Monday, November 29, 2010

The Israelis are coming, the Israelis are coming...

This Thursday, a group of about a dozen Israeli middle school students from ORT Yad Singalovsky in Tel Aviv will descend upon Kadima and start a 12 day visit with us. And for me, it is literally with us. We will be hosting a student from Israel in our home for the 12 days. My son is excited, the visitors are excited, we're excited, and the school is excited, too.

The program is part of the Tel-Aviv/Los Angeles Partnership program sponsored in part by the Jewish Federation of Los Angeles. The idea is that by having students from Israel and Los Angeles get to know each other--at their own levels and in their own ways--they will begin forging long term relationships between Americans and Israelis. From what I've seen thus far, it will work.

The kids have already begun talking to each other by Facebook, and I've been impressed that our kids are, without a hitch, speaking and writing Hebrew with their Israeli counterparts. And I am talking about the non-native Hebrew speakers.

The next two weeks will be an adventure.

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Gala Honorees: Ester and David Vered

The news is out: On April 3, 2010, Kadima will be honoring David and Ester Vered for their years of support and commitment to Kadima. It is going to be a special evening; we will be honoring the Vereds and also celebrating Kadima's four decades.

Mark your calendars. It is an event that you won't want to miss!

Tuition, again.

Tomorrow night our Board will be discussing the budget for next year, and in particular, what we will do with tuition. The Finance Committee and Executive Committee have already examined the issue, they will be making a recommendation to the Board. We will be looking at our budget and cash flow needs as well as economic realities. It is likely to be a good discussion.

I can't go into the details of the proposal, but I can say that there is a recommendation for an increase in tuition next year. That should not surprise anyone; it costs a lot to run a school like Kadima, and it costs more and more each year. Virtually every school raises tuition each year. We tried lowering it 25 percent one year in an effort to stimulate admissions, but like the government's stimulus package, it was not enough to trigger an admissions stampede to the school; a stampede that was necessary to offset the reduction in tuition collections. As a result, the following year we only provided only a 5 percent reduction from the original cost.

Ultimately, we learned that people will pay--to the extent that they can--for a good educational product. We have it at Kadima.

So tomorrow night we will discuss and wrestle with tuition issues. As always, it is likely to be a good discussion.

Thursday, November 4, 2010

Dr. Saul Wachs.

Today, Dr. Saul Wachs, the leader and expert in tefilla education visited the school to work with Mrs. Yalovsky and Mr. Cohen to examine and analyze our school's already terrific tefilla programs.

This is an extraordinary opportunity for the school. Dr. Wachs really is the expert in prayer in schools, and to have him looking at our school exemplifies Kadima's leadership in this area. You can read a monograph he wrote on the subject, here. I strongly urge you to take the time to read this paper. We are working to ensure that Kadima's tefilla, like all of its programs, is second to none, and is part of our integrated educational experience.

Dr. Wachs writes that the key to successful tefilla--success as defined as engaging and meaningful for all ages, and not just skills education--is depth. He writes:

"The key is omek, depth. I believe that every service
should have some element of omek."
That really boils down what Kadima is about. Depth. Our programs are not superficial; they are meaningful.

Again, please read Dr. Wachs' paper. It articulates better than I possibly could what we are trying to achieve with a Kadima education.

To have Dr. Wachs at our school is an honor; it is also a direct result of being a member of the Solomon Schechter Day School Association.

This is important stuff.