This article is part of a series expounding on key ideas raised at AJ2026 on March 4 in Miami, one of an ongoing series of conferences organized by Reut USA focused on the future of American Jewry.

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Illustrative. Students in a Jewish day school classroom.

For decades, the American Jewish community has debated the future of Jewish continuity. We have invested in advocacy, Israel experiences, leadership development, synagogues, camps, Hillels, security initiatives and countless other worthy causes.

Yet after the Oct. 7 attacks and the wave of antisemitism that followed, we were forced to face a hard truth: Too many young Jews are stepping onto college campuses unprepared — not just to defend Israel or Jewish identity, but to even understand them in any real, lasting way.

Many cannot explain Zionism beyond a handful of slogans. They do not know the story of modern Israel, the pioneers who built it or the generations who struggled to keep it alive. Some have never heard the names Chaim Weizmann or Ze’ev Jabotinsky, let alone the larger story that led to the birth of the Jewish state.

This is not a failure of our young people; it is a failure of our own making. We cannot expect young Jews to defend an identity they were never truly given the chance to understand.

The truth is that we already know one of the strongest tools for building lifelong Jewish identity, literacy, confidence and continuity: Jewish day school education. 

And yet, we have still not found the will to make it the norm.

Today, there are an estimated 1.6 million Jewish children in the United States. Of those, only approximately 292,000 attend Jewish day schools. Among non-Orthodox Jewish children, the number is dramatically smaller. Roughly 98% of non-Orthodox Jewish children in America are not receiving a full-time Jewish education.

This should set off alarm bells for every Jewish leader, philanthropist and parent in America.

For too long, we convinced ourselves that a few hours of Hebrew school each week could serve as the backbone of Jewish continuity. Too often, Hebrew school became little more than a bar or bat mitzvah boot camp. When the ceremony ended, so did one’s Jewish education.

I know this story because I lived it. Like so many in my generation, I dreaded Hebrew school. It felt lifeless, cut off from the world and from joy. We memorized prayers by rote, rarely understanding a word. We learned just enough to get through a bar mitzvah, then moved on. Ironically, it was Jewish summer camp and trips to Israel that truly anchored my Jewish identity.

This is why immersive Jewish education is not a luxury, but a necessity.

I have watched five of my own grandchildren pass through Jewish day schools. The difference is unmistakable. Their closest friendships were forged there. Their sense of Jewish identity and connection to Israel is rooted and unshakable. They know who they are.

A child who attends Jewish day school, spends summers at Jewish camp and visits Israel is already most of the way home. The good news is that this problem is not only solvable; it is more within reach than most of us realize.

For years, many assumed expanding Jewish day schools required building massive stand-alone campuses costing $35 million or more. That model may work in some communities, but it cannot scale quickly enough or affordably enough to meet the moment we are now facing.

But another model is emerging, one rooted in operational efficiency, scalability and smart growth. As someone who spent decades building franchise businesses and hospitality companies, I recognize a scalable model when I see one.

Organizations such as Tamim Academy, a network of schools with locations around the country and in Canada, and others are demonstrating that it is possible to create high-quality Jewish day schools at a fraction of the traditional cost by leveraging centralized operational support, shared curriculum resources, teacher development and existing community infrastructure. In many cases, these schools are growing directly out of Jewish preschools that already exist inside Chabad centers, synagogues, JCCs and community campuses across North America.

Pause and consider what is possible.

Hundreds of Jewish preschools already welcome young families. Parents trust them. Children feel at home. The buildings and relationships are already there. Yet after preschool, too many children simply vanish into the public school system. Why do we let them slip away? Why are we not building a natural bridge from preschool into kindergarten, first grade and eventually a full Jewish education?

Today, approximately 200 Chabad locations already operate preschools. Many community centers and synagogues do as well. These are not theoretical opportunities. They are existing entry points.

Even more remarkable is the economics. Some of these newer school models estimate that a school can be launched and supported for approximately $700,000, including centralized administrative support and educational infrastructure. That means that for approximately $50 million-$56 million over five years, the Jewish community could potentially help launch 80 additional schools.

Let’s stop and put that in perspective.

The Jewish community has successfully raised hundreds of millions of dollars for extraordinary initiatives like Birthright Israel, which has had an enormous impact. Major Jewish philanthropists and foundations regularly fund projects in the tens of millions of dollars.

So why does the idea of expanding Jewish education still feel out of reach?

This is not a funding-capacity problem. It is a prioritization problem.

If we can fund experiences that strengthen Jewish identity for 10 days, surely, we can fund schools that strengthen it for 10 years. This is not just about religion. It is about resilience, about literacy, about continuity. It is about making sure the next generation of Jewish children know who they are before the world tries to tell them otherwise.

We also have to face another uncomfortable truth. Many parents are growing uneasy with what their children encounter in public schools. Since Oct. 7, 2023, some Jewish families have become deeply worried about what their children hear, or do not hear, about Israel, antisemitism and Jewish history.

Jewish day schools are no longer simply an educational alternative. For many families, they are becoming a communal necessity. The question is no longer if Jewish philanthropy will act, but when. The urgency of this moment demands a unified, immediate commitment to expanding day school access. Our children and our future cannot wait.

I am convinced that if even a small group of major foundations, philanthropists and communal leaders came together, we could open the doors to Jewish day schools for thousands more children within five years.

Not every school will succeed. No model ever works perfectly. In my own career, some efforts thrived, others faltered. But you learn, you adapt and you keep building.

What matters is that we stop thinking small and start acting with the scale this moment demands. The Jewish community has never lacked generosity. What we sometimes lack is alignment around solving problems at scale. This is one of the most solvable continuity challenges we face. We do not need another round of studies. We do not need another decade of conferences. We do not need to reinvent the wheel.

Now is the time for bold leadership, for coordination, for commitment. Stand up and say, without hesitation, that investing in Jewish education is the single most powerful step we can take for the future of American Jewry. The time to act is now.

For decades, we asked if we could afford to expand Jewish education.

After Oct. 7, the choice is clear: act boldly to expand Jewish education now, or risk losing the next generation. The time for indecision is over; it is our responsibility to respond.

Mike Leven is a philanthropist, business leader and the founder of the Jewish Future Promise. He is chair of the board of the Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism & Policy, serves on the boards of the Marcus Foundation, Jewish National Fund and AEPi Fraternity Foundation and is an honorary board member of the Birthright Israel Foundation.