Amid a national spike in Jewish day school enrollment, Prizmah: Center for Jewish Day Schools welcomed nearly 1,500 day-school educators, professionals and lay leaders to its biennial conference in Boston to hear from leading experts in Jewish education on how schools can continue to develop the next generation of Jewish leaders and thinkers.
The terrorist attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, were an ever-present theme at the conference. Israeli musician Shlomi Shaban and acclaimed journalist Romy Neumark opened the gathering and spoke about the response of artists in Israel following the attacks and the role of music in bringing comfort. The parents of Israeli hostage Omer Neutra shared his story with all conference participants.
“Just like the broader Jewish community, day schools have experienced seismic shifts since Oct. 7,” said Paul Bernstein, CEO of Prizmah. “We wanted the conference to reflect what we’re all experiencing. Families are turning to our schools for so much at this moment—a sense of community, safety, instilling knowledge and Jewish pride in their children. Our professional and lay leaders are delivering, and we know there is still much more we can do to meet our community’s needs.”
School leaders and educators engaged in high-quality learning, meaningful collaboration, and intentional networking with the Prizmah Network of more than 300 schools from across North America. With more than 130 interactive sessions, four incredibly inspiring shared experiences, and more than 65 exhibitors, the conference fostered electric energy, supporting and equipping Jewish day schools and yeshivas with the skills and tools they need to continue thriving.
“There was something very powerful about being in a ballroom with 1,500 educators who all share a common goal of educating Jewish children,” said Naomi Maron, general studies principal of the elementary-school division at Ben Porat Yosef in New Jersey. “I look forward to sharing what I learned with my teachers.”
The day before the conference, more than 275 local Boston Jewish day-school and yeshivah educators from 13 schools came together for “Educator Day,” a fully customized professional development experience. This day of learning and connecting provided teachers the opportunity to engage in valuable lessons, build skills, and gain valuable tools and techniques to enhance their classroom instruction.
Prizmah unveiled a national “You Can Be Anything” marketing campaign to help schools reach families who never considered or previously dismissed a day-school education. Leaders are looking to build on recent momentum reflected in a survey of 121 schools last fall showing a 1.3% increase in 2024-25 compared to 2023-24.
Alumni shared their experiences on college campuses today and their leadership roles in support of Israel and responding to antisemitism. Many noted in sessions how vital their day school was in shaping their identity instilling in them confidence and a sense of responsibility. The conference also addressed challenging topics that nearly all schools have dealt with over the last year and a half. In one session panelists discussed the need for Israel education to embrace complexity.
In another session featuring Rachel Fish of Boundless, Tamara Tweel of the Teagle Foundation and Erica Brown of Yeshiva University, speakers encouraged schools to reach out of their comfort zones to engage other people, not be insular and to have authentic conversations. “There’s a healthy tension between universalism and particularism,” said Tweel. “We need to practice that tension in the laboratories of our school.”
The conference was made possible with the generous support of an anonymous donor, Beit Avi Chai, Michelle and Darren Black, Combined Jewish Philanthropies, Crown Family Foundation, Risa and Zev Gewurz, Renee and Steven Finn, Jewish Education Innovation Challenge, Jim Joseph Foundation, Leifer Family Fund, Mayberg Foundation, Micah Philanthropies, Jessica and Chuck Meyers, The Beker Foundation, UnitEd, Walder Foundation, Weisfeld Family Charitable Foundation, Arnee R. and Walter A. Winshall, and the Yael Foundation.
