Names.

Juliet: What's in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet.

Romeo and Juliet, (II, ii, 1-2).

Although Juliet argued that names were not important, her fate, along with poor Romeo's, showed that, unfortunately, they are. Names can define institutions. Sometimes people will not even look at a school because the name creates a negative preconception.

So it is with Kadima Hebrew Academy. Last night, the Board reviewed a recommendation from our Admissions Directors (Michelle Starkman and Karen Pery--who are absolutely excellent directors) asking the Board to consider modifying the school's name. The Admissions staff pointed out that the phrase Hebrew Academy often leads people to believe that we are an Orthodox school when we are not; unfortunately, these same people will not even come visit us because of their incorrect perception.

This led to the Board's first substantive discussion of the year. While the Board could have voted to adopt some of the proffered choices (i.e., Kadima Day School, Kadima Academy, Kadima Jewish Day School)--there was no discussion about removing the name Kadima--the Board decided to send the issue to the Marketing Committee for further analysis and discussion, and to obtain the Committee' s recommendation. It was a great discussion (no yelling) and great example of good board practice: a question was debated, and the decision reached (unanimously) to have the Marketing Committee look at it and then send it back to the Board for a final decision.

The discussion revealed two essential points: Kadima will remain Kadima. But what comes after that most important title may change. Or it may not. We shall see.

It was a wonderful meeting. We discharged our old Board. We honored Shawn Evenhaim for his four years of incredible service and commitment to the school (presenting him with a Shofar as a token of appreciation, and pointing out that he often has been a Shofar for Kadima, urging us forward toward success). Next, Rabbi Vogel installed the new Board and urged us forward toward success.

After the ceremonies, we heard detailed reports from our Vice Presidents and the PTO, and there were a variety of questions and answers. And then we discussed the name.

It was an excellent meeting.

We have an excellent group of leaders on the Board; I am honored to serve with them.

Shana Tova!

Board Meeting on September 16.

Welcome to all of you visiting as a result of the mention of the blog in the Kol Echad. I urge you to scroll down. I've been writing throughout the summer, and you may find some interesting stuff.

We have our first regular Board meeting on September 16, 2009 at 7:15 p.m.

Rabbi Stewart Vogel, of Temple Aliyah, will be formally installing the new Board, and we will be honoring our immediate past president, Shawn Evenhaim.

In addition to all of that, we will be having our regular reports, discussing our enrollment, and also discussing a proposal to consider modifying the school's name. Yep, you read that right. We will be having a discussion regarding the school's name. Don't worry; we will always be Kadima. What follows may, however, change a bit. But the Board will make that decision, not me.

Everyone is welcome to attend our Board meetings. So come on and find out what is going on at the school and see how the Board works.

Blue Ribbon and Memory.

This has nothing to do with Kadima.

Two days ago, I learned that I won First Place in the Cookies/Biscotti contest at the 2009 Los Angeles County Fair. I saw the display last night, and there it was, my mandelbread on a plate, with a blue ribbon next to it. I am very pleased.

I used my late mother's mandelbread recipe, so really I share the honor with her. I was shocked to have won; the competition is often fierce in these contests with the usual suspects often taking home most of the ribbons.

The mandelbread was my Mom's signature dish, and one that everyone loved. We even referenced it on her memorial plaque. When I started baking as a hobby several years ago, I refused to make the mandelbread, even though my Mom gladly shared the recipe with anyone who asked. It was her dish, and hers alone.

When she suddenly passed away in March, 2008, we were going through her house and I found her recipe trove. My Mom was many wonderful things, but she was not particularly organized. So there were scraps of papers everywhere. Strangely, only a few weeks before she died, I asked her where her recipes were, and she said that they were in an overstuffed book "on the shelf." After her passing, I miraculously found the "Book", and in it was the mandelbread recipe. There was a scrap of oil stained legal paper, in my Mom's handwriting, containing the recipe. It was the primary source document.

The first time I made the recipe it did not come out right. My Mom's instructions were vague and somewhat unclear. I thought I'd never be able to replicate it. It was only when I realized that I had to mix everything by hand, and not by standmixer was I successful. I made the recipe, and sure enough, the flavor and texture was perfect--just how I remembered it. My Mom often brought the mandelbread when she visited someone's house (her doctors at City of Hope called her the "Cookie Lady" because she always brought mandelbread to her appointments) and she would routinely give us tubs full of the stuff. Having the mandelbread in our house was a way of knowing that she was with us.

Now that she's gone, I've made the mandelbread and several other recipes that she used to make. In doing so, we not only honor her memory, but she remains a "tasty" part of our lives. Food can do this. It can trigger deep memories in special ways. The mandelbread does this, as do a few other of my Mom's baked goods. So does my wife's chicken soup.

While I am ecstatic at winning the competition, the victory really is a tribute to my Mom, Sandra Sholkoff. Although she is gone, her recipes and baking lives on.

May her memory always be for a blessing.

I'll be back next week with some more news about Kadima.

Shabbat Shalom.

New Families!

At our Executive Committee meeting this morning, we learned from the Head of School that we have nearly 70 new families joining Kadima this year. In the year of the Great Recession, the fact that we have this many new families committed to Jewish education--and a Kadima education--is the strongest sign that our organization is truly moving forward.

I don't sugarcoat things and I can't say that I don't wish we had more students. We've got some smaller classes, but we've also got ones that are filling up. But for the first time in memory, our Admissions Team--Michelle Starkman and Karen Pery--aided by the rest of the administrative team including our business manager, Arnold Rudnick--nailed their targets. This is critical. Our operational budget is based upon a somewhat amorphous target number of students; if we come in below this number, it means that we will have even higher fundraising numbers. When we miss badly, it can create serious budgetary problems.

This year the team hit their number. This fact, and the fact that they have attracted a significant number of new students (and a huge number of new sixth graders which is truly significant) demonstrates their commitment to excellence and hard work. It shows their professionalism. The Admissions Staff is one of those jobs that gets no respect. If the numbers are down, everyone blames them. If the numbers are up, it is because of the great things that everyone does. But Karen and Michelle deserve a hearty Kol HaKovod. They really did well this year.

And so did everyone else. The administration--Bill, Yuri and Mickey--all pushed very hard to demonstrate that Kadima is on the right track. And we did it with a new adherence to process, procedure and professionalism.

In a year of upheaval, in a year of so much change, we are showing that with a new team at the helm, with new enthusiasm and new clarity of purpose, with a commitment to professionalism and best practices in everything we do, we are poised for greatness.

Kadima!

Hope and Glory.

There is always something special about the first day of school. While dropping of my seventh grader, yesterday, I could feel the anticipation and excitement in the air. The kids and the parents were happy and energized. The staff was running around, welcoming and organizing; it was a day filled with hope, potential, and wonder.

I walked around a bit and watched the elementary school kids do the Pledge of Allegence and sing Hatikva. The parents were lingering and everyone was saying hello to returning families and friends. The school leadership was out and about, with Bill, Yuri and Mickey greeting everyone. Pictures were being snapped by parents as they dropped off their kids and wished them well for a new school year. The PTO had a wonderful coffee reception for parents as everyone shared their excitement for the year.

There is something wonderful and special about the first day of school.

The School Year Begins...

Well, the summer's over. The coals on the barbecue are cooling; the picnics are wrapping up, and everyone's getting ready for the big day.

It's been quite a summer for Kadima and its Board. In the past few months, our new Head of School has started, our Board has rebooted the mission and vision for the school, we've hired a new ECC Director, a new Rabbi, and a new Director of Development. It's been quite an eventful few months.

So, on Tuesday begins Kadima's new adventure for 2009-2010. We've still got a lot of work ahead of us, and much to do.

Welcome to all of our new students and families, and welcome back to all of our returning students and families.

Go KADIMA!

What a Day!

Last Sunday, the Board of Trustees met for about six hours. We discussed what the Board does, how it does it, and where we are now as a school. We discussed some brutal facts and how we plan to move the school forward. We heard presentations from our Head of School--who was simply excellent--and Rabbi Jay Strear, our VP of Advancement. I also spoke about process and where we are from a lay perspective.

Rabbi Strear presented five recommendations from the Executive Committee for the Board of Trustees to examine, discuss, and then approve or reject. The Board, I am happy to say, unanimously approved all five recommendations. And I am also very proud to report that the Board asked lots of questions and did not simply rubber stamp the findings and recommendations of the Executive Committee.

I want to publish the recommendations, but am having trouble inputting them into the blog. Instead, I will summarize the first three--which are the key ones--below. The last two relate two Board responsibilities.

The Big Three are as follows:

Unity

The first recommendation directs the Head of School to implement a single, consistent and unified program throughout the school, from ECC to 8th Grade. We cannot, the Board determined, have a school that offers one type of program in nursery school, one type of program in elementary school, and one type of program in middle school.

Rigor and Critical Thinking

The second recommendation directs the Head of School to implement an educational program characterized, in all respects, by academic rigor and critical thinking. This will be a Solomon Schechter program; a program that emphasizes knowledge and commitment as well as rigor and critical thinking in all areas, both secular and Jewish studies.

Accountability

The third recommendation directs the Head of School to prepare metrics to determine if the program is meeting its stated goals. We recognize that we cannot simply say that we produce academic success for our students; we have to demonstrate it through clear and unequivocal metrics.

Unity, Commitment, Rigor, Critical Thinking, and Accountability.

We now have a vision: an educational program that is rigorous and triggers critical thinking; a program that embraces community and demands commitment from all of us.

This will form the pathway to Kadima's future success.