Head of School 

Milwaukee Jewish Day School (MJDS), founded in 1981, is a pluralistic Jewish day school which currently serves 139 students Early Childhood, age 3, through Grade 8. Set in a beautiful residential Milwaukee neighborhood on a campus with other Jewish organizations, MJDS is a school where academic excellence and Jewish values are intertwined. The school’s commitment to empathy, wonder, and tikkun olam (responsibility for making the world a better place) forms the heart of the MJDS community and educational program. With innovative teaching, small class sizes, and faculty’s commitment to know each child throughout the school, MJDS supports students’ academic, personal, and spiritual growth. MJDS seeks an energetic, highly relational educational leader to serve as head of school beginning July 1, 2025. Mission and Values: Where academic excellence and Jewish values prepare children for a lifetime of success, leadership, and engagement with the world. At the heart of the MJDS experience are three core values that serve as guiding principles: Empathy: Students aim to understand and be sensitive to the feelings, thoughts, and experiences of others, Wonder: Students are encouraged to experience curiosity and appreciation of the world around them & Tikkun Olam: Students are taught that their responsibility, as Jews and as people, is to make the world a better place. MJDS is committed to being an authentic pluralistic community. Guided by the wisdom of Pirkei Avot 4 —”Who is wise? One who learns from all”—MJDS embraces the diversity within Judaism. By exploring the diversity of Jewish tradition, understanding, and expression, MJDS believes that individuals better understand their own Judaism. At MJDS, students and families are offered the experiences and tools to engage with the world, while creating meaningful Jewish time together. The school strives to nurture students into mensches, compassionate, responsible individuals. MJDS guides students in exploring their Jewish identities and connecting to the world around them, equipping them with the tools and values to thrive as thoughtful, engaged citizens and leaders. The MJDS rally cry Moving from me to we reflects its commitment to community and collective responsibility. Program: MJDS is a three-division school with one classroom per grade level. The Early Childhood program serves 39 students ages 3-5. The Lower School, currently enrolling 55 students, encompasses Grades 1-4, and Grades 5-8, 45 students currently, make up the Upper School. MJDS is a school of many strengths. In particular, a very positive school culture and community is a wonderful hallmark. In recent years, the school’s leadership has actively focused on encouraging collegiality and professionalism, recognizing the importance of not taking this for granted. MJDS has an engaging, innovative, effective curriculum, and its core values are well-rooted. The Board of Directors understands its role and partners effectively with the head of school. Thus, these key elements of a healthy school are well-established and will be appreciated by MJDS’s next head of school. MJDS’s most significant challenges are ones that numerous independent schools across the country are facing—diminished enrollment and financial sustainability. MJDS’s Board has recently launched a Sustainability Task Force that began its work in October 2024. The school has engaged Stonecipher Consulting to lead it through this project. The mission of the task force is to ensure the sustained excellence, growth, and operational and financial viability of MJDS by collaboratively identifying and recommending strategies to support the long-term success of the school. The outcomes of the work of this Task Force will offer the next head of school and the rest of the school’s leadership a road map of strategies. This work, coupled with the ISACS reaccreditation, will provide valuable insights for a new leader. In addition to the strategies that will result from the Task Force work, MJDS’s next head of school will need to be an active external ambassador, ensuring that the school is well and accurately known throughout the Milwaukee Jewish community, generating additional interest in the school. The new head of school will need to be energized by the opportunities to build key partnerships throughout the community, particularly the Milwaukee Jewish community. The Board recognizes that a head of school who will serve as a dynamic ambassador in the greater community will be important to realizing the goals of the Sustainability Task Force, including strengthening enrollment and growing endowment. The new head of school will have the opportunity to reimagine the roles of the lead administrators and overall staffing to ensure clarity and efficiencies in support of students, families, and staff. The new head of school will have the opportunity to champion the needs of faculty, support the positive collegial environment, ensuring that this great MJDS strength does not diminish. A new head of school will need to be equipped for and adept at listening to and responding well to families’ concerns, while working with the Director of Jewish Life and Learning to ensure that the school is meeting its mission and its commitment to pluralism. Some MJDS stakeholders believe that allowing non-Jewish children to enroll might enable MJDS to address some of its enrollment challenges. Currently, the only non-Jewish children who can enroll are children of staff. A new head of school will need to be prepared to engage in this conversation, balancing differing opinions and enrollment challenges. MJDS’s next head of school will have engaged and willing partners in the work ahead to strengthen and secure the school’s future. MJDS’s next head of school will embrace the school’s mission and exude its core values of empathy, wonder, and tikkun olam. They will be an experienced, collaborative leader and educator who has strong knowledge of and appreciation for Jewish values, embraces those values in their own life, and shares MJDS’s commitment to pluralism. Additionally, the next head of school will: Be a highly relational individual who authentically enjoys interacting with individuals of the many ages represented within the school’s community, Possess a track record of conceiving of and implementing strategic initiatives with successful outcomes as well as the ability to partner with and lead Board members and other stakeholders in securing MJDS’s future, Demonstrate the personal skills and enthusiasm to serve as a compelling chief ambassador both within the school community and throughout the Milwaukee Jewish community, Understand and be energized by fundraising and marketing, enjoying the opportunities to encourage others to invest in MJDS’s students and its future, Revel in the opportunity a small school enables to balance the internal and external pieces of a head of school’s responsibilities, and possess a track record that underscores the ability to prioritize competing demands, Be an effective, inspiring, and adept communicator in both small and large group settings, able to listen well and engage in challenging conversations with ease and empathy, Appreciate MJDS’s educational approaches to student-centered learning, academic rigor, and an innovative curriculum, and engage knowledgably in discussions of pedagogy, both secular and Judaic, and Serve as a compelling role model, possess a sense of humor, and exude infectious joyfulness. The MJDS community is tightly knit, bound by a shared mission and clear core values that permeate every aspect of the school. The deep pride and purpose that faculty, families, and students share create a vibrant and purposeful learning environment. With the support of a dedicated Board of Directors and administrative leadership team, MJDS fosters a culture that celebrates collaboration and works towards a singular goal: providing an education infused with Jewish tradition that equips students for the future. The opportunity to join this community and lead this vibrant school is a wonderful opportunity for an enthusiastic school leader. Please send electronically: Resume, Letter of Interest and Educational Philosophy or Personal Statement to: Samantha Brennan, Senior Consultant or Jane Armstrong, Managing Partner, Independent Thinking, [email protected] & [email protected]. Full-time. 

(11/18/24)