Solomon Schechter Day School Association
The Solomon Schechter Day School Association is the organization of Jewish day school that identify with Conservative Judaism. The association provides guidance and resources for its member schools in the United States and Canada. The express mission of the association is to promote:
"the continued growth and vitality of its member schools, which serve a broad Jewish population and are characterized by Conservative thought and practice, high academic achievement and social responsibility, in a culture of joyous spiritual engagement, caring and community."
Among the association's major achievements is the publication, in conjunction with the Melton Research Center, of the MaToK curriculum, an educationally sophisticated and appealing set of materials for the teaching of Torah in elementary schools that combines the commitment to tradition, Hebrew and inquiry which are hallmarks of the Conservative movement's approach. Writing and production of the curriculum were made possible by a generous grant from the Jim Joseph Foundation. The association provides mentoring for new school heads; a fellowship that helps place a recent recipient of a rabbinical degree or graduate degree in Jewish education into an educational leadership position in one of the Schechter schools; placement services; consultation in such areas as the teaching of prayer; regional conferences on educational subjects for teachers and administrators; and support for curricular and marketing initiatives.
The first Conservative day school, Beth El Day School in Rockaway Park, New York, opened in 1951. During the 1950s and 60s, additional schools opened throughout the country as parents began to seek schools that combined high general academic standards, authentic Jewish study and life, and open intellectual inquiry in all areas of study.
The first school to adopt the name of Rabbi Solomon Schechter, the founder of Conservative Judaism in its 20th century form, was the Solomon Schechter School of Queens, New York, opened in 1956. In 1966, Solomon Schechter School of Westchester opened in White Plains. The Hillel Day School in Farmington Hills, Michigan a suburb of Detroit, celebrated its 50th Anniversary in (2007).
The first west coast Schechter school was Akiba Academy in Los Angeles, brought into existence in 1968 by a loose coalition of rabbis and leaders of several congregations. As additional day schools opened in Los Angeles, it merged with its host congregation and is today known as Sinai Akiba Academy.
Also well known are the Solomon Schechter Day School of Greater Boston (located in Newton, MA, was founded in 1961 and currently enrolling over 500 students; the Solomon Schechter School of Manhattan; and Perelman Academy in Philadelphia.
By 1968, a high school in Brooklyn, New York was opened. Today there are approximately 50 Solomon Schechter Day Schools, including several high schools. Despite the dropping numbers of Conservative Jews worldwide, some of the Solomon Schechter Schools have continued to increase their number of students. One such school is the Solomon Schechter Day School of Essex and Union (NJ) which currently has over 800 students enrolled and has grown steadily since its founding in 1965. The school is also one of the largest, consisting of two campuses, an Upper and Lower School, both located in West Orange, New Jersey. Solomon Schechter School of Westchester opened a new upper school campus in Hartsdale, New York in 2001. The school now also has two campuses both in Westchester, with more than 900 students in grades K-12.
[edit] See also
- Torah Umesorah-National Society for Hebrew Day Schools (the Orthodox day school association)
[edit] External links
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