-Jews be responsible to educate against Anti-Semitism. Even with Israeli politics, Horn says regardless of which position we take, we blame ourselves. Terrorism either occurs because we are not being hard enough to crack down or because we are being too hard and this therefore causes more terrorism. Either way, we have framed the issue to be our fault. Horn suggests that we need a new theology where we stop blaming ourselves. Instead of running with the Eicha model where we constantly blame ourselves and our own action for our People’s suffering, we should go back to a Job model where we begin to realize how little we understand regarding cause and effect.

The final speaker was Rabbi Marc Baker, Head of Gann Academy, who spoke about "Jewish Educational Leadership with a Soul." He raised the question, why do we too often bifurcate "Jewish," "Educational," and "Leadership." Shouldn't each part help enhance and grow the others. Just as teaching is not just about what one teachers or how one teaches but also who that teacher is as a person, so too leadership is a profoundly moral and spiritual endeavor. Leadership is not just about the skills and capacities that one learns in a leadership training program. But rather, it is about leading from within. Baker questioned how intentional we are about allowing our Judaism to influence our leadership. In his school, he is implementing a program of religious purposefulness, not just with his students but with his whole school community. It is built upon three essential Mussar ideas: Middot - Inner Qualities/Soul Traits/Character Traits, Hitlamdut - reflective Practice (A Stance of Learning), and Bechira - Choice Points. If we want students to take on these values, first we need the adults to be on board. In this model, teachers are taking on the responsibility of their inner lives in order to become better teachers. When we focus on middot, it can inform how we approach problems that we encounter. Baker left us with the question, how do we reach "religiously purposeful leadership?" We need leaders who are willing to change themselves and are thereby, through their own self reflection, able to profoundly impact our world with Jewish values.


I certainly look forward to seeing future recordings of Eli talks and encourage everyone to check them out when they go live. It could be a great way to start one's day with a new thought provoking idea.

Does Data Really Matter?

When it comes to driving enrollment, tuition and impact at your day school, the answer is unequivocally-Yes.

Making data driven decisions definitely can make a difference, and Sacha Litman, Managing Director of Measuring Success offers the tools and quantitative analytics to help us improve excellence and managementat at our schools.

His session at the NAJDS conference Sunday entititled Driving Enrollment, Tuition and Impact by Improving Your Perceived Quality made the case that Word of Mouth (WOM) can work for or against a school-depending upon what is being said.  What are people saying?  Ask the right questions in a Parent Survey-and you'll find out.  Not the word on the street-but the real story. Here's how it can help.

STATS tell us that 60% of our day school inquiries come from WOM referrals and perceived quality is a main driver to WOM.  By collecting solid facts, we can see in black and white what people are really thinking about our schools and systematically understand our strengths and areas for improvement. By identifying factors in our schools that attract and retain families, we can focus on key areas that matter most and improve areas where parents aren't satisfied.

As Sacha expressed, "listening to your data is about alignment and driving to a goal.  We cannot swim in different directions". I'm sold. By setting goals and putting action steps in place towards those goals, we will improve the bottom line.  Data can help us make smarter decisions.

So what are you going to do to impact data collection at your school when you return to the office from the NAJDS conference?

Authenticity Is Key

Today is the day on which we honor Civil Rights Leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Today is also the second day of the North American Jewish Day School Conference. I was privileged to have the opportunity to participate in both the conference, and the SuLaM (Study-Leadership-Mentoring) Shabbaton that preceded the gathering of approximately 650 attendees from throughout the world.

During the Shabbaton, the concept of kedusha and how sacred space, sacred time, sacred place, and sacred living impact us in many different ways.

On a break between the end of the Shabbaton and the commencement of the conference, I had the privilege of visiting the Ebenezer Baptist Church Heritage Sanctuary, the birthplace of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and the memorial to Dr. King, which includes an eternal flame. A plaque at the eternal flame is inscribed with the following: “The Eternal Flame symbolizes the continuing effort to realize Dr. King’s ideals for the ‘Beloved Community’ which requires lasting personal commitment that cannot weaken when faced with obstacles.”

Having just participated in many learning sessions focusing on sacred space, which for many is the synagogue, I could not help but notice the significance of the eternal flame. In the synagogue, it is one of the focal points of the pulpit. And it was an engaging, captivating aspect of the somber yet enlightening memorial I visited yesterday. I had the pleasure of being joined by several of my SuLaM Cohort 4 members, including Judith Rose, shown here (on the left) with me.

Learning surrounds us, no matter where we are. The core values and similarities in our quest for living with sacred space, sacred practices and a continued quest for improvement and learning knows no boundaries of race or religion.

Respecting others is paramount.

Dr. King, whose dream for a world where civil rights were a given, was a remarkable man whose impact is impossible to measure. He was authentic, and true to his vision.

How does this impact me personally? In particular, there is one parallel that immediately came  to mind following my first session of this conference, which focused on the importance of customer service and striving for excellence. The session was titled The Nordstrom Way, The Hyatt Touch and Jewish Day Schools (facilitated by Arnold Zar Kessler and Pearl Kane).

Again, the message that authenticity is key is what stood out.

Finding humanity in one another, and ultimately showing respect, is a goal that we as educators, administrators, religious leaders, consultants and everyday people can only benefit from and should always strive to reach.

In closing, I plan to put the “Building Blocks of Customer Service” from my inaugural NAJDS Conference session,  to good use:  Conviction, Trust, Satisfaction, Loyalty, Goodwill, Commitment, Delight, and Experience. These qualities are essential for success.  

Tessa Rapoport and Tobi Kahn-The Inherent Creativity in Jewish Education

What an exciting start to our wonderful work together-over 650 leaders committed to the Jewish future through Jewish day schools. It has been a pleasure to be involved with the planning team for this historic occasion and learning from the remarkable educators who have brought their inspired vision to our collective experience. It is so appropriate that our keynote speakers reflect on the value of creativity in making the Jewish experience meaningful, as it is our task daily to think creatively about the future of Jewish education.

The charge of Tobi Kahn that we must actually see the context of our past in real life artifacts reminds me of my great teacher, Rabbi B. Barry Levy, who challenged us to understand that "the Bible does not exist in a vacuum," and that our task as students of Judaism is to understand the context in which Torah is relayed. And while that meant exploring the world of the ancient near east in which the early Israelites lived, it challenges us today as well to understand how we view Torah in the context of the world around us. That we cannot ignore the reality of a declining connection to the Jewish world and increasing gaps in Jewish knowledge in North America is a challenge to reinvent our institutions as relevant to the current landscape of the Jewish world. This is not a new challenge, simply a new landscape in which we all must work. And it takes creativity to continually reinvent Jewish education for its maximum efficacy.

As Nessa Rapoport says, what does it mean that we teach our students to value equally the opinions of our great teachers, whether their comments are 2000, 1000 or 50 years old. We as Jews view the world through a specific lens which colours our experience, as basically as our understanding of Creation impacts our view of the world. As she says, our students are each creating their own Jewish stories and need to be led along a personally meaningful path to find themselves in our intricate story. This is something we all understand as we try to connect with each student in the way which sparks the desire to seek a personal spiritual path. That is our holy task every day; may we all have the creative inspiration to dedicate ourselves to it despite the obstacles in our path.

Online Learning sessions at the North American Jewish Day School Conference

iPad? Check. MacBook? Check. Kodak Playsport? Check. Livescribe pen? Check. Alright, I am all packed and ready for the 2012 North American Jewish Day School Conference in Atlanta tomorrow. I just reviewed the many session choices and thought I would highlight the sessions focused on Online Learning. There are many focused on 21st century learning and educational technology as well, but below are the sessions focused solely on online and blended learning:

SUNDAY at 5:00pm in Georgia 13:

Disruptive Innovations in Instructional Technology: Things to Consider in a Blended Program
Russ Ballati and Rebecca Tamasini, Co-Founders, Alvo Institute
Blended learning has the potential to become the single greatest instructional innovation education has seen in hundreds of years. How will this instructional method disrupt, and forever change, how we think about instruction, staffing, grade levels, and school design? Participants learn to use the Alvo Institute’s research- based proprietary tools to assess pre-design readiness. Discover the critical design and implementation steps and practices, often overlooked, to think about in order to launch a great blended program.

MONDAY at 4:45pm in the Capital Ballroom (Afternoon Keynote):

Teaching in the Education Frontier: Exploring the Impact of Online Teaching and Learning
Kristin Kipp, Teacher, Jeffco’s 21st Century Virtual Academy
iNACOL Online Teacher of the Year Kristin Kipp considers how teaching in cyberspace could impact the ability of a teacher to work closely with individual students, help build a closer learning community, deepen student’s connections with content, prepare students for a 21st century world, impact our shared vision for day school excellence and expand horizons for reimagining schools.

7:30pm in Georgia 7 (Evening Events)

Jewish Education Project Reception
Learn about the JEP’s two new initiatives: DigitalJLearning Network, a partnership with The AVI CHAI Foundation and JESNA, offering funding to day schools in their work to create innovative, online education; Chiddush: A Coalition of Innovative Jewish Day Schools, a project to inspire and support collaborative innovation. Stop by our reception to learn more—and to register for a drawing to win a new iPad2 (drawing at 8:00 PM; winner must be present to win).

Tuesday at 9:00am in Savannah

21st Century Learning Environments
Michael Mino, Innovator-in-Residence
21st century Jewish education requires both physical and virtual spaces that are flexible, innovative environments capable of developing and supporting creativity and 21st century skills development in school and online. Learn how schools from K through 12 can leverage technology to create and build new learning environments that will support 21st century skills development. Gain an understanding of the rationale for learning environments that support 21st century education and explore examples, ideas and models for implementation at your school.

Enjoy the conference! Click here for the rest of the schedule.


This was cross posted at yuelearning.org