As the local sponsor of the Award, the Chicago Foundation for Jewish Education (CFJE) is providing Mrs. Harris with a $1000 cash prize. Additionally, she will receive $1000 in professional development funds, half from the CFJE and half from the Harold Grinspoon Foundation and the Steinhardt Foundation for Jewish Life, in partnership with the Jewish Education Service of North America (JESNA). Mrs. Harris will also be invited to engage in a North American Community of Practice (CoP) established through the generosity of the funders. The CoP provides ongoing opportunities for Awards winners to participate in high-quality, ongoing professional development through webinars with a cadre of outstanding educational professionals.

“We are extremely proud of Debbie for this tremendous honor and accomplishment,” says Linda P. Foster, CEO/Head of School. “Debbie is a passionate and dedicated educator who is committed to bringing the best of technology into the classroom to enrich the learning experience of our students. She inspires both our faculty and our students to expand their skills and use their imagination and creativity safely and effectively. She is also a role model for both students and faculty through her participation in the Master of Arts in Jewish Professional Studies Program (MAJPS) at Spertus Institute of Chicago. In this program, she is part of a unique cohort of Schechter educators who are pursuing this degree to enhance their own education and to bring new professional skills to their work at Solomon Schechter.”

“Debbie serves as a member of our Sager Middle School leadership team where she is a valued colleague and person you can trust for an intelligent opinion, a helping hand, and support,” adds Sager Middle School Principal Holly Rosenberg. “The contributions she makes at all levels facilitate and enrich the growth of both our students and our faculty. She is an educator who displays belief in her students and colleagues and confidence that success will spring forth with dedication, perseverance, and commitment.”

Says Mrs. Harris, “I am profoundly grateful that I have found a career that is so gratifying and an employer that is so supportive of all I do to share my skills with our students, our faculty, and outside our school. I never want to leave the classroom — what I do is too rewarding. I want to continue to be part of the growing field of educational technology, always viewing it through the lens of a Jewish educator.

“Every day there are new technologies to explore and new conversations to have with educators I’ve never met,” adds Mrs. Harris. “Using Twitter and blogging, I’ve been able to expand my own skill set and share resources with other technology-using educators in Canada, Israel, Australia and all over the United States. It’s not unusual to answer my email during the day and find an email from a Jewish educator in New York who needs help making Wordles from Hebrew text. I blog regularly (www.museforjews.com) on the topic of integrating technology into Jewish education and am delighted that my posts help other Jewish educators explore the field. I see myself as a change agent in that regard, with a personal mission to teach others about what has worked for me in the classroom and to give them the confidence to try new ways of using technology.

“My own college education did not, of course, focus on these skills. In fact, I learned how to work with microfiche and create filmstrips – technology we’ve pretty much forgotten about today. But somewhere I learned how to learn, how to network with other educators, how to be a self-starter, how to take advantage of resources, and how to find my passion and nurture it. That is the gift I wish to give my students; to help them find their own points of entry into Judaic studies and to use the vast resources provided by the Internet and technology to explore it. My goal is to use technology to build the Jewish community of the 21st century.”

Debbie Harris joins Solomon Schechter educators Irene Sufrin, Zipporah Perlmutter, and Pnina Orbach, who are recent recipients of this prestigious Award.

In addition to receiving this Award, Mrs. Harris was recently accepted to the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) 2011 Conference, taking place on June 26-29 in Philadelphia, PA. AVI CHAI will be sponsoring Mrs. Harris’ participation in ISTE. She will also be going to Europe this summer with the Centropa organization, which interview Jews who have lived in central and eastern Europe since before the Shoah and puts their stories online. Centropa invited Mrs. Harris to be part of a contingent of 50 educators who will be traveling with them this summer.

Mrs. Harris has a BS in Education from Northwestern University and was recently accepted (through her participation in the MAJPS at Spertus) into the Masters Concentration in Israel program through the iCenter and Spertus. She is a a member of the International Society for Technology in Education, the Illinois Computing Educators (ICE) and the local ICE region. She is committed to professional development, both as a participant and a facilitator and presenter. She presented last month at the annual ICE conference on integrating technology into language arts, and often provides professional development workshops for her colleagues and other educators in the Chicago area.

She traveled to Los Angeles earlier this year to teach about educational technology to graduate students in the Rhea Hirsch School of Education of Hebrew Union College and was in Philadelphia over President’s Day in February to learn about using the Centropa.org website in teaching about Jewish history and the Shoah. She co-chaired the technology track for CAJE 33, was a key presenter in technology at CAJE 32, and has often presented for the Community Foundation for Jewish Education of Metropolitan Chicago.

“We commend Debbie and all of our faculty for their passion for teaching and their devotion to our students, as well as for their ability to instill in our students a love of learning and a commitment to Jewish life,” adds Linda Foster.

A class at Brooklyn’s East Midwood Hebrew Day School — Photo by Michael Datikash

It’s been a long time since the Conservative movement’s Solomon Schechter day schools — challenged by shrinking enrollment, competition from newer community day schools and Hebrew charter schools, and a denomination in demographic decline — have had an opportunity to celebrate.

But last Wednesday at the Jewish Theological Seminary, a light at the end of the tunnel came into view. Or more accurately, a bright red “rose compass” — a six-pointed red-and-pink logo meant to evoke both a Star of David and a compass — which was unveiled, along with a new name and marketing strategy.

The Solomon Schechter Day School Association, an umbrella for 49 schools, is becoming The Schechter Day School Network, with the tagline: “Engage The World.” And while “Solomon” has been dropped from the materials, the schools’ namesake — the Romania-born scholar-rabbi who discovered the Cairo Geniza, served as president of JTS and founded what is now the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism — will get new attention.

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The Solomon Schechter Day School Association – rebranded as the Schechter Day School Network – has announced the launch of a renewed sense of purpose as it embarks on a future that will further engage parents and alumni in Schechter students’ learning process and the overall Schechter experience and attract new enrollment.

Eleven Schechter schools in the Tri-State New York, New Jersey and Connecticut area formed a collaborative consortium to launch this new initiative honing in on the schools’ signature pedagogy: preparing students to engage the world. Along with developing its new identity, the association changed its name to the Schechter Day School Network.

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NEW YORK – The Solomon Schechter Day School Association – rebranded as the Schechter Day School Network – is proud to announce the launch of a renewed sense of purpose as it embarks on a future that will further engage parents and alumni in Schechter students’ learning process and the overall Schechter experience and attract new enrollment. With a history of quality education and critical inquiry inherent to Conservative Judaism, Schechter schools foster a commitment to lifelong learning and create an educational environment tailored to individual students’ needs that encourages students to discover their strengths and talents and become actively involved, invested Jewish citizens. At Schechter, children are educated holistically – academically, spiritually and emotionally – and prepared to become leaders in their own communities and advocates for Israel.

Eleven Schechter schools in the Tri-State area formed a collaborative consortium involving Schechter schools in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. They teamed up Wednesday to launch an initiative honing in on the schools’ signature pedagogy: preparing students to engage the world. Along with developing its new identity, the association changed its name to the Schechter Day School Network.

On Wednesday, association leaders gathered at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America to explain in greater detail Schechter’s exciting new focus to an audience of Schechter parents, alumni, board members, staff and faculty, friends in the field of Jewish education and supporting partnering agencies. From last night forward, the association will continue to introduce Schechter schools across the continent to this initiative.

“This exciting grassroots initiative is great for all the Schechter schools in the consortium,” said Dr. Elaine Cohen, executive of the Solomon Schechter Day School Association. “Though we’re launching our revitalized message and new branding in the Tri-State region, we invite Schechter schools across North America to join us in this project. The high quality work of the consortium demonstrates effective collaboration among various agencies including the Jewish Education Project, UJA-Federation of New York, United Synagogue and the Jewish Theological Seminary, and exemplifies a very positive partnership between the Schechter Association and its member schools. We are continuing the important work of revitalizing the essential principles of Conservative Judaism as we make our day schools ever more welcoming environments for a wide spectrum of families and their children.”

Elaine Suchow, a member of the Tri-State Consortium’s steering committee and director of development for Solomon Schechter School of Queens said, “After a long, comprehensive exploratory process, mah tovu – how good it is – that we can share one voice and one vision to benefit all Schechter schools collectively. Working together for the future of our children, we have learned, discovered and become strengthened. Welcome to Schechter.”

Rabbi Steven Wernick, chief executive officer and executive vice president of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, the school network’s parent organization, said the schools provide an integral foundation for many future Jewish and civic leaders.

“To be the people of the book has always meant that we value education,” Wernick said. “Jewish education, however, is more than just the acquisition of facts; it is also the acquisition of timeless values for sacred living. The Schechter Day School network continues to be a prime source for Jewish education at its very best. This branding initiative will go a long way in communicating that inspiration for a broader audience and will inspire many more to be meaningfully engaged in the highest forms of Jewish learning.”

The Schechter Day School Network is an association of Conservative-affiliated Jewish day schools spanning 19 states in the United States and two provinces in Canada. The Network operates under the umbrella of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism.

Download Press Release: Schechter Day Schools Reinvent Identity

Astronaut Charles Camarda leads sixth-grade Schechter students in a discussion about how to make a perfect space suit for visitors to Mars.
PHOTO COURTESY SSDS OF BERGEN COUNTY

Solomon Schechter Day School of Bergen County is having a “banner year,” says Shari Leventhal, president of the New Milford school.

… Among its most successful new initiatives is the expert eyewitnesses and role models program, said Leventhal. The approach — which has so far brought to the school, among others, two Knesset members, an eyewitness to Kristallnacht, and the national vice president of the Jewish National Fund — is meant both to educate and inspire students, she said.

The idea of presenting students with role models is very much in the minds of school leaders. Indeed, it was with an eye toward that program that Schechter selected its honorees for this year’s annual gala.

Receiving the school’s Shirley and Harris Shapiro Community Award on March 27 will be Rabbi André Ungar, rabbi emeritus of Temple Emanuel of the Pascack Valley in Woodcliff Lake. The award, said Leventhal, is presented to Schechter supporters who are role models within the Jewish community.

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The Schechter Manhattan Difference:
“Cultivating the mind, hands, soul, and heart of each child”
Schechter Manhattan is a Jewish elementary and middle school passionately dedicated to nurturing active learning and menschlichkeit as the primary means of cultivating each child’s development – mind, hands, soul, and heart.

The theory of action at the core of our educational program is that each learner’s mind, hands, soul, and heart are intricately intertwined. Only when all four are intentionally cultivated together will a child reach his or her full potential as a learner and a mensch – a sensitive, aware, reflective, respectful, and collaborative person….

Debby (right) hands off to Galya

We know that you will reach out to Galya to welcome her. You can reach Galya
at: 860-521-2626

Galya is a doctoral student in Jewish Educational Leadership at Northeastern University and Hebrew College. Her particular area of interest is in the professional development of Jewish day school teachers. She has an extensive background in day school education as both a teacher and administrator, and she has supervised MaToK teachers at the Solomon Schechter Day School of Greater Hartford. Galya graduated from Brandeis University with a BA in Near Eastern and Judaic Studies, and earned an MA in Jewish Education from the Jewish Theological Seminary of America. Galya and her husband live in West Hartford, CT.

(Debby Miller is stepping down from MaToK to take on other responsibilities at JTS.)

Check out the new Curricula page on this site to see the first contribution.