Brandeis Today

Over the past eight months, a committee of Brandeis leadership team members, current parents, and alumni parents have been meeting regularly to develop the school’s next Strategic Plan. This thoughtful process builds on the strong foundation established by Brandeis’ previous strategic plan and reflects our shared commitment to ensuring the school continues to thrive for generations to come.

For those who may be less familiar with the process, independent schools regularly engage in strategic planning as a way to examine their priorities and publicly articulate their goals. At Brandeis, this work is closely connected to the California Association of Independent Schools (CAIS) reaccreditation cycle, which takes place every seven years. We are proud to share that Brandeis received full reaccreditation through the 2031–2032 school year last spring. As part of that process, the visiting team also identified a set of “future planning” goals, which have helped shape the starting point for this new plan as we look ahead to the next five to seven years.

 

The Strategic Planning Steering Committee, led by Director of Admissions Angela Dalfen, and co-chaired by Brandeis trustees Anat Shiwak Harry, Ruth Katz, and Head of School Dr. Dan Glass, has been reviewing a wide range of information, including recent surveys from parents, students, faculty, and staff. We have been fortunate to draw on the guidance of longtime consultant Ariel Raz of the Stanford d.school, whose expertise in design thinking has helped many K–12 schools spark innovation and creativity. His work with the committee has helped us approach this process with curiosity, collaboration, and a focus on the future. Together, the group has been exploring ideas and opportunities that will help Brandeis continue to grow while staying deeply rooted in its mission and values.

Several big-picture themes are emerging as central to the next phase of the school’s development, including:

The committee has already developed an early draft of the Strategic Plan and has begun gathering feedback from faculty and staff. Following a close review by the Board of Trustees, the committee will continue refining the plan this spring. In the coming months, we will also invite broader community feedback before publishing the final version ahead of the summer.

For alumni and alumni families, this process represents a meaningful opportunity to reconnect with the school and help shape its future. Your experiences and perspectives are an important part of the Brandeis story, and we hope many of you will choose to share your insights as the process continues.

Strategic planning at Brandeis has always been a community effort. As we look ahead to the next chapter, we are excited to engage voices from across our extended community,past, present, and future, to help guide the vision for what comes next. Please be on the lookout for an email inviting you to participate.

*2025-26 Strategic Plan Steering Committee: Anat Shiwak (trustee, current parent, alumni parent), Ruth Katz (trustee, alumni parent), Lynette Stejskal (trustee, alumni parent), Udi Ledergor (trustee, current parent), Franklin Huang (trustee, current parent, alumni parent), Mark Bernstein (current parent), Danielle Foreman (trustee, current parent), Joseph Tartakovsky (trustee, current parent), Angela Dalfen (staff, alumni parent), Dan Glass (staff, current parent, alumni parent), Malika Densby (staff), Stacy Youkilis (staff, current parent, alumni parent), Sivan Tarle (staff, current parent), Jenny Rinn (staff).

From a rainy arrival to misty mornings and all the sunshine that revealed Sonoma’s beauty, our first year celebrating Sukkot in Sonoma as a community was memorable in every way. Being together in a setting designed for families of all ages, where swimming, arts and crafts, and shared meals happened side by side, made the experience especially meaningful.

With the support of the incredible Camp Newman staff, we were able to make full use of the property and offer rich programming for our community. Highlights included tie-dye for all ages, a high-energy silent disco, a warm and tenderhearted community led morning Shabbat service, and a joyful, multi-generational talent show, culminating in Havdalah under the stars.

While our tradition of celebrating Sukkot in Yosemite will always hold a special place in our hearts, this new setting reminded us that even beloved traditions can grow, and that making room for something new can deepen connection in unexpected ways.

As one family shared, “The community building across grades, and within our own grade, was incredible. Being in a closed environment where kids could run free meant adults had more time to connect. Every year, please. Let’s make it a tradition.”

Our Encountering Democracy: The מפגש (Mifgash) Project, funded through a generous three-year Signature Grant from The Covenant Foundation, set out with an ambitious vision: to create a K–8 curriculum on civic engagement and Jewish American history. At Brandeis, this work has become a cornerstone of how we help students explore what it means to live ethically, engage thoughtfully, and act democratically, all through the lens of Jewish values.

This year, three Brandeis faculty members—Clare Wadbrook (8th Grade Humanities and English), Emma Kuykendall (Middle School Humanities), and Margot Cooke (4th Grade General Studies)—are building on that foundation through their participation in the Civic Spirit Educators Cohort.

Civic Spirit’s yearlong fellowship brings together teachers from faith-based schools across the country for an in-person summer institute and ongoing virtual convenings. The program strengthens participants’ knowledge and skills as civic educators and introduces innovative approaches that can be applied directly in the classroom.

In August, our faculty joined the Civic Spirit 2025 National Educators Cohort Summer Institute at the New York Historical Society. The program opened with scholar-led seminars on pivotal American texts, pedagogy workshops facilitated by New York Historical and Civic Spirit educators, and hands-on training in guiding dialogue across divisive issues. Clare shared that the experience sparked concrete ideas for her own classroom:

 

“I came away with fresh strategies to deepen student inquiry—like pairing historical texts with structured dialogue protocols that help students listen to and challenge each other respectfully. It was energizing to see how small shifts in practice can empower students to see themselves as active participants in civic life.”

Margot shared how the conference also encouraged faculty to think about the bigger picture of civic education at Brandeis. Meeting colleagues across grade levels prompted conversations about how social studies can be experienced not as isolated courses, but as a continuous journey through the grades. “We are all using primary sources and historical texts in different ways,” she reflected, “but have we had a chance to build a curricular text set of American history’s most pivotal moments? Can we sequence question protocols that promote deeper civic engagement as students grow?” For her, the conference affirmed the many things Brandeis is already doing well to engage students as learners and citizens, while also opening up new opportunities to strengthen civic discourse in the years ahead.

Through this fellowship, our faculty are connecting with peers across faith traditions, exchanging ideas, and bringing back strategies to enrich civic education at Brandeis. Their participation strengthens our commitment to ensuring that civic learning is not just an academic exercise, but a lived expression of Jewish values and community responsibility.

At Brandeis, we know that preparing students to be engaged citizens is core to our mission. With leadership from our faculty in the Civic Spirit Cohort, our students will continue to grow as thoughtful leaders who understand that repairing the world, tikkun olam, begins in the classroom and extends far beyond.

On June 8, 2025, the Brandeis community came together to celebrate the retirement of our beloved Director of Jewish Learning, Debby Arzt-Mor. The afternoon was filled with warmth, laughter, and heartfelt tributes to Debby’s extraordinary impact on Jewish life at our school. We’re honored to share the text of the speech delivered by Head of School Dr. Dan Glass, capturing the spirit of the moment and Debby’s enduring legacy.

It’s hard to believe we’ve reached the moment of celebrating Debby’s retirement. Not because it was unexpected—Debby has approached this transition with her characteristic thoughtfulness—but because it’s nearly impossible to imagine Brandeis without her daily presence. For over two decades, Debby has been at the heart of Jewish learning at our school, shaping not just curriculum, but community, values, and a shared sense of purpose.

From the beginning, Debby has led with vision, integrity, and compassion. She redefined what Jewish education could look like at Brandeis—not something limited to a classroom or a subject line on a report card, but something lived. One of her earliest moves after I became Head of School was changing her title from “Director of Judaic Studies and Hebrew” to “Director of Jewish Learning.” It was a small but powerful shift that reflected Debby’s deeply held belief: Jewish learning is everywhere. It happens during tefillah, on field trips, in acts of justice, in lunchtime conversations, and in the stories we tell and hear every day. It belongs to all of us.

 

That expansive, inclusive vision is the hallmark of Debby’s leadership. She invited every member of the Brandeis community—students, teachers, parents, visitors—into Jewish learning with warmth, humor, and deep respect. She helped create a culture where we all saw ourselves as educators and learners, where Jewish practice was joyful, meaningful, and relevant.

Debby also empowered our teachers to keep learning and growing. Under her guidance, faculty pursued advanced degrees, brought new traditions into the classroom, and deepened their own relationships with Jewish texts and practices. She nurtured a spirit of inquiry and curiosity that radiates through our hallways.

As a tribute to her remarkable impact, we commissioned a special artwork by Brandeis alumni parent and artist Aimee Golant. Inspired by Debby’s love of walking by the sea and her commitment to Torah and learning, the piece features a quote from Pirkei Avot:

When I think of Debby, I picture her laughing with us as we wrestle with big questions about Brandeis and Jewish life—and I see her leaning in close as a fifth grader chants Torah for the very first time. She has lived her role as a disciple of Aaron, seeking peace and embodying a profound love for Judaism, for the Jewish people, and for humanity.

Debby, you have been a teacher, mentor, thought partner, friend, and colleague. You’ve left an indelible mark on this school and on all of us lucky enough to work and learn alongside you. On behalf of the entire Brandeis community, and all those whose lives you’ve touched—thank you.

Mazal tov on your retirement. You will be deeply missed and always celebrated.

Debby’s retirement speech shared here: 

 

Reflecting on this exciting new chapter, Rabbi Greinetz shared:

“Years ago, I was struck by the writing of one of my favorite thinkers, Gaston Bachelard. He reflected on the necessity of reverie in the workplace and wrote about how important it is that our occupations offer a space for dream and wonder, which will, in turn, illuminate what we do in the world. I fell so in love with his words as I read them that I didn’t know what to do! So, I wrote them into a notebook and always held onto the idea. As I sought a new role, my dream was to find work that elicited something as soulful as what Bachelard described. I didn’t need the handwritten paragraph to tell me that I had found such a position when I started to get to know Brandeis.

Already, I feel so inspired and excited to dedicate my professional energy and skills toward Jewish learning at Brandeis. I can feel that sense of dreaming that Bachelard gestured toward, and I hope to offer that sense of wonder and imagination to others in Jewish learning and tefillah at Brandeis.

I would have moved across the world for this amazing opportunity, but lucky for me, Brandeis is right here at home in San Francisco. There are many ways that becoming the Director of Jewish Learning feels brand new—there is certainly much learning and growing to be enjoyed, and there are also ways that transitioning into this role feels like coming home. The ability to work here in San Francisco is clearly a plus, but the true feeling of homecoming is radiating from Brandeis’ refreshingly authentic community. I am so excited to continue to get to know Brandeis and to become a part of your community. I can’t wait to see what we dream up and discover as we engage in Jewish learning and practice together.”

Rabbi Greinetz will officially begin her role in July and will have dedicated time to collaborate with Debby Arzt-Mor as she transitions into this position. We are also looking forward to celebrating Debby’s extraordinary contributions to Brandeis at a special school-wide gathering on the afternoon of Sunday, June 8. Please stay tuned for more information about this important and festive event.

For now, please join all of us at Brandeis in giving a warm welcome to Rabbi Greinetz!

by Dr. Dan Glass, Head of School

We invited alumni from the Classes of 2017-2024 to participate in a survey reflecting on how Brandeis influenced their journeys. Over 120 alumni shared their experiences, highlighting the lasting impact of The Brandeis School of San Francisco and Judaism on both their personal and academic lives. Many described their Brandeis experience as transformative, sparking a passion for learning, a commitment to social justice, and a strong sense of purpose in their studies. Jewish traditions and teachings at Brandeis have made a lasting impression, helping graduates deepen their identities and strengthen their connection to their heritage. Together, these influences provide a strong foundation that empowers alumni to move through life with confidence and direction.

Brandeis alumni also shared how the school’s academic excellence and Jewish values have prepared them to tackle life’s challenges with thoughtfulness and integrity. They value the sense of community and moral grounding they found at Brandeis, which often inspires them to become leaders and active contributors to positive change. Alumni remain deeply connected to the Jewish community, enriching it while applying the lessons and values they gained at Brandeis to make a broader impact. This enduring legacy reflects the school’s extraordinary ability to nurture graduates who are both accomplished and dedicated to making a difference.

Joy, Creativity, and Connection at Brandeis!

Welcome, students and families, welcome, to another bright beginning at The Brandeis School of San Francisco! I can’t believe this is my tenth first day of school here at Brandeis—and while they have flown past in retrospect, each one has sparkled with all the magic and the nervousness of the new. You know, last year we celebrated the 60th school year for Brandeis—which means that this year, we take our first steps together toward the next sixty years in the life of this remarkable school.

Since 1963, our school has remained values-centered, academically uncompromising, and inclusive of the full identity and experience of every child and family. At any time, the world needs leaders who see the humanity in every person, who have the intellectual foundation and the courage to tackle our most pressing problems, who understand that repairing the world is both a challenge and a responsibility for each of us. That is especially true in a moment such as ours.

This summer, I read a book that resonated deeply with me: The Place of All Possibility by Rabbi Adina Allen, co-founder of the Jewish Studio Project in Berkeley and longtime collaborator and friend of our school. Rabbi Allen speaks of creativity not just as an act, but as a sacred practice, a way to tap into the divine within ourselves and within our communities. Creativity is where the world as it is meets the world as it could be. This idea of possibility is something present in each of us—in fact, Jewish tradition holds that there is an entire universe in every soul. An entire universe, a swirling cosmos, an infinity of electrons and quarks, in each of our spirits. All that possibility, in each of one of us, in each one of you, yes even you Kindergarteners! 

Our shared orientation toward creativity and possibility is what drives us to innovate in our classrooms, to wrestle with our traditions, and to find joy in the everyday moments of community. Jewish tradition also teaches us that joy is not just a feeling; it's a practice. It's something we cultivate through our actions and our relationships, through learning and through giving. Joy is a central tenet of our community here at Brandeis, a stance toward one another and the world that gives us the grounding we need to meet any challenge thrown our way.

This past week, we spent time as a faculty and staff talking about two major events this fall, the anniversary of October 7th and the 2024 election. As we tackle these big moments for our community and our country, here is what we discussed: we’re going to stay human, and stay connected. We’re going to model curiosity, and intellectual humility. We’re going to resist outrage and fear. We’re going to pay attention to what’s happening on our local ballots, in our districts, and with our friends and neighbors. We’re going to stay in conversation and in community with each other. 

And you know what else we talked about? We talked about how we already know how to do these things here at Brandeis, because of the foundation we’ve built for more than sixty years. We know how to treat one another with kindness, and how to muster the courage of our hearts. We know how to embrace our collective responsibility to help repair the world. We know how to ask good questions, and be respectful of the answers we receive and the people we receive them from. We know how to show up for each other, and how to push ourselves and each other to do our best, to make it matter. That is the foundation that will carry us from strength to strength through this time, and boldly into the future.

It is a gift, a gift, to have a community and a school like Brandeis. Here’s to an amazing year—of joy, and creativity, and learning, and purpose—together. 

And, I also respond that this year has been profoundly upsetting and disorienting. We have community members who lost family and loved ones on October 7th, and others who have family members currently serving in the IDF; and as a community that understands the sanctity of life and cares about the present and future of Israel (with 29 of our 8th graders there right now!), we feel a profound and deepening concern about what is happening in Gaza, and the decision making guiding the war effort. At the same time, our own lives as Jews and those who run with the Jews in the Bay Area have become deeply fraught—this is the first time in my more than forty years living here that I have been yelled at and called a racist in the street simply for walking into a Jewish event. I hear from families feeling like all of a sudden they have no place in America, anywhere along the political spectrum, and worried about what that might mean. There is no doubt that we are in a narrow place in our history. 

To those two answers I have given, today I’ll add a third. Up in our CREATE space, one of our maker spaces here on campus, we have these giant letters hanging up there that spell out and illustrate the word CREATE, made by students in a middle school art elective in 2015. The “A” in that word refers to “awe,” and comes from the work of the great 20th century Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel. In God in Search of Man, he writes:

“The meaning of awe is to realize that life takes place under wide horizons, horizons that range beyond the span of an individual life or even the life of a nation, a generation, or an era. Awe enables us to perceive in the world intimations of the divine, to sense in small things the beginning of infinite significance, to sense the ultimate in the common and the simple; to feel in the rush of the passing the stillness of the eternal.” 

Whether they are working with circuit boards or writing their own page of Talmud, we want our students to wrestle with the big questions, the arguments for the sake of heaven, those matters of “infinite significance”—it’s why a school like Brandeis exists. But today I am thinking of that Heschel quote—one of my very favorites in the world—for those wide horizons of time. Because we are celebrating sixty years here today, but those sixty years are also an invitation to eternity. The songs we sing, the prayers we teach, extend back centuries and millennia, and speak of some of our earliest attempts at living in community in a values-centered way.

 

As Rabbi Rachel Cowan puts it: 

“I am blessed to be a voyager on an ancient pathway, that continues to offer new insights and responses to new questions of meaning, ethics, and responsibility…I am Jewish because the religion, the tradition, and the community inspire me and support me to follow the path that the Prophet Micah challenges us all to walk: ‘To do justice, to love goodness, and to walk humbly with your God.’ (Micah 6:8).” 

That is the hope we carry and that we build anew each day with our young people: that as the Torah teaches we choose life that our children may live, we choose justice and kindness and humility. That is the path we walk across history’s narrow bridges, with compassion rather than fear in our hearts. That is what it means to repair the world, one step at a time. 

And of course, that ancient pathway and those wide horizons of time only persist from generation to generation thanks to the efforts of those who raise their hand and say yes, hineni, I am here, I am part of this thing, I am willing to help. As my friend and colleague Angie Dalfen put it to me recently, community is something you create, not something you consume. And today is at its core a celebration of some of the many folks who have helped create and shape the Brandeis community. 

So thank you—thank you all for being here today, for being part of celebrating and continuing the story of this remarkable school. 

In February, Head of School Dr. Dan Glass traveled to St. Louis for the annual conference of the National Association of Independent Schools. Along with four of our faculty members, he was there to present a brief primer for schools interested in teaching civics in a way that is student-centered, connected to the local context, and grounded in ethics and shared values. 

 

In their presentation, 2nd-grade teacher Sara Goldrath taught about how to run a democratic class meeting; middle school Judaic Studies teacher Jennifer Baumer talked about learning through the lens of your community’s histories and heroes; Sharon Moore from 3rd grade shared about nurturing conversations around identity, bias, and the common good through literature and current events; and Maker Educator Sandee Bisson led the group in a hands-on project exploring what we have learned about civics as experiential education (all four teachers are part of the Mifgash Project’s design team). The group approached the presentation with the pedagogical care, strength and intelligence in sharing their ideas that is a hallmark of our professional community at Brandeis.

It felt appropriate that we arrived back to school in time for Tuesday’s election, and also for the week’s Parshat Vayakhel. Vayakhel means “and he gathered,” and refers to Moses gathering the community together to reaffirm their shared commitments, and to begin building the Mishkan or tabernacle out in the desert. 

 

As we recently gathered to vote (and in the months leading up to it), I noticed a rising awareness of our own civic structures among my friends and neighbors. In this cycle, for example, people were talking about the Democratic County Central Committee (DCCC) membership, not just ballot measures or the names at the top of the ticket. I experienced us gathering in this time of civic engagement with a renewed sense of the stakes of our practices of citizenship, which I take as a good sign for our community and country in the long run. 

 

As this presidential election year unfolds, with a November date with the ballot box not all that far off, I look forward to continuing to assemble and think and talk together as a school community about our shared commitments and values, and how we can bring our young people up with a deep understanding of what it means to be a steward of democracy.  

While in St. Louis, Dr. Glass and our faculty invited local Brandeis alumni to dinner where they had a great time catching up with each other. All the boxes checked from professional development to meaningful meet-ups, our school can’t wait to host more gatherings while out and about around the country.

The Brandeis School of San Francisco has long been a home for families passionate about Jewish education, and we are grateful for the many ways it enriches all of our lives. Since 1963, Brandeis has provided a sense of belonging and connection to each other and to the broader community. Because of these connections, there is something special about the desire to return to a school that holds fond memories and where foundational life experiences took place, especially if it is answering the call to educate the next generation of students. As we move through our 60th school year, we take a moment to recognize some of the homecomings taking place at Brandeis; marked by the return of alumni in various teacher and staff roles around campus. 

For many of these alumni, a return means giving back to the next generation as a way of acknowledging the importance of this institution as integral in the formation of their spiritual identity, and in recognition of this community as one that still supports them today.

Two individuals who have made a significant impact with their return are Maya Menachem ‘15 and Avram Rosenzweig ‘15. Maya joined Brandeis full-time in the kindergarten classroom as a resident teacher this fall, and Avram as an aftercare teacher in the fall of 2021. It only takes a moment to watch them interacting with the students to know that they are beloved. 

Maya beautifully expressed what returning to Brandeis has meant for her, “I have been lucky to grow up in the supportive and welcoming community of Brandeis. It brings me tremendous joy to contribute to this incredible community and to enrich students’ lives the way Brandeis did for me.” Maya joined the faculty alongside her mother and veteran Brandeis teacher, Sandra Menachem. Maya shared, “My mother has always been a source of inspiration. She has this beautiful ability to instill the joy of learning in her students. I aspire to bring that same spirit to the classroom for my students this year."

 

It has taken 60 years of passionate work by many people to ensure the strength of our school today. This dedication has paved the way for a vibrant future that will continue to sustain the ecosystem of Jewish life in the Bay Area and beyond. Having alumni return as parents or join our faculty and staff shows the deep roots our institution has planted in San Francisco. Those roots are now bearing the fruit of the next generation who are investing back in our school to educate the upcoming Jewish leaders who are essential to bringing positive change to the world and who will lead our community and our school in the years ahead.