Leadership Community of Practice

One of PEJE's goals is to foster the development of day school boards "composed of individuals who have well-developed skills and expertise, who understand their role in keeping the school's mission in trust, and who excel in strategic thinking and in resource development."

To help achieve this goal, PEJE created the Leadership COP, formerly known as the PEJE Lay Leadership Network. This COP currently reaches more than 100 schools and has approximately 300 participants on the listserve.

The Leadership COP provides varied opportunities for leaders to learn together, share information and ideas, solve problems, and provide support. Through telephone workshops, in conjunction with ongoing discussions on the COP listserv, members have focused on such relevant topics as:

• Governance & Policy Issues for Independent School Leaders
• Strategic Planning
• Building the Board/Head of School Partnership
• Planning an Annual Campaign
• Building an Endowment Fund
• Head Search
• Leadership Transition
• Synagogue/School Relationships

There is no charge to participate in the CoP. To join, send your name, board position / membership and email address along with a brief paragraph about your school to PEJE Staff.

Conference Call PowerPoint Presentations

• How You Tell Your Stories Can Make Your School Stronger
  May 11, 2010, Gail Hyman and Pearl Kane (Guests)
• The Role of the HOS and the Board In Philanthropy: Who is Responsible? And What Strategies Work - Part II
  March 9, 2010, Doris Feinberg, President, The Prospero Group, Michelle Friedman, President, Ida Crown Jewish Academy, Bruce Powell, HOS, New Jewish Community High School (Guests)
• The Role of the HOS and the Board In Philanthropy: Who is Responsible And What Strategies Work - Part I
  January 27, 2010, Doris Feinberg, President, The Prospero Group, Michelle Friedman, President, Ida Crown Jewish Academy, Bruce Powell, HOS, New Jewish Community High School (Guests)
• How the PEJE Board Excellence Measurement Tool Will Improve Your Board
  December 10, 2009, Cheryl R. Finkel, PEJE Senior Consultant, Linda Mann Simansky, PEJE Senior Program Manager, Board Leadership, Senior Manager, PEJE Governance and Board Relations, Vice President, Governance, SSDS Greater Boston (Guests)
• Evaluating the HOS through an Executive Support and Appraisal Team (ESAT)
  October 14, 2009, Jonathan Schick, President, GOAL Consulting (Guest)
• Strengthening the Fabric of the Board Through Volunteer - Professional Staff Relationships
  September 14, 2009, Stephen G. Donshik, D.S.W (Guest)
• Transition of the Board President: A Time for Opportunity and Growth
  June 10, 2009, Leo Sprecher, Outgoing President, Elizabeth Jick, Incoming President, Rabbi Marc Baker, Head of School, Gann Academy, Waltham, MA (Guest)
• Real Data to Implement Real Change: 2009 Benchmark Report
  May 18, 2009, Rabbi Derek Gavshon, HOS Tarbut V'Torah Community Day School, Edward Heyman, former Board Chair Tarbut V'Torah Community Day School, Sacha Litman, Measuring Success, Devorah Kosowsky, PEJE (Guest)
• Recruiting Right: Start Looking Right Now for the Right Trustees for Your School
  April 27, 2009, Marla J. Bobowick (Guest)
• Creative Hiring: Sharing Staff in the Current Economy
  March 16, 2009, Alan Silverman, Gale Osborne, and Barbie Prince(Guests)
• The Economic Crisis and Jewish Day School Education: Strategic and Tactical Responses
  January 22, 2009, Dr. Chaim Y. Botwinick, President/CEO, Center for Advancement of Jewish Education, Miami, FL(Guests) Linda Greenseid( Facilitator)
  Download presentation mp3- Duration: 56mins 42secs | File size: 14.3MB
• The Head Search: Asking Questions that Lead to a Successful Match
  December 17, 2008, Rabbi Steven Brown, HOS, Jack M. Barack Hebrew Academy, Cindy Pogrund, President, Chicagoland Jewish High School, Brenda Freedman, President, Kadimah School(Guests)
• What the HOS/Principal Needs from the President- Round 2
  November 10, 2008, Dr. Zvi Schoenburg, Head of School, Gesher Jewish Day School, Fairfax, VA and Allison Oakes, Head of School, Solomon Schechter Day School of Palm Beach County(Guests)
• What the HOS/Principal Needs from the President
  October 6, 2008, Dr. Zvi Schoenburg, Head of School, Gesher Jewish Day School, Fairfax, VA and Allison Oakes, Head of School, Solomon Schechter Day School of Palm Beach County(Guests)
• Dashboards: What They Are and How They Help
  September 17, 2008, Lawrence Butler, Maguire Associates, Ken Golden, MetroWest Jewish Day School(Guests)
• A Board Contract or Brit: What is it? How Can it Help Your School?
  June 25, 2008
• How to Make your Board More Effective
  May 28, 2008, Professor Richard Chait from the Harvard Graduate School of Education
• Experiences from the Field: Stages of a Head Search
  February 15, 2007, CoP members Michael Zucker (President, Akiba Academy, Dallas, TX), Ed Heyman (Immediate Past-President, Tarbut V'Torah, Irvine, CA), and Roger Miller (Vice President, Lehrman Community Day School, Miami Beach, FL) (Guests)
• Providing for Head Growth Through Support and Evaluation
  January 31, 2007, Mollie Aczel (Facilitator)
• Board-Head Alignment: The Key to a Long, Productive Relationship
  January 17, 2007, Jennifer Bush, President of Level Smart, Inc. (Guest)

Relevant Reading

• Independent Perspective: The NAIS Governance Survey, 2006
• ISACS monograph listings on School/Head Leadership
  Among the monographs are:
  • Compensation Trends for Head of School
  • Head of School Contracts
  • Leadership of Schools & the Longevity of Heads
  • Effective Heads of School
• More resources can be found on the PEJE Governance page "Board/Head Relationship"

Voices from the Field: Finding Value in the Leadership CoP

"Personally I have found the opportunity provided by email conversation among lay leaders to be a great place to ask questions, brainstorm, receive lots of information from other lay leaders all over the country - many of whom who have already dealt with the very questions being asked."

Renee Finn, Founding Chair, Metro West Jewish Day School, Framingham, MA

"We had a board meeting last night, and the PEJE strategic planning call was referenced no less than 10 times. Clearly it had an impact on a bunch of our board members, and certainly raised the level of discussion."

David Abusch-Magder, Trustee, Solomon Schechter Day School, Essex and Union County, N.J.

"Thank you for the opportunity to participate in such an excellent conference (call). PEJE really is (on) the cutting edge of what has to happen if day school education is to stay where it must in order to meet the demands of our constituent families. Yasher Koach and thank you again."

Judith Rose, David Posnack Hebrew Day School, Plantation, FL.