The return of the new school year is merely days away.
As anyone who has ever gone to school knows, one can never be totally ready to switch from summer days to school days. It takes a bit of time. But at the end of the day – that is, the last day of summer vacation – there is no avoiding it.
So, in preparation for the plunge into the deep end of the school year, GAJE wishes to share with readers an article that focuses squarely on Jewish day school. More specifically, it focuses on a new initiative, using new methods, in the Boston area aimed at bringing more families into the day school system.
Shira Goodman, the former CEO of Staples, and currently the vice chair of the Jim Joseph Foundation, wrote Breaking the enrollment paradox: a new approach to Jewish day schools. Published last month by eJPhilanthropy, the article describes Goodman’s involvement on the steering committee of the Lauder Impact Initiative (LII) operating at Schechter Boston for what she describes as a “bold experiment aimed at transforming the narrative and trajectory of Jewish day school enrollment.”
Goodman explains her involvement in the initiative because, along with Jewish camps, trips to Israel, youth groups and other related experiences, day school “has proven to deliver strong outcomes.” In a world where our children need to be able to live confidently and knowledgably as Jews, communities must try increasingly to steer young families to the institutions that foster strong Jewish self-perception and identity. And as a result, day schools must be strengthened and enhanced, where necessary, to enable them to receive as many children as their families enrol.
In the parlance of the past decade of the industrial, cyber-tech, and digital embrace of new ideas, the Schechter Boston steering committee of the LII is looking to inspire innovative ways in which schools can welcome and retain larger numbers of families and their children.
Goodman writes that the group’s work has led to two transformative strategies.
“The first focuses on relationships. LII-sponsored research has shown that to inspire prospective families, we need to shape their sense of identity and help them see themselves as day school families. We believe an effective way to do this is by building connections with current Schechter families, staff and other prospective families….
“Our second strategy doubles down on early childhood education. What better way to inspire young families and build community…?
Goodman’s enthusiasm about the initiative is manifest throughout the article and exuberantly shared. Especially gratifying for a reader in the GTA, where day school diversity and enrollment are perhaps more deeply rooted in the community, is the author’s overtly stated driving mission extolling day school education and recruiting more families to become day school families.
Her concluding words are a worthy resonance for our own purposes in the GTA and wherever Jews reside throughout the world in sufficiently large numbers.
“At its core, this initiative transcends enrollment numbers at day schools. It’s about reimagining possibilities when strong organizations, visionary funders and passionate leaders with diverse experience and expertise align around a shared vision. It’s about making courageous bets on the future of Jewish life and daring to do things differently.”
The Goodman article is available at:
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GAJE’s legal team will appear before the Court of Appeal at 10:00 on November 21, 2025 to argue that the Divisional Court was wrong to reverse Judge Papageorgiou’s decision and to then dismiss our application.
If you wish to contribute to GAJE’s lawsuit, please click here. Charitable receipts for donations for income tax purposes will be issued by Mizrachi Canada. Your donations will be used for the sole purpose of helping to underwrite the costs of the lawsuit. For further information, please contact Israel Mida at: imida1818@gmail.com
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We hope all children returning to their schools next week, enjoy a very good first day back.
Shabbat shalom. Am Yisrael Chai
Grassroots for Affordable Jewish Education (GAJE)
August 29, 2025
Grassroots for Affordable Jewish Education 