The Jewish Community Centre of Krakow (JCC Krakow) is launching an Early Childhood Center in the heart of the city’s Jewish district (Kazimierz). This will be the first full-time, pluralistic Jewish nursery school in Krakow since before World War II.

The Early Childhood Center, to be named “Frajda” meaning “joy” in both Yiddish and Polish will serve the growing number of young Jewish families in Krakow. Frajda will provide a comprehensive Jewish curriculum focusing on the holidays, history, and Jewish identity. The newly designed, state-of-the-art space is being created in consultation with leading Jewish early childhood experts from Poland, the United States, and Israel.

The NYC-based Eric and Erica Schwartz Family Foundation has provided a lead grant for the initiative.

Simultaneously, the Ronald S. Lauder Foundation is undertaking the annual security needs of the Center. Ambassador Ronald S. Lauder was the first philanthropist to commit serious resources to rebuilding Jewish life in Poland after 1990, including restoration efforts in the Kazimierz district and its seven historic synagogues, as well as numerous educational initiatives serving the Jewish population of Krakow. The Foundation today is the largest provider of Jewish education in Poland through the Lauder Morasha School in Warsaw, and the Lauder E-Learning School for Jewish children in small communities across the country.