Friday Letter - December 7, 2012

When asked about the origin and meaning behind the holiday of Hanukkah, most people will reflect on either the victory of the Maccabees over the Syrian-Greeks or the miracle of the oil lasting for eight days. Setting aside that the story of the miracle may have been a fabrication of the Rabbis to downplay the military victory, both of these origin stories only briefly touch on the reason for the name of the holiday.

Hanukkah means dedication. In the case of the holiday, it was more of a re-dedication, as the Maccabees purified the Temple in Jerusalem to make it fit for worship following its desecration by the forces of Antiochus. The military victory occurred to allow the Maccabees to liberate the Temple and the story of the oil stems from the lighting of Temple’s menorah as part of the re-dedication efforts.

It’s fitting then that our school calendar at this time of year brings with it several opportunities for our students to also engage in re-dedication to their academic studies. Report cards have been issued in the high school and were mailed today in the middle school. Parent conferences kicked off this week with the first round of high school conferences and will continue over the next two weeks for both divisions.

Report cards and conferences offer an opportunity for parents and students to have conversations about student learning. Students can take stock of their efforts and see where they need to make adjustments or change strategies. They can feel reinforced that their hard work is paying off or realize that they need to reach out for the many supports available at school.

So, this Hanukkah, rather than starting planning for your New Year’s resolutions and what new things you want to do, think about what you want to re-dedicate yourself to.

Shabbat Shalom v’Chag Urim Same’ach!

Fire, Fire!

Fire drills are one of those necessary evils of school administration. In the jurisdictions that I've worked, they have been legally required and it can be a struggle to squeeze the appropriate number in each school year.

It's not that I'm opposed to having the drills or the opportunity for a little fresh air that goes along with them. They are important. In a school, you have to have a measure of fluency with your emergency preparedness plans. With so many moving parts (read this as students, parents, and faculty), the potential for the unscheduled to occur is more probable than we want to think. It's the scheduling of the drills that drives me nuts.

I've been responsible for coordinating fire drills over the last five years in the two schools that I've been an administrator. Here's a short list of the factors that I've had to contend with when wanting to put a fire drill on the schedule.

• Transitions between periods
• Lunch time
• Dismissal
• Arrival
• Nap time
• Tests
• The day of the week or period of the last drill
• Admissions testing
• Donor meetings
• When in the period the drills scheduled for
• PE classes
• Special programs

Plus, of course, the weather. Is it any wonder why scheduling fire drills can drive me crazy?

Yet, somehow, I do get them scheduled. And having once worked in a school where there was a fire, they are important. Looking ahead to getting the rest of this year's fire drills scheduled, I'm thinking about how to do they smarter.

One thought continually comes to mind after a drill. We constantly evacuate the building using all available exits. But, if we can get through all of the hallways to all of their stairwells, where is the fire? This may be a bit sadistic, but I'm thinking for my next fire drill to have a staff member where a big red and yellow sign that says, "Hi, I'm the fire." and block off that exit. I wonder what the reaction will be.

Are there more ways to make fire drills more effective training tools? And how do we overcome the reluctance of some staff to accept this necessary interruption to the school day? How do you convey to students the seriousness of the drill? How do you improve performance from drill to drill?

Friday Letter - November 30, 2012

One of my first introductions to life at the Upper School was a phenomenon known as being “Paw Printed.” Thinking back, I’m not sure if I had even stepped foot on the campus as the incoming Upper School Principal when I received an e-mail from a student-reporter asking to interview me for the high school newspaper, Paw Print. We e-mailed back and forth a few times and made arrangements to speak at my next visit. She asked me a variety of questions about my reasons for coming to the Schechter School of Long Island, my background, and my thoughts on education. In other words, I was “Paw Printed.”

Since then, I’ve been “Paw Printed” several more times, and I am sure that there will be more.
In the past week, I’ve been approached by student-reporters from each of the school’s news publications, Paw Print, Paw Print Now, and News from the Middle, the middle school paper.  Our student reporters are diligent, inquisitive, and respectful when they are out “on the beat.” And, as I learned from my first experience with Paw Print, persistent.

Student journalism is an incredible learning experience for our students. With the support of Paw Print and Paw Print Now advisor, high school English teacher Shawn Thorgersen, and News from the Middle advisor, middle school English teacher, Kayla Motroni, students have been organizing coverage of school events and thinking about issues of concern to students with the goal of creating a quality publication that engages its readers. Students, particularly our reporters for the Paw Print Now daily news blog, are learning about deadlines and figuring out what is actually newsworthy. And, of course, they are learning about writing as a journalist.

So, the next time that you are in the building for a program, don’t be surprised to be approached by a student with some probing questions about life at Schechter. After all, you could be the next person to be “Paw Printed.”

Shabbat Shalom!

It's Everywhere or at Least It Should Be

Over the last few days, I've found myself trying to decide if the to do list app that I was using was the right fit for me. I knew that I needed one. I've been using task lists in various forms since high school and moved to electronic ones with a Sharp Wizard and then my Palm Pilot. With the often frenetic pace of work and home (welcome to life with two preschoolers), a task list helps keep me focused on what needs to be done and reminds me of the important things that need to happen. The behaviorist in me also recognizes that checking off each item in the list as the day progresses is doing a good job of reinforcing my behavior. In other words, my task list is my own personal behavior modification program.

I spent some time thinking about the different features that I was looking for, e.g. dividing tasks into lists, reoccurring tasks. Then, it struck me. The most important feature that I was looking for had nothing to do with what the app, website, or program could do, but where I could access it. What I really wanted was ubiquity.

Technological ubiquity is the idea that you should be able to access your data and the tools that you use from a variety of platforms, e.g. computer, phone. Just being able to work with data in one of these places is often not adequate enough as we may not be willing to run back to our desks to enter information and, for example, there is a limit to how much information we want to enter into a mobile phone.

In my case, technological ubiquity means being able to see and edit my tasks on my Android phone, iPad, and desktop which meant needing a service that had Android and iOS apps as well as a website that I could access from my computer. Needing access through three different platforms probably made things complicated, but I wasn't about to run out to change my phone based upon a search for a task application.

For me, technological ubiquity has become a key factor in assessing a potential technology tool and one of the first questions that I will be asking is where can I use this. After this question of access is answered, then I can start looking at whether the feature set works for me.

Friday Letter - November 21, 2012

Each year that I have taken groups to Israel, we encourage the students to experience the trip through all of their chumshim (senses): sight, taste, touch, smell, and hearing. As we walk the land, we want them to experience the trip at this basic level and then begin to process the more complex thoughts and emotions churned up by a trip to Israel.

This week, I’ve been thinking a lot about using my senses as I’ve walked the halls of the Upper School. Close your eyes for just a moment and concentrate with me as I walk you through my sensory experience at school.

Touch - The feel of a diligently built bridge being taken apart in Sci-Tech to figure out why it failed. It is just as important to understand why something did not work as it is to get it working as these students learn the principles of engineering.

Taste - We shared cookies, donuts, and juice with our neighbors at St. Aidan’s at our second annual Thanksgiving celebration. We gathered the middle schools of both institutions together for an opportunity to reflect and appreciate all that we are thankful for this holiday. Students heard Father Kevin and Rabbi Josh talk about the things that they have taken for granted and now realize how important they are. Mrs. Joan Friedman Cohen organized a group of 6th and 7th graders on drums and recorders to teach the students a song and the St. Aidan’s choir performed.

Sight - The image of a coalition of Muslim and Jewish schools, synagogues and mosques
gathering together  at Hempstead Town Hall to present Hempstead Town Supervisor Kate Murray with blankets, warm coats and non-perishable food items that they have collected to donate to Hurricane Sandy victims. These items will be distributed by the Town of Hempstead to families in hard-hit communities throughout the Town, whose lives have been devastated by Hurricane Sandy, and many of whom are still unable to return to their homes.       

Hearing - Take an audio tour of many of the classes and other experiences that the Upper School students have had through Sounds of Schechter.

Of course, I have not left off the important sense of smell. Naturally, this week brings with it the smell of turkey roasting in the oven and all of the delicious smells of Thanksgiving. In these post-Sandy days, we have heightened our sense of gratitude towards our blessings. Take a look at what the 10th grade minyan thought about gratitude through the bracha מודים אנחנו לך in the עמידה. Here is a visual representation of their responses.

I wish you and your families a Happy Thanksgiving.

Shabbat Shalom!

Friday Letter - November 16, 2012

One of the joys of my being a school administrator is to get to observe incredible teaching and learning experiences that take place throughout the school day. Most often these experiences occur in the classroom, and this week was no exception. As I wandered from classroom to classroom, I saw students thinking hard about complex subjects and teachers passionately pushing students to challenge themselves just a little bit more.

In 8th grade Spanish, students were melding their knowledge of colors and clothes to describe themselves, their classmates, and the occasional celebrity. 10th grade geometry students carefully thought through the process of developing a proof based upon the postulates they had just learned. Peer editing and coaching from teachers guided the writing process in several classes as students sought to hone their writing skills. Bridges were being built, tested, and redesigned as Sci-Tech students brought design principles and their understanding of physics and materials together to build bridges out of paper and toothpicks.

Of course, not all of this learning took place inside the classrooms. In a meeting this week, our High School Student Government tackled the problem of cafeteria cleanliness by developing strategies to help ensure that our cafeteria and hallways remain clean after lunches are over. Elsewhere, Paw Print reporters and editors worked to prepare the next issue of our high school paper for publication. Middle Schoolers saw their signed “Roaring to Respect” posters placed throughout the building as a reminder that, in every setting of our school, we need to demonstrate respect for self, others, property, and learning.

This week, the students of the Upper School weren't the only ones learning in our building. It began with a community group gathering to study with staff from the Jewish Theological Seminary on Tuesday. This JTS Kollot group will be convening on our campus once a month, and we are delighted to host them.

Another group from outside the Upper School wandered into the building on Wednesday, and suddenly the halls seemed a bit more crowded than usual. The reason? The entire fifth grade had come to the Upper School for the kick-off of their transition to 6th grade. A well-organized scavenger hunt had teams of 5th and 7th graders roaming the building looking for clues and solving problems presented to them by Upper School staff members. For our next class of 6th graders, it was a first real look at the Williston Park campus as their next school. Our thanks to Sandi Swerdloff, the teachers, and the 7th grade for helping make this event possible.

With their parents in tow, the fifth graders once again visited in the evening for the Middle School Open House. While the fifth graders learned even more about the school from Student Activities Director Mike Hirsch, Athletic Director Kerry Dalton, Guidance Counselor Bonnie Cahn, and Rabbi Josh Rabin, the parents settled in for three different presentations from the Middle School faculty which covered many aspects of our curriculum. Thank you to Ms. Polen, Mr. Clarke, Ms. Stanton, Ms. Dubow, and Ms. Hiltzik for guiding the fifth grade parents through the many touchstones of the Middle School curriculum.

The truly amazing portion of the evening came as several of our 8th graders joined a panel of school staff and 8th grade parent, Robin Bensignor, for a question and answer panel. Without blinking an eye, our students fielded questions from the audience about middle school life and their own experiences. We are very proud of how well they presented themselves and the school.

It has clearly been a delight to be back in school for a full week of learning, teaching, and growing.

Shabbat Shalom!

Thank You, Sandy

With the start of this week, I have officially entered my post-Sandy life. A little more than a week ago, I was beginning think that the end of days was approaching or at least a recreation of the 10 plagues. After all, between the hurricane, the snow storm, the blackout, and then the gas shortage, life was feeling sort of bleak.

Or was it?

Yes, as a school principal, I was filled with anxiety over the lost instructional time and worrying about my students, their families, and the faculty. Could we open school? Should we open school?

Yes, we had been hit with a major disruption to learning and, in many ways, this week has felt like the first week of school all over again.

Yes, my kids' lives got turned upside down once more. As a father and a husband, I was worried about the potential damage to our home and concerned about when my daughters would experience normal life again.

When I look back, though, I have a different sort of feeling that seems to override the anxiety of the moment. It is a feeling of contentment and satisfaction with my lot in life. I've just had the opportunity to spend significant quality time with my daughters while we waited for the lights to turn back on. We read stories, played games, and generally enjoyed each other's company. We drew closer with new friends who truly demonstrated what it meant to engage in hachnasat orchim (welcoming guests) when they took us into their home during the hurricane. I learned about the power that our community has as I worked to facilitate a charging and respite center at our synagogue. I enjoyed sharing communal responsibility for meals, cleaning, and even child rearing with four families who had blended together during the storm and its aftermath as well as with the others who joined us for a meal or two. I gained a new found appreciation for the power that electricity has in my life and how for granted we take so many of the luxuries in our lives that's had previously thought of as necessities.

So, I'm going to say something that in the midst of the last two weeks that I thought I would never say, thank you Sandy. Thank you for pulling me closer to friends and family, thank you for showing me the beauty of  hachnasat orchim and the importance of community, and thank you for teaching me that things that I have taken for granted are really luxuries.