Sights, Sounds and Smells

Since it’s Adar and our joy is supposed to increase throughout the month (really two, this year), I walked around the hallways this week to let my senses take in what was happening. I had the pleasure of seeing, hearing, and smelling a lot of wonderful things. The only way for me to share them with you is to describe a few and hope that you can let them embrace you the way they did for me.

I saw President Abraham Lincoln. Upon investigation, the person under that beard was a third grader doing a presentation about the great president. When I looked around the room, I saw that the room was filled with presidents...President Jefferson, President Wilson, and President Reagan, just to name a few.

I heard preschool students laughing and yelling for joy about finally being outside for recess. I was reminded that while I may be tired of the snow -- driving in it, shoveling it, seeing it falling from the sky -- our kids still love playing in it.

I smelled hamantaschen baking on Thursday night. Oh, they were heavenly, strawberry-filled deliciousness. Parent volunteers have excitedly come in to bake more than 2,000 hamantaschen for Mishloach Manot many nights over the past month. This Sunday morning is the final time to get yourself into the kitchen to bake (and taste one - yes I did) before Purim rolls around.

I heard the cheers of friends and family during the Girls’ game against Fuchs Mizrachi. We won, but it didn’t matter. The students were having fun.

I smelled the tasty lunch that our incredible kitchen staff put together despite the short morning on Tuesday. I am always amazed that they can make lunch for more than 330 people each day, and even more so with fewer minutes to do it.

I saw prospective parents looking excited about joining Schechter as they toured the building with Parent and Student Ambassadors. Help us grow our school by referring new families to Schechter. Wear Schechter and talk Schechter as you move through the Cleveland Jewish community. Don’t forget about the $1,000 tuition incentive for new recruits!

I heard the melodious tunes of Ma Tovu as our Lower School students davened together. Our first graders are eagerly preparing for their Kabbalat Siddur program and their excitement is building.

I smelled (and then tasted) delicious treats prepared by our ECC students. Our kindergarten students invited officers from the Pepper Pike Police Department and presented them with cupcakes to take back to the station as a thank you for all that they do to keep us safe.

At the end of last week, I heard the applause of our students as I put gold, silver, and bronze medals over the heads of our champion readers in each grade level. With over 1300 books read, it was clear that everyone went for the gold in our Read for Life program. Thank you to the incredible staff who gave of their time to make sure that this program was a success.

I will go into Shabbat “sensing” that it was another wonderful week here at Schechter.

Shabbat Shalom

Dr. Ari Yares

Out of the Comfort Zone

Put yourself in your child’s shoes. Think about teaching her to ride a bike (or if you haven’t had the pleasure of this yet, harken back to you as a child with your own parent). She allows you to let go because she knows that if she starts to fall, you will catch her, or at least pick her up and kiss the scrapes. You will encourage her to try again and to find the joy in riding that bike. She is safe.

All learning involves some form of risk. After all, you are attempting something new that you have never done before (otherwise it would not be learning). As teachers, it is our job to create an environment where students are willing to engage in risks. This means showing our support through appropriate encouragement and making sure that the risk falls within an acceptable range. The steps between learning concepts and skills need be just far enough apart that students stretch, but not so much that they fall on their faces.

As the educational leader of Schechter, I strive to enhance and develop this sort of environment. Every educator in the building shares the responsibility to provide our students with the opportunity to build positive relationships with adults who are supportive, have high expectations, and regularly communicate with them. Without these underpinnings, it becomes difficult to encourage student to make the right choices when it comes to making educational risks.

In the last few weeks, I have seen in our hallways and classrooms an abundance of this kind of healthy educational risk. Our seventh graders proudly and capably stood by their science fair projects while judges (in some cases, complete strangers to the students) asked them probing questions about their hypothesis, procedures, and conclusions. Yesterday morning, three fourth graders stood up in front of their classmates, teachers, and relatives to read directly from the Torah for the first time. And all week, the physical education staff have been trying out new team “sports”, including indoor bobsled teams and group cross country skiing (all on one pair of giant skis!). None seem easy even for the most athletically gifted children.

These are just a few examples of the way that the supportive environment at Schechter encourages students to take risks and step out of their comfort zone just a little bit more each time. Our educators are setting the stage for this learning to occur and will keep pushing our students to grow.

When I came to Schechter, it was already a warm, supportive environment. Having seen countless examples of our students’ development this year, I am incredibly excited and proud to be a part of continuing to help us thrive. The core of the risk-taking happens within our classrooms and I want to ensure that the teachers themselves have the support they need to facilitate our children's growth. Therefore, one of our next steps on this path is the creation of a new staff position for Schechter, the Director of Teaching and Learning. We are beginning a national search to find just the right candidate. As the search progresses, we will update you.

Make sure to check out this week’s Cleveland Jewish News’ Education Section for more great things going on at Schechter.

Shabbat Shalom,

Dr. Ari Yares

The First 100

The phrase “The First 100 Days” was coined by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933. He was referring to a session of Congress. Since then, the phrase has been co-opted by schools, government administrations, and business leaders to reflect on the first several months of a new period.

With a few extra days off for cold, the 100th day of Schechter has been a moving target. Barring any major snowfall, we will get there on Tuesday. That means that the year is more than half done. It means that our incredible 8th grade class will “soon” be leaving for their trip to Israel and then graduating. It means that our kindergarteners will fill the hallways with their wonderful projects. It also means that I have now passed the six month mark at Schechter.

As you know from talking with me and reading my other blog posts, one of my personal goals is to make the school more transparent. Parents and board members should have a solid understanding of where the school is and where we are headed.

So I want to share with you some of my goals for the year, and highlights of the progress that’s been made so far.

1. Develop a strategic vision for our school’s future. 

• Along with an ad hoc committee, we are building an initial school vision and capacity building proposals that will be vetted by the board of directors in the near future.
• We are working to build the school’s presence in the community by meeting and working collaboratively with area rabbis, school heads, and other agency executives.

2. Support a school culture that values accountability, professionalism, innovation, transparency, collaboration, and is positive.

• Weekly staff meetings are being held to collaborate on programming and building space use, for staff trainings, and division planning.
• A school-wide project map has been developed to track and organize work on programs and processes.
• A group of staff have begun training in design thinking, through the Day School Collaboration Network, to enable problem solving in a unique way on school-wide issues.
• Orli Rabkin (Schechter Class of 1991) is now our school’s alumni coordinator, working to maintain relationships with our alumni.
• Through the Shavuon and Tuesday update, we are keeping you informed about the incredible things happening here each week.
• Schechter is excited to now be partnering with JFSA to provide the school’s health services for a stronger program.

3. Fiscally strengthen our school.

• Enrollment for this year is now at 271, almost a 5% increase over last year.
• Next year, we are creating a five days per week, full-day program for two year olds.
• We have already raised more than 70% of the funds towards our fundraising goal of $1,000,000!
• Our Development Department is rolling out a corporate sponsorship plan, has plans for expanding designated giving, and is working with anonymous donors on the Parent Match (will you help us get to 85%?), and other programs.
• With the help of our new Coordinator of Special Projects, Purim Bash planning is well underway, honoring Michael Diamant and Cari Marderstein. Invitations have arrived in your mailboxes and we’re looking forward to an exciting night!
• We regularly meet with constituents to hear their ideas, learn their passions, and answer their questions.
• We requested, and received, a grant of $305,000 from the Federation’s Emergency Reserve Fund to assist with eliminating previously accumulated debt. Federation’s partnership and vote of confidence in the school is incredibly important.

4. Support and enhance our academic program.

• Each day, the administration connects with our students and teachers through classroom visits so we can better understand teaching and learning at Schechter.
• Implementation of the Common Core math curriculum has begun.
• The Middle School has implemented monthly Tikkun Olam Programs.
• The Reading Week program was expanded to the Read for Life - Go of the Gold program to encourage students to read more.
• Our school’s social-emotional curriculum has been updated to better support the needs of our students and to help them live a life of derech eretz (path of good living).

It’s been a busy 100 days (well, really six months) and I wouldn’t have it any other way. It’s important for me that you -- current parents, board members, alumni parents, donors, friends -- know where the school is headed. There are many details that make up each day as I try to reach and exceed my goals. But having them out there in a transparent way means that you can help me meet them.

Being that you’re getting this via email or reading it on a website, we’ve come a long way since FDR’s radio address of the first 100 days. May we continue to grow and develop.

Shabbat Shalom,

Dr. Ari Yares

Adar is Here!

Did you know that Joseph had 11 sisters? I didn't either, but the tour director of Nile Hero Cruises insisted on it on Thursday night at the Grades 4 & 5 Class Concert. A slight argument broke out on the cruise deck and quickly the sisters went back to being brothers with a fast costume change.

Silly? I hope so because today is the start of Adar I, the first of two months in the Jewish calendar dedicated to silliness. Our fifth grade play was the perfect kick off to a season where we are encouraged to increase our happiness. This is a tall order, particular this week in northeast Ohio with frigid temperatures and wintery gray skies.

Read for good news? This year we get an extra month to help us build up to Purim level happiness and silliness. Due to the complexities of keeping the lunar-based Jewish calendar in sync with the solar year, we add a full month into the calendar to make this a leap year. Think of Adar I as a month long February 29 that occurs seven out of every nineteen years instead of every four years. Confused? Don't worry. Just know that these calculations keep Passover from being a winter holiday.

Being marbim b’simcha (increasing our happiness) is just one of the mitzvot that we focus on as we prepare for Purim (which won’t happen until Adar II, so don’t worry if you haven’t finalized your costumes yet). In addition to hearing the Megillah read, we give two different kinds of gifts. The first, matanot l’evyonim, are gifts to those in need. Through these gifts, we enable others to approach Purim with similar joy to us. You will be hearing more from us in the next few weeks on how to join Kehillat Schechter in giving matanot l’evyonim.

The other kind of gift are mishloach manot (gift baskets). We have a tradition here at Schechter (which I am looking forward to joining) of giving every family baskets of treats. In the past, we have purchased hamantaschen for these. But no longer.

Starting this Sunday at 9 AM, you and you and you are invited to come roll out some dough, fill it, pinch the corners, and bake tasty hamantaschen. We’ll freeze them until it’s time to put those Mishloach Manot together and they will be delicious. Come. Roll. Learn. And even play a little bingo! Watch your emails next week for a link for how to order these fabulous mishloach manot.

There are no mitzvot that specifically say we are required to attend a Purim Bash, but it sure does sound like a great way to increase our happiness. If you haven’t already, mark your calendar for the Purim Bash on Saturday night, March 8. Invitations will be in your mailbox next week. A night of drinks, music, and even me playing basketball...I’ll tell you more as we get further into Adar!

For now, go do something silly and remember to smile.

Shabbat Shalom and Chodesh Tov (Happy Adar)!

Dr. Ari Yares

A Poem

Recently, a friend passed along a free-verse poem from an old friend of mine entitled “What Rabbis Do (in 9 hours).” Rabbi Creditor’s poem was a glimpse into his daily life as a congregational rabbi without just being a run-through of the events scheduled in his calendar. In his terse phrasing, the intensity of his day came through as well as his passion for his work as a congregational rabbi in California.

One of the techniques that we use in both teaching art and writing is to ask students to try expressing themselves in the style of a particular artist or writer or to try a specific technique that has been shared with them. This approach broadens the tools that the student has for self-expression and brings them closer to developing their own personal style for writing or for art.

With that in mind, I wrote my own version of Rabbi Creditor’s poem that highlighted a day earlier this year:

Explore recruitment strategies with parent ambassadors. Learn about an opportunity to improve a relationship. Consult with staff, draft letter to parent, review my goals, and plan for the future. Discuss admissions with a consultant. Wave to the 2's class as they leave the school. Lunch with Conservative rabbis and tour the kitchen in support of kashrut. Answer a reporter and a few e-mails. Wander through classrooms and converse in Hebrew. Discuss collaboration and what we should do. Chat with an alumni parent. Share with the staff our updated crisis plans (don't panic!). Encourage the alumni dialathon. Approve the Tuesday Update and run out the door. Home for a few and then back out again. Schmooze with JFSA board members and promote our school. Breathe, cuddle with the baby, and then e-mail again.

I am reasonably sure that I do not have a future career in poetry awaiting me, but the act of self-expression and, perhaps more importantly, the opportunity to be reflective was incredibly powerful.

Shabbat Shalom,

Dr. Ari Yares

Head of School

So You Want to Save $1,000?

Let’s be honest. A thousand dollars is a lot of money. If you had the opportunity to put a thousand dollars in your pocket, you probably would (as long as it was legal and ethical, of course). For example, if you could talk about your kids and post on Facebook in order to make a thousand dollars, wouldn’t you?

This is the heart of our referral incentive program. Engage your friends, neighbors, acquaintances, or the people that you are standing in line next to at Target about Gross Schechter Day School. Talk about the incredible experience that your children (and you) are having in preschool, lower school, or middle school. Help them become excited about seeing their children as part of Schechter.

Still not convinced that you could do this? Try these facts out:

Schechter is home to award winning teachers. Just last week, Science teacher Matt Norton was awarded the Jewish Education Center of Cleveland’s Steiger Family Education Grant recognizing his commitment to student learning. Just ask his students about how incredible a science class with Mr. Norton can be.

Students at Schechter have read over 600 books as part of the Read for Life - Go for the Gold program. This is in addition to any assigned reading that they might be doing. Parents are talking about their children gravitating towards books instead of away.

After our recent PJ Havdallah event, one middle schooler who’s younger buddy needed to leave early commented that he did not have a chance to say good-bye. Back at school on Monday, the middle schooler went on the hunt to find his younger companion for a proper good-bye hug. Another middle schooler at the event, seeing that a preschooler’s buddy wasn’t in attendance, quickly adopted the younger child and kept her by her side throughout the night. Real life mensches.

Beginning next year, children ages 18 months and up (by September 30) are welcome to be part of the 2's class, which will be up to five full days (another new change!).

Lots of opportunities are coming up to get new families recruited to Schechter and you can be the source of the referral and earn $1,000 tuition credit when the new family enrolls.

Our Science Spectacular Playdate last year was a huge success, with at least three new families claiming that was what sold them on the school. The more people we have here on February 9, 10-11:30 AM, the more people there will be to enjoy Mr. Norton's wonders.

In case you can’t make it in February (or just want another terrific activity on a Sunday morning), we’ll be hosting Creation Celebration Little Artist Workshop on March 9, 10-11:30 AM, including a costume exchange for kids up to grade 5. More details coming soon.

Still feeling a little hesitant? Need some more help? We're here to help you practice! Come to the Parent Training on Tuesday night, January 21 at 8:00 PM in the Media Center.

Shabbat Shalom,

Dr. Ari Yares

Head of School

Time Keeps on Slippin'

I have a confession to make. I didn’t make it to midnight on Dec. 31. Exhausted from travelling back from the west coast (yes, it was much warmer), we did not even notice the clock slowly creeping towards midnight. My children, on the other hand, were very interested in staying awake until the ball dropped in New York marking the start of a new year. After some explaining and quick parental talking, both girls were convinced to head upstairs to bed (Gilad did not have an opinion on this).

My girls insistence on marking this transition has made me think about how we mark transitions in time. Unless we actively do something, time as the the Steve Miller Band song goes, “keeps on slippin', into the future.” We do not notice its slow passage by us and we can often end up surprised that the day is over. Time itself is constant; it is our observation of it that seems to make it move slower (when you are waiting on line at the store) or faster (enjoying a night out).

I’m sure that many of our New Year’s Resolutions (the ones that don’t have to do with losing weight, exercising more, or eating better) have to deal with how we use our time. We may have promised to spend more time with family, more time on hobbies, and less time worrying about things that we do not have any control over.The one thing that we can't do, even if we really want to, is make more time. Time is not like money. It cannot be banked or saved and once it is gone, it is gone for good.

So how do we do a better job of marking time and making ourselves more aware of it?

One simple way is to recognize that some time is different than other time. It's not that there are different kinds of seconds or minutes, but rather we need to recognize that there are different ways in which we use our time and marking those differences can help make all of our time feel more significant.

The best way that I have ever experienced this is not with a giant ball dropping in New York City which happens only once a year. It is rather through the experience of Havdallah each and every week at the close of Shabbat. This incredible sensory experience draws you in and helps mark the difference between the sacred time of Shabbat and the busyness of the rest of the week. The flickering light of a candle, the smell of the spice box, the sweet taste of the wine, and the sounds of singing each contribute to an immersive experience that can touch the soul.

For those of you in Preschool or Middle School, join us tomorrow night from 6:30-7:30 PM to mark the end of Shabbat and the beginning of another week. The Kehillat Schechter Committee and Middle School Student Government have jointly planned a fun evening of buddies in their pj’s, making crafts, singing Havdallah and other songs, reading books, and enjoying milk and cookies. The Middle School students will then have the option to stay for a movie night in the gym. These sound like wonderful ways to mark the transition this week!

Shabbat Shalom,

Dr. Ari Yares

Head of School