Message from the Head of School Jonathan Levy, Ph.D.
S
ome 30 years ago, a young mother escaped Russia and moved to Canada. Not knowing anyone, she approached a Jewish day school administrator looking for a suitable place where her child could be educated. Without any hesitation or thought to language or financial barriers, the principal simply told this woman that her daughter, a Jewish child, needed to go to a Jewish school, and accepted her. I recently heard from the young girl about how the acceptance to that school all those years ago changed the course of her life. My mother, Cooki Levy z”l, the principal who accepted this young girl, was a legend in the field of Jewish education, first as a teacher, then as a principal, head of school and consultant. Her knowledge, expertise, compassion, leadership and sense of humour were well known. What is less well known is that in 1988, she taught a class of 15-year-old boys, of which I was one. Perhaps it was our first “professional” experience together as my career ultimately arced after hers. We had frequent discussions about Jewish education, values and visions, and even had the opportunity to give presentations together. Her ideals influenced me profoundly: educate the whole child, set a high bar, show compassion, and never underestimate the value your small role in someone’s education can have over the direction of their life. TanenbaumCHAT shares many of these fundamental values and I suppose that is what drew me to the school 12 years ago. With a robust New Stream program that provides a Jewish education to those who have never attended Jewish school before, extraordinary curricular and extra-curricular options, and a commitment to tuition accessibility, TanenbaumCHAT is strongly positioned to continue to provide an outstanding education to the next generations of Toronto Jews. My mother would be very proud. ◆
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