In recent weeks, we have seen leadership issue calls to our local and national Jewish communities to expand their financial investments in Jewish day school education. We at the Mayberg Foundation agree that “the best way to fight antisemitism is with Jewish pride and Jewish joy,” as Prizmah Board Chair Lisa Popik Coll and Vice Chair Gail Norry wrote in “The next billion-dollar gift” (eJewishPhilanthropy, July 17); and that “there remains significant room for transformative philanthropy” in the Jewish education space, as Orthodox Union Executive Vice President Rabbi Moshe Hauer’s posited in “Transformational gifts for our schools and homes” (eJewishPhilanthropy, July 22).

Philanthropy plays a critical role in ensuring that students enter day schools, and that families can afford for their children to stay there. But there is another vital aspect of the Jewish day school experience that also requires significant investment: its outcomes. We need to guarantee that the education provided impacts students’ lives, and especially their connection to Judaism. Such an important goal requires personal dedication to and financial support for providing an outstanding and inspired Jewish experience.  

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As supporters of both local day schools and national day school initiatives, the Mayberg Foundation has focused on investing in the quality of Jewish day schools. Some of our colleagues center on excellence in general studies, important to producing Jewish students who will contribute to the society they live in and making day schools competitive in their local markets. Our dedication to proliferating Jewish wisdom and values in the contemporary world led us to establish the Jewish Education Innovation Challenge (JEIC), which seeks to ignite students’ passion for Jewish learning by improving the way Jewish values, literacy, practice and beliefs are transferred to the next generation. The Mayberg Foundation, among others, continues to support the evolving work of JEIC. 

The best educators help students make Judaism applicable to their lives in engaging, contemporary and customizable ways, and advancing excellence in the field of day school education depends upon a vigorous commitment to ongoing professional growth of teachers and school leaders. If we want our classrooms to be places of relevance, acceptance and spiritual nourishment, we must invest in the people who have committed their lives to the holy work of Jewish education. Research shows that teachers need consistent, relevant and focused professional development to be the most effective in the classroom; and that schools with embedded high-quality professional development (HQPD) provide students with the most engaging, impactful academic experience and teachers with a more satisfying work environment.

The DEEP (Developing Embedded Expertise Programs) Consortium, a project of JEIC, brings together 17 independent organizations — and that number is still growing — that provide high-quality professional development to educators in Jewish day schools. DEEP Consortium members partner with Jewish day schools, helping them access HQPD to support professional growth, promote staff retention and foster student success. All of these organizations rely on philanthropic support to develop and scale their programs, and so do the schools they serve.

The only way to achieve impact at scale is through partnerships with other funders, including national/local collaborations. As Mayberg Foundation trustee Manette Mayberg wrote in eJP three summers ago:

“Funders… can convey a clear expectation that Jewish education delivers a package of foundational wisdom, values and relationship building that empowers every student and builds positive Jewish identity, in addition to providing skills training and exposing students to Jewish texts. We need to partner with one another and with professionals.” 

Our foundation has been fortunate to work alongside others who recognize that the most direct way to impact the lives of children is to have excellent teachers to serve as role models and mentors. But we need more people to join the crusade. 

Whether you are a day school parent, a local lay leader or a Jewish community member who is becoming ever increasingly concerned about the Jewish future in North America, I hope you will  come to see yourself as an investor in the quality of Jewish education. You can invest your financial resources in your community’s schools, and you can also invest your time by advocating for high-quality professional development in your school community, supporting your school’s faculty in enhancing our children’s Jewish educational experience. 

Become a partner in a local effort to strengthen Jewish day school education. Our children are waiting for you. 

Rachel Mohl Abrahams is the senior advisor for education grants and programs at the Mayberg Foundation. She brings over 25 years of experience in Jewish educational project design, program management and evaluation to her work as a grantmaker and change agent.