Prizmah Podcasts: Podcasts by Prizmah Center for Jewish Day Schools

Featuring Dr. Vardit Ringvald and Sharon Schoenfeld The events of October 7 marked a turning point for Hebrew educators, shifting their role from language instructors to cultural mediators of Israel’s complex realities. This situation has brought us to a critical moment of reconsideration for the profession. Explore the evolving professional identity of Hebrew educators and begin to consider your own pedagogical approach and actions. Examine the connection between the Hebrew language, Israel, and Israelis, and how language serves as a reflection of its speakers and their place in the world. Leave this webinar with concrete strategies and best practices to ensure that Hebrew education remains effective in fostering language acquisition while authentically expressing the culture and lived realities of its speakers. In partnership with Academic Studies Press   Dr. Vardit Ringvald Vardit is the director of the Brandeis University Consortium for The Teaching of Hebrew Language and Culture and a research professor at the Mandel Center for Studies in Jewish Education. Her current work includes a focus on the intersection of Hebrew language and culture in pedagogy and practice. Sharon Schoenfeld Sharon holds a master’s degree in teaching Hebrew as a second language from Middlebury College She is currently the director of Kayitz Kef / Hebrew at Camp at the Brandeis Consortium for the Teaching of Hebrew Language and Culture. Her work focuses on experiential Hebrew immersion initiatives and the mentoring and training of program leaders.

How do rabbinics teachers conceptualize, implicitly or explicitly, the nature of the material that they teach to their students? Starting with a paper titled "Three Conceptions of Rabbinics: Understanding Teachers' Thinking" by Joshua Ladon, a chapter in the recent collection Teaching & Learning in Jewish Day Schools, this conversation allows seasoned teachers to explore the ways that they think about and teach the heart of Jewish studies in their classrooms.   Rabbi Dr. Joshua Ladon is the vice president for the West Coast and senior faculty for the Shalom Hartman Institute of North America.   Rabbi Aaron Horn is the High School Principal at Kohelet Yeshiva right outside of Philadelphia where he has taught Gemara and Biology, ran student activities and served as the Dean of Students.  Grace McMillan is a graduate of Harvard Divinity School who later spent a year learning Nishmat. Grace has been teaching Jewish Text for over a decade at the Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School and is currently the Nancy and Paul M. Hamburger Jewish Text High School Department Chair.   Rabbi Yechiel Shaffer is the Campus Rabbi of the Jewish Leadership Academy in Miami and the director of its novel Service Entrepreneurship Program. He is also the Founder of the new platform PdThatworks.com and has served as a community Rabbi in 3 cities. 

For decades, Israel education in North American day schools has centered on fostering positive feelings toward Israel. But is “feeling good” about Israel the right goal? Drawing on qualitative research with Jewish day school students, Jonah Hassenfeld challenges the assumption that connection must precede knowledge. Explore why knowledge and connection are inseparable, why complex topics including conflict, inequality, and diversity are essential for building both, and how educators can design experiences that help students develop their own informed perspectives. Leave with concrete strategies for creating classrooms that invite deep inquiry into Israel’s history, politics, and culture—without fear of “ruining” students’ connection. Dr. Jonah Hassenfeld Director of Learning and Teaching at Schechter Boston Jonah oversees curriculum and instruction across general and Judaic studies. His research on Israel education has been published in Contemporary Jewry and Journal of Jewish Education. A former high school history teacher, Jonah writes and speaks widely about how schools can engage students in complex and sometimes controversial topics without sacrificing intellectual rigor or community connection.

At the Rabbi Jacob Pressman Academy of Temple Beth Am, healthy, supportive relationships aren’t just a priority; they’re the foundation of everything they do. Learn how the school builds a culture where resilient relationships fuel academic success, increase teacher job satisfaction, strengthen parent partnerships, and empower effective leadership. Get a behind-the-scenes look at how Pressman brings this vision to life through weekly Kesher (“Connection”) classes, proactive community building in classrooms and advisory, a relational approach to discipline, and proactive and honest parent communication systems, all with rich Judaic Studies integration. This discussion will blend inspiring vision with actionable strategies for creating a relationship-centered school community. Dr. Erica Rothblum has served as the head of school at Pressman Academy since 2014. She received her EdD in educational leadership from UCLA, she holds an MA in teaching from Loyola Marymount, a California multiple subject teaching credential, a BA in American studies from Barnard College and is a Wexner Field Fellow (class 1). Prior to working at Pressman Academy, Erica was a Teach for America Corps member; taught in both the suburbs of Boston as well as at Camino Nuevo Charter School in Los Angeles; and worked as the director of general studies and then as the head of school at Beth Hillel Day School in Los Angeles. Additionally, Erica has served as a peer coach, lead teacher, grade level chair, mentor teacher and as a teaching supervisor at the American Jewish University. Shira Landau is a licensed clinical social worker with over 20 years of experience in experiential Jewish education. This is her eleventh year at Pressman Academy, where she served first as the middle school counselor and now as the director of wellness. Shira holds an MA in nonprofit management from Hebrew Union College and an MA in social work from USC. Her master’s thesis focused on the prevalence of bullying and other forms of harassment in Jewish day schools, and included a study of Pressman’s Kesher program as a model for bullying prevention and intervention.

Explore how 20 Israel educators from Jewish high schools across the denominational spectrum address the "you never told me" phenomenon—graduates’ sense of betrayal when encountering criticisms of Israel not covered in their Jewish day school education. These educators integrate both Zionist and Palestinian narratives to strengthen students’ Jewish identification with Israel and the Jewish people while equipping them to engage the complex “Israel conversation” on campus through education rather than advocacy. By presenting critical perspectives on romantic Zionism alongside Palestinian narratives, they aim to ensure students encounter multiple viewpoints and feel prepared rather than misled when confronted with challenging information. Dr. Benji Davis is an American-born Israeli educator and scholar, currently serving as assistant professor of Jewish education at Yeshiva University’s Azrieli Graduate School of Jewish Education and Administration. He previously served as the 2024–2025 Israel Institute Teaching and Research Fellow at George Mason University. In 2024, he received the Harold Wechsler Award for Emerging Scholars from the Network for Research in Jewish Education (NRJE) for his research on the philosophy and pedagogy of Israel education.

This episode is part our Research Into Practice in Israel Education series and features a conversation with Dr. Keren Fraiman. There is a growing consensus that successful and holistic Israel education demands a sophisticated and nuanced engagement with critical questions within Israel, and in particular, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This feels especially pressing in a post-Oct. 7 world. Despite this critical need, many educators continue to express reticence for conflict education. Explore why educators are hesitant to engage in conflict education, highlighting the greatest sources of challenge and a typology of barriers to entry. Learn what we can do to support our educators, educational systems, and the community more broadly. Dr. Keren Fraiman is the vice president and chief academic officer at Spertus Institute for Jewish Learning and Leadership, where she also holds a faculty appointment as Professor of Israel Studies. Keren works with educational organizations across the country to support their Israel educational efforts, and also serves on the faculty of the iFellows Masters Concentration in Israel Education program, Hillel International’s MasterClass Israel, and the Wexner Heritage Program. Her research focuses on Conflict Education – how we learn and teach about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict within Jewish settings.

Featuring Dr. Alex Pomson and Dr. Jessie Kalbfeld Rosov Consulting visited Har Herzl several times during the summer of 2024 to observe North American teen programs in Israel as part of ongoing work with RootOne, an organization founded to increase the number of Jewish teens travelling to Israel each summer. This session shares the findings of their observations at Har Herzl and explores powerful lessons for Israel education that extend far beyond that sacred space. In partnership with Rosov Consulting and RootOne

After receiving a grant for professional development, Sulam teachers were able to deepen their learning and create Presentations of Learning (POL). Learn how the teachers started to take pride in their own learning, while teaching their team new and innovative strategies, encouraging others to deepen their own professional development.  Presenters Lisa Houben is the upper school director at Sulam, a program that fosters and provides inclusive, high quality special education support for diverse learners in grades K-12 within Jewish day schools across the Greater Washington area. Having recently completed Prizmah’s YouLead program, she is now entering her fourth year at Sulam. Lianne Heller is in her eleventh year as executive director at Sulam, a program that fosters and provides inclusive, high quality, special education support for diverse learners in grades K-12 within Jewish day schools across the Greater Washington area. She is deeply committed to providing her faculty and staff opportunities to grow as professionals.

Part of our Research into Practice series, this episode draws on a qualitative study conducted in six classrooms during the first two and a half months following the attack, explore how educators navigated the tension between preserving childhood innocence and fostering resilience, while also questioning traditional understandings of developmentally appropriate practice. Learn how teachers use developmentally sensitive yet courageous approaches, including guided conversations, creative play, Jewish ritual, and cultural identity, to help children feel emotionally safe while making meaning of difficult realities. This conversation highlights the predictable routines, strong relationships, and Jewish values that teachers draw upon to support both student well-being and their own, offering enduring strategies for educators facing crises in today’s classrooms. Special guests Dr. Lyndall Miller, Dr. Meir Muller and Alan Rifkin Gelnick.  Special guest bios Lyndall Miller Dr. Miller is a researcher and consultant in Jewish early childhood education, with a focus on inquiry and leadership development, currently working with the Masor School for Jewish Education and Leadership at American Jewish University. She was previously the developer and director of the Jewish Early Childhood Education Leadership Institute (JECELI).   Meir Muller Dr. Muller is the Associate Dean of Community Empowerment at the University of South Carolina, specializing in early childhood education and promoting justice through a lens informed by Jewish tradition. Learn more about him here. Alana Rifkin Gelnick Alana is the founder and CEO of Dreamearly, dedicated to empowering educators and leaders with innovative strategies in early childhood education. Previously, Alana served as the associate principal of SAR Academy in Riverdale, New York, for a decade.

Part of Prizmah's Research Into Practice in Israel Education Series, this episode focuses on new research on the gender confidence gap in Israel education.  While Jewish day schools have succeeded in fostering emotional connections to Israel among their students, new research reveals a troubling pattern: girls are significantly less confident than boys when discussing Israeli politics and history. Drawing from survey data of over 3,700 students across 96 Jewish day schools, Ilana Horwitz explores the gender confidence gap—present in 4 out of 5 schools—and its implications for Israel education. The data shows that 12th-grade girls report confidence levels similar to or lower than 7th-grade boys, a gap that persists across all denominations and grade levels. Moving beyond affective goals alone, this research challenges educators to build both heart connections AND intellectual confidence in their students. In partnership with Brandeis University Press.

Research into Practice in Israel Education Series Learners undergo a series of developmental stages as they move through childhood and early adolescence, in their attempt to make sense of political systems and political issues in Israel and about Israel (in global politics). In this recorded webinar, gain insight into facilitating developmentally sensitive conversations about tricky political questions with day school students at the elementary and middle school levels with special guest Sivan Zakai and host Matt Reingold.

Explore how Hillel Torah North Suburban Day School in Skokie, Illinois, reimagined teacher compensation—from identifying the challenges, to engaging faculty voices, to building a transparent and sustainable system. Hear the lessons learned, the questions asked, and the insights generated. This story can help guide other schools on a similar path. With special guests Rabbi Menachem Linzer, Dov Shandalov, and Rabbi Dr. Barry Kislowicz.

School heads need to manage, decide upon and negotiate difficult challenges every day. This episode gives listeners a window upon the ways that three heads would think about and handle challenges that may arise with various stakeholders. Hear them discuss and probe several cases drawn up by Rabbi Dr. Barry Kislowicz, who moderated the conversation with special guests Ginny Galili, Stephanie Ives, and Rabbi Jeffrey Kobrin.  Special guests Ginny Galili is the head of school at Gross Schechter in Pepper Pike, Ohio. Stephanie Ives is the head of school at Beit Rabban in New York City. Rabbi Jeffrey Kobrin is the head of school at North Shore Hebrew Academy in Great Neck, New York. Rabbi Dr. Barry Kislowicz is the former HOS at Fuchs Mizrachi School in Cleveland and now head of Kislowicz Consulting. A recipient of the Covenant Foundation's Pomegranate Prize, Barry is now the author of a Substack and podcast called Leadership Lenses.

With a "Culture of Belonging" microgrant from Prizmah, the Seattle Jewish Community School launched a Seattle Sephardic Heritage Initiative in the fall of 2023, in partnership with the Jewish Day School of Metropolitan Seattle.  At its inception, this program aimed to introduce 5th graders from both schools to the distinctive Sephardic roots of Seattle's Jewish community and to the ongoing influence of the Jewish culture of Rhodes and Turkey on their hometown. From the start, this initiative inspired an enthusiastic response from the Sephardic community, opening an array of opportunities, exceeding all initial aspirations. Discover the origins of the initiative and how it has flourished. Presentation followed by a Q&A session with host Josh Gold. Special guests Gabrielle Azose and David Zimand. Gabrielle Azose is the director of curriculum & pedagogy at Seattle Jewish Community School, where she has worked in a variety of roles, including general studies and Jewish studies teacher. David Zimand serves as head of school at the Seattle Jewish Community School, having previously worked in administrative roles at community day schools in Washington, DC, and Palo Alto, CA.

Rabbi Dena Glasgow is the Director of Jewish Education at Gann Academy in Waltham, Massachusetts, where she is responsible for both the Jewish Studies Department and the Hebrew Department. She is also part of the instructional leadership team. Sheri Gross is the Director of Arts, Culture, and Creative Programming at Gross Schechter Day School in Cleveland, and the director of Testimony Theater--a program where teens interview Holocaust survivors and turn their stories into a performance along with personal reflections. She is also the arts critic for the Cleveland Jewish News, and the former director of the Mandel JCC Playmakers Youth Theatre and Performing Arts Camp for 21 years. Why is creativity such an important factor in education? What are the key modes by which creativity manifests itself in Jewish culture? What place does creativity hold in helping Jews and Israelis stay resilient in a post-October 7 world? This conversation explores these questions and more, as participants reflect upon the innumerable ways that teachers and schools foster student creativity. The starting point is Miriam Heller Stern's recent study "Jewish Creativity: An Essential Aspiration for Jewish Education." Dr. Miriam Heller Stern, an expert on creativity and Jewish education, directs the School of Education at Hebrew Union College and is the Incoming CEO of Builders of Jewish Education, Los Angeles. Hadas Wolff Yitzhak, Director of English Educational Programs at Beit Avi Chai and former head of its Hebrew Educational Programs department, previously taught Jewish Studies in Jerusalem’s public high schools and now designs initiatives that foster meaningful connections through music and Jewish Israeli culture. She Lives in Jerusalem.

Prizmah's Director of Knowledge, Research, and Data Odelia Epstein discusses three timely studies transforming how we understand Jewish day school education today: • An early preview of findings from the first full census of Jewish day schools since 2018-19, revealing Prizmah network schools trends in enrollment. • A study showing that new families post-October 7 are turning to Jewish day schools. • A new look at day school alumni: How they engage with Jewish life and Israel on campus.

Tune in to this Prizmah Podcast Live with The Epstein School in Atlanta's Idit Bendavid and David Welsher to hear how the school built its own Hebrew program—one that puts students at the heart of the learning process. Explore the shift from a rigid curriculum to a student-centered, proficiency-based approach that prioritizes real-world communication. From the perspectives of students, teachers, parents, and school leadership, we will explore the obstacles in language acquisition and how a focus on authentic learning experiences is transforming Hebrew education.   Idit Bendavid teaches at The Epstein School in Atlanta, where she embraced the Proficiency approach and ACTFL guidelines, transforming her instructional practices and becoming a data-driven decision-maker. Since 2021, she has served as the Director of Judaic Studies and Hebrew for grades K-8, leading the development of the Hebrew curriculum using the Proficiency approach and the Judaic Studies curriculum based on the Standards and Benchmarks framework for grades K-4. A graduate of the Mandel Teacher Educator Institute, Idit is committed to driving meaningful change through innovative professional development.   David Welsher is the current associate head of school and elementary school principal at The Epstein School in Atlanta. In partnership with his fellow educators, David is passionate about fostering a vibrant school culture where students and teachers thrive. Under his leadership, The Epstein School has seen improved student performance and increased teacher satisfaction. David's collaborative approach has led to the implementation of innovative programs such as the STEAM initiative and many unique programs to support diverse learners.

How do you help your school's lay leaders become knowledgeable about your school, obtain the skills they need, and gain inspiration to step up their game? Avery Joel of the Fuchs Mizrachi School describes a cohort program they developed to accomplish precisely that. This Podcast Live episode was recorded in front of a live audience at the Prizmah Conference in Boston on February 3, 2025.   Rabbi Dr. Avery Joel is the head of school at the Fuchs Mizrachi School in Beachwood, Ohio, where he has served as a teacher and the principal of the Stark High School. Previously, he was a teacher and grade coordinator in Ramaz Upper School. Avery has an EdD in educational administration and rabbinic ordination from Yeshiva University, as well as an MPA from NYU. He serves as a mentor in DSLTI.

What would happen if schools thought of play as not just some fun release that takes place outside of the "serious" work, but as integral to the task of education? Learn what play is and why it's so important, and explore the different ways that our schools incorporate play into different aspects of the student day. The conversation is inspired by the recent book A Moral Case for Play in K-12 Schools: The Urgency of Advancing Moral Ecologies of Play by Rabbi Judd Kruger Levingston, PhD.

AI may be the greatest thing to happen to Jewish education since unicode. And it may even be bigger than that. AI is still in its infancy, and it's already allowing teachers to do so much. Join this podcast to dive into how AI can help with note-taking, studying, essay writing, and more – and why that's a good thing. We talk about how it can help teachers present information in more exciting ways. And how it can help personalize education for every student. And the best is yet to come. Special guest presenter: Rabbi Binyomin Segal has been involved in technology and education for many years. In the 80s, he was responsible for Davka’s first educational software for the Apple Macintosh. He began teaching at Ida Crown Jewish Academy in 1993. While there he earned an Ed.D. from Loyola University Chicago. In 2015, he became the Instructional Technology Coordinator for Ida Crown. He continues to teach Tanakh courses as well as coding and computer science.

This podcast, based on the volume Teaching Israel: Studies of Pedagogy from the Field, edited by Sivan Zakai and Matt Reingold, focuses on Israel teachers in the classroom. Who teaches our students about Israel, and in what contexts? How do Israel educators think about their role--as an "explorer" or "exemplar"? What happens when a "micromoment" arises, when a student struggles to understand or is deeply troubled by something they've learned? And how are Israel classrooms adapting to the reality of our post-October 7 world? What has changed, and what hasn't, in this work? (Recorded on 9/27) Special guests Sivan Zakai is the Sara S. Lee Associate Professor of Jewish Education at the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion and a Senior Editor of the Journal of Jewish Education. Matt Reingold is a Jewish educator with over 16 years of in-class experience teaching Jewish and Israeli history in Toronto Jewish day schools. In addition to co-editing Teaching Israel, with Sivan Zakai, he is the author of four books about Jewish and Israeli comics and graphic novels. Lisa Exler is Director of Jewish Studies and Ivrit at Beit Rabban Day School in Manhattan. Rebecca Boim Wolf serves as Coordinator for Israel Education and teaches history at SAR High School in the Bronx, NY, a modern Orthodox Jewish day school. Jeremy Toren is the ECC-12 Director of Jewish Education at San Diego Jewish Academy.

Often, Jewish schools operate in isolation; "teamwork" may mean partnership among the team of administrators, or the head of school with the board. A new initiative in Boston, Stronger Together, aims to foster a culture of collaboration among the city's 14 day schools and yeshivas to explore opportunities for shared success. Explore how the project came about, how it functions, what it has accomplished so far and where it might develop moving forward. Hear from Sheri Gurock, Ari Sussman and Aimee Close.      Sheri Gurock is the executive director of The Beker Foundation and is also a facilitator, consultant, and executive coach. Ari Sussman is a day school consultant to Combined Jewish Philanthropies, Boston's Federation, where he has served as Boston day school's network lead for the past 3 years. Aimee Close is the director of Stronger Together, a Boston-based initiative of Prizmah.  

ADDRESSING THE PIPELINE PROBLEM: MAIMONIDES FELLOWS PROGRAM Explore an initiative that aims to address the national issue of fewer and fewer talented and inspiring adults choosing to become teachers or stay in the field of education. This podcast dives into how the Maimonides School, a Modern Orthodox school in Brookline, Massachusetts, decided to invest in young talent, even before these talented students made the decision to work in education. Featuring Rabbi Yaakov Green, Head of school at Maimonides School. Learn about the initial results of this innovative initiative and the promises they see for the future of the field.

How have our educators been impacted by, and adapted to, the horrific attacks against Israel that took place on October 7 and the ensuing war in Gaza? The starting point for this conversation is the study "Responding to This Historical Moment: Jewish Educators, Clergy, Engagement Professionals and the War in Israel." Hear about the emotional challenges that these educators have faced, and the educational dilemmas that continue to shadow their work in the classroom, during these traumatic times featuring guests Clare Goldwater, Dr. Ezra Kopelowitz, Dr. Alexandria Fanjoy Silver, and Rabbi WIll Keller.   Clare Goldwater is chief strategy officer at M²:The Institute for Experiential Jewish Education. She is based in Jerusalem. Ezra Kopelowitz is the CEO of ReST: Research, Success, Technologies and a fellow at the Center for Jewish Peoplehood Education. Dr. Alexandria Fanjoy Silver is a Jewish history teacher at TanenbaumCHAT, a Jewish high school in Toronto. Rabbi Will Keller is the head of school at the Hebrew Day School of Ann Arbor in Ann, Arbor, Michigan.

What does it take to build a school from scratch? Especially a school as sophisticated as a Jewish day school. In this podcast, we sit down with Rabbi Dr. Gil Perl, who throughout his career has taken three schools from concept to reality. Most recently, in August 2023, he helped open the Jewish Leadership Academy in Miami, Florida. The Jewish Leadership Academy is a highly selective Jewish middle and high school dedicated to developing the skills, curiosity, and potential of Miami’s most ambitious students for a life of purpose, commitment, and service. Hear lessons learned from Rabbi Dr. Gil Perl, and stories shared from each of his successful schools. Rabbi Dr. Gil Perl is the CEO of the Ades Family Foundation and the founding head of school of the Jewish Leadership Academy in Miami. A nationally sought after speaker and award-winning teacher, Rabbi Perl earned his bachelor’s from the University of Pennsylvania, a master’s and Ph.D. from Harvard, and rabbinical ordination from the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary at Yeshiva University. He is the author of the book The Pillar of Volozhin: Rabbi Naftali Zvi Yehuda Berlin and the World of Nineteenth-Century Lithuanian Torah Scholarship, as well as numerous articles on the history of Modern Jewry, contemporary Jewish education, and Modern Orthodoxy.

Four heads of school from the Bay Area talk about a mission they took together to Israel during the current war. They depict what it's like in their schools during this time, with heightened antisemitism and anti-Israel sentiment in the region. Their schools are serving as places of refuge, as centers of Jewish pride where people organize opposition to pro-Hamas political proposals. The heads describe the conversations and images in Israel that are seared in their memories, the people they met who are "the traumatized serving the traumatized." They share what they have been communicating with their school since their return.

Learn about the The Milken Way, a unique set of ideas and values that guides how Milken Community School, one of the largest Jewish day schools in North America, operates and thinks about customer service. As Maya Angelou said, “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” Customer service has become the most important factor in consumer decisions. In fact, recent studies have shown that 73% of people point to customer service as a key factor in significant decisions. Yet rarely do schools invest in customer service as a primary function of their recruitment and retention strategies. Learn about the customer service model of the Milken Community School in Los Angeles, and how it’s implemented across campus, in everything they do.

School mission statements articulate a hope that through our educational programs, help students gain the knowledge, skills and inclinations needed to make positive change. By putting Tikkun Olam at the core of K-8 programs, Leo Baeck Day School in Toronto has learned how to help students learn to connect their actions to Jewish values. Learn how and why the Tikkun Project at Toronto’s Leo Baeck Day School came to be and hear examples of the powerful learning that emerges when students think critically about themselves and their responsibilities to the world around them.

Listen to a far-ranging podcast and expand your understanding of what Jewish arts education is and can be. Explore how one teacher sets up an artists beit midrash, and how students go about creating art from tefillah. Hear how students at another school pass through a collaborative, multilayered iterative process from study to the creation of objects. Explore the way that a rabbinical school teaches Biblical narrative texts and Talmudic Halakhic passages through the embodied learning of circus arts experiences. Discover how these programs conceive of the relationship between the social and individual aspects of creativity.   Presenters Dr. Ora Horn Prouser is the CEO and academic dean at the Academy for Jewish Religion, an accredited, pluralistic rabbinical, cantorial, and graduate school located in NY but serving students throughout the US and internationally through our distance learning program. She is the co-editor of Under One Tent: Circus, Judaism, and Bible, which is an extension of sacred arts work at AJR. AJR is now home to a Center for Sacred Arts.    Ayal Prouser is a circus artist, choreographer and academic. He is founder & director of Time Flies Circus.   Linda Parmet is Hebrew content dean and director of interdisciplinary Jewish studies at The Weber School in Atlanta, Georgia. She also serves as a mentor on the staff of The Teacher Institute for the Arts run by Kol HaOt. Linda and her students study Jewish sources, values and concepts then use creative design and visual arts to illuminate their thoughts and express their insights. Follow this link to see the class portfolio of Torah, toolkits and power tools.    Ahuva Winslow is the director of visual arts at Yeshivat Frisch in Paramus, New Jersey. She teaches the 9-12th grade art track, which includes artist beit midrash, as well as a 12th grade Biblical portraits Nach elective. 

Learn about the vital, sophisticated work of Reggio-inspired Jewish early childhood educators from two day school administrators and a field leader who is also the author of a recent dissertation. The conversation ranges from the ways that educators understand the minds of young students to the development of Jewish identity and creativity, with a glimpse into the state of the field as well.   Dr. Anna Hartman is the Director of Early Childhood Excellence at the Jewish United Fund in Chicago and the Director of the Paradigm Project. Carla Goldberg is the Director of Early Childhood and Admissions at Akiba Schechter Jewish Day School, in Chicago's Hyde Park. She has been a teacher at Akiba for 32 years  and the Director for 27 years. Abby Aloni is the Head of Early Childhood at Bernard Zell Anshe Emet Day School, an independent Jewish Day School located in the Lakeview area of Chicago. Entering her 25th year at Bernard Zell, Abby moved from the classroom to administration in 2008 as head of the Lower School and has held her current position since 2016. 

Where does Jewish history live in your curriculum, culture, and approach to education at your school? Jewish history is central to Jewish education, and can be a locus of meaning, authority, and knowledge for all Jewish day school students. Listen to this interesting discussion with Rachel Bergstein, Director of the Center for Excellence and Engagement in Jewish History and Jewish History Department Faculty Member at Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School and Rabbi Mitchel Malkus, Head of School at Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School in Rockville, MD. 

Learn from Rebecca Lurie and Dr. Jonah Hassenfeld how a leadership team structure that is aligned with institutional values has the capacity to effect impactful and sustained change within a school environment. Explore the process by which the organizational structure of Schechter Boston was transformed into a distributed leadership model. This Podcast Live episode was recorded in person at the Prizmah Conference in Denver, January 10, 2023. Rebecca Lurie is the head of school, and Dr. Jonah Hassenfeld is the director of learning and teaching, at Solomon Schechter Day School of Boston in Newton, Massachusetts.

How can Jewish schools ensure that their graduates go on to be stewards of democracy? And how can Jewish educators teach students to connect Jewish ethics to the practices of citizenship? The Brandeis School of San Francisco has been wrestling with these questions since the 2016 election cycle. Hear from head of school Dr. Dan Glass about how Brandeis has worked to connect Jewish ethics and democratic habits of mind, from daily classroom rituals to annual celebrations. Dr. Glass will share about the school’s ongoing “Mifgash Project,” a collaborative design project seeking to build out a K-8 model of experiential civic education rooted in Jewish values. Presenter Dr. Dan Glass, Head of School of The Brandeis School in San Francisco, previously held leadership roles at Wildwood School in Los Angeles and The Girls' Middle School in Palo Alto. He has written extensively on progressive education, Jewish spirituality and ethics, and contemporary poetry. A Bay Area native, Dan holds a Ph.D. in English from UC Davis, and a B.A. in English from UC Berkeley. He has published four collections of poetry, and has taught children and adults of all ages in subjects ranging from Ethics and Design to Poetics and Rap Music. Dan and his wife Kate have three daughters, two of whom are current Brandeis students.

Debby Artz-Mor, director of Jewish learning at the Brandeis School in San Francisco, and Rabbi David Stein, Judaics studies principal at Shalhevet High School in Los Angeles, join Sivan Zakai to discuss her new longitudinal study of Israel education , My Second Favorite Country. They consider understandings of "age-appropriate" learning that can impede educational engagement and exploration, discuss the relationship between school mission and student influences, and consider pedagogy that opens up student curiosity and discovery. Presenters Debby Arzt-Mor is the director of Jewish learning at The Brandeis School of San Francisco. Raised in Jerusalem, Debby has been living in San Francisco with her family for many years. As a member of Brandeis’ senior leadership team, Debby partners with faculty and staff in guiding Jewish and Hebrew programming and curriculum throughout the school. Debby is a cohort 10 graduate of The Davidson School’s Day School Leadership Training Institute, and of the Melton Senior Educators program at The Hebrew University. Debby holds a BA in psychology and Jewish philosophy (University of Haifa), and a graduate degree in nonprofit administration (USF). Rabbi David Stein is the Judaic studies principal at Shalhevet High School in Los Angeles as well as the co-founder and managing director of the LaHaV Curriculum Project. David attended Yeshiva College and RIETS for his undergraduate and semikhah studies, and also holds master’s degrees in mechanical engineering from Columbia University and in Jewish education from American Jewish University. He is currently studying towards his doctorate in education at Yeshiva University’s Azrieli Graduate School of Jewish Education & Administration and was a Wexner Graduate Fellow/Davidson Scholar. Sivan Zakai is the Sara S. Lee Associate Professor of Jewish Education at the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion and is an affiliated scholar at the Jack, Joseph, and Morton Mandel Center for Studies in Jewish Education at Brandeis University. In addition to directing the Children’s Learning About Israel Project and co-directing Project ORLIE: Research and Leadership in Israel Education, Sivan serves as a senior editor of the Journal of Jewish Education and as a member of the faculty of the Mandel Teacher Educator Institute.

How do students internalize and act out gender narratives in their relationships to their school, to different subjects, to their teachers and other students? How do teachers sometimes reinforce gender roles in the classroom, in ways that can harm students' confidence and limit their expression? Heads of school Jason Feld (Northwest Yeshiva High School in Mercer Island, WA) and Hannah Bennett (Briskin Elementary School at Temple Israel of Hollywood in Los Angeles, CA) join Jason Ablin to discuss these and other issues raised in Ablin's new book, The Gender Equation in Schools: How to Create Equity and Fairness for All Students.

What are we trying to achieve in Jewish education? What do martial arts have to teach us about pedagogy for Jewish learning? How do we think about community and autonomy, tradition and innovation, in day schools? Brandeis education professor Jon Levisohn is joined by heads of school Stephanie Ives at Beit Rabban in Manhattan and Rafi Cashman at Netivot HaTorah in Toronto to discuss what our schools are and might be.

At the center of the mission of Luria Academy is diversity as a core value. But what happens when you’ve achieved your goal and you have created a uniquely diverse community? What does it mean to be in relationship with people whose religious practice is different from yours? How do our students learn to approach one another from a place of curiosity and respect? How do we navigate political diversity in an increasingly polarized society? And how do we expand the lessons of the classroom into the parent community? Learn about Luria’s journey of diversity from conception to reality. Head of School Amanda Pogany presents the success and challenges of leading a diverse community in general and in this moment. Gain strategies for this work with students, faculty and parents.

We are the story we tell ourselves. In 2019, parents and school leaders at Brandeis Marin, a K-8 Jewish day school located in San Rafael, CA, began exploring ways to create a storytelling and story-capturing culture to enable deep, authentic and consistent connection within the school community. When the pandemic hit, the Brandeis Marin school community had developed its own version of The Moth (radio storytelling), doubling down on storytelling to deepen the sense of connection and belonging among its parents and in its community. Hear from Dr. Peg Sandel, Head of School and Barbara Cohen, Director of Techonology and Innovation at Brandeis Marin how a Jewish day school created a schoolwide initiative involving parents, teachers, students, staff, administrators and board members. 

Now that Covid is waning and classrooms feel close to the old normal, what have we learned from two years of online and hybrid pedagogy? Despite the challenges and drawbacks, are there things that remote learning enabled that we might preserve as we move forward? Hear a university researcher and two day school educators reflect on what was achieved during the pandemic.   Featuring: Michal Bessler has worked at Maimonides School in Boston for 27 years, where she now serves as the elementary school principal. Aviv Matzkin teaches Jewish Studies at Gideon Hausner Jewish Day School in Palo Alto, California. Dr. Ziva R. Hassenfeld is the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Assistant Professor of Jewish Education at Brandeis University. 

Alex Pomson and Jack Wertheimer, authors of the recent book Inside Jewish Day Schools: Leadership, Learning and Community, speak with two school leaders featured in the book, Erica Rothblum and Ami Neuman, about the stories that their schools tell as well as larger stories of the field. They reflect upon how to tell our stories, what stories have emerged over the past few years, and which stories we might be reading in the near future.   Dr. Alex Pomson is principal and managing director at Rosov Consulting. Dr. Jack Wertheimer is the Joseph and Martha Mendelson Professor of American Jewish History at The Jewish Theological Seminary. Dr. Erica Rothblum is the head of school at Pressman Academy in Los Angeles, a Conservative day school from early childhood to 8th grade. Rabbi Ami Neuman is the principal of the JEC High School, an Orthodox boys high school in Elizabeth, New Jersey.

Finding great teachers today seems harder than ever. According to a recent survey, 75% of first year teachers report that they were insufficiently prepared to meet the needs of students. At the same time, recruitment and retention challenges are leading to severe teacher shortages in schools across the country. We believe the solution for recruiting, developing, and retaining strong teachers begins inside the classroom. Prizmah Podcasts Live! Building on the medical residency model, the Shefa Teacher Residency provides aspiring teachers with an alternative pathway that is grounded in deep clinical training and intensive on-site mentoring and support. Learn about the creation and implementation of the Teacher Residency and how it recruits, trains, and retains excellent new teachers. Rebecca Ritter, Head of Teaching and Learning at the Shefa School will share successes, challenges, lessons learned, and considerations for setting up a teacher residency program and other impactful models of professional development and cultivation at your school.

What are Jewish schools doing to ensure that professional development is excellent and a top school priority? This conversation featuring Tammy Anagnostis, dean of Golda Och Academy's lower school, Rabbi Maccabee Avishur, academic dean and general studies principal at Heichal Hatorah, Dr. Arielle Levites, managing director of CASJE, Suzanne Mishkin, K-6 principal at Sager Solomon Schechter Day School and Flora Musleah, upper school dean of faculty at Golda Och Academy, starts from CASJE's recent study Career Trajectories of Jewish Educators and engages four day school educational leaders in the goals and methods of PD, the impact that it has on teachers' work and careers, and more.

Two directors of institutional advancement, Mandi Miller of Beth Tfiloh Dahan in Baltimore and Stephanie Bash-Soudry of Golda Och Academy in West Orange, New Jersey, delve into the nature of their role. They talk about the kinds of teamwork they perform with the administrative team and the faculty, and they discuss their work in ensuring that their schools' missions are powerful and in alignment with everything that takes place within the school and is communicated about the school.

The Jewish school is positioned at the nexus of the individual, the family and the community, bringing to light the opportunities and challenges of being a committed Jew in the modern world. The school can become a center for teacher learning and research. This can give teachers a public intellectual voice and ensure a vibrant, dynamic, entrepreneurial learning community able to advance educational initiatives for its own constituents. We will learn about the development of Machon Siach, the research arm of SAR High School, which seeks to shape the high school into a “thinking institution” by cultivating teacher-driven research and scholarship focused on questions central to Jewish education, curriculum and culture.

Rabbi Shmuel Feld interviews Rabbi David Aaron, Dean and Rosh Yeshiva of Orayta in Jerusalem on how to approach conversations about God with Jewish day school students. He asserts that belief should give people’s lives greater vitality and meaning rather than disempowering them. Produced by the Jewish Education Innovation Challenge (JEIC). 

Rabbi Shmuel Feld interviews Rabbi Dr. Michael Shire, Dean of the Shoolman Graduate School of Jewish Education at Hebrew College Boston, on how to approach conversations about God with Jewish day school students. Rabbi Dr. Shire distinguishes between teaching about the essence of God and the experience of God. Produced by the Jewish Education Innovation Challenge (JEIC). 

Rabbi Shmuel Feld interviews Rebbetzin Yehudis Golshevsky, Director of SHIVITI in Jerusalem, on how to approach conversations about God with Jewish day school students. She suggests that discussing belief is not necessarily about certainty in God; belief is about helping students find meaning in living in a Jewish way. Produced by the Jewish Education Innovation Challenge (JEIC). 

Ben Jacobs and Barry Chazan of George Washington University are joined by Rebecca Schorsch (Rochelle Zell Jewish High School, Chicago) and Hillel Broder (HALB, Long Island) to discuss "18 x 18," a blueprint for Jewish education that proposes areas of knowledge and experience that Jews should obtain by the age of 18.

Heads of school C. B. Neugroschl (Maayanot Yeshiva High School for Girls) and Rabbi Menachem Linzer (Hillel Torah) along with leadership coach Jane Taubenfeld Cohen join Josh Gold in a discussion of leadership coaching: what it is, how it works, why school leaders need it.

Two psychologists, Dr. Yali Werzberger, director of guidance and pupil personnel services at the Hebrew Academy of the Five Towns and Rockaway (HAFTR), and Dr. Mordechai Schiffman, assistant professor at Yeshiva University’s Azrieli Graduate School of Jewish Education, join Josh Gold in a timely discussion of the principles of positive psychology, its importance for teachers and students and its relation to Jewish values and texts.