With the winter school break soon upon all families, it is time once again to reflect upon the remarkably successful manner in which the Jewish day schools adapted through the Covid pandemic. Of course, we dare not be too self-congratulatory, nor celebrate a situation that is not yet resolved. But we can, indeed, we should acknowledge the good that the entire communal Jewish day school enterprise has conferred upon so many children, their families, and truth be told too, the Jewish future.
Three key administrative and lay leaders at the Kellman Brown Academy in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, this week published an article on the eJewishPhilanthropy website explaining “Covid’s silver lining” for their small school. In illuminating their own situation, they also cast light upon the situation of day schools in the GTA and in other jurisdictions.
Much has already been written about the quick, effective pivoting by GTA day schools as a result of the pandemic. It is worthwhile, however, to read the experiences of other day schools. For they reinforce the positive steps and the deep, intrinsic excellence of the Jewish schools in the GTA.
We reproduce the authors’ concluding remarks.
“Like many other outstanding Jewish day schools, we have longed for an opportunity to share what we’re all about with families who, under normal circumstances, would never have considered a Jewish day school. The COVID pandemic has given us this unique opportunity to do so, and we continue to leave no stone unturned in our efforts to leverage this opportunity to strengthen our school. This is our moment – and we are determined not to let it pass us by.”
Newly enrolled families at our day schools are discovering what so many families already knew. The schools are animated by their respective missions which are variations on the same theme: the education of our children is the pathway to a thriving, inspiring, inclusive, tolerant, creative, respectful, tradition-honouring Jewish future.
The complete article is available at:
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Be safe. Be well.
Shabbat shalom.
GAJE, Dec. 18, 2020
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