The Davis Blog

Twenty years ago our school began with strong leadership to bring a great vision to life.  That kind of commitment from our community is what continues to drive our success.  Recently, our Board of Trustees met for the first time this year.  This group of 35 dedicated individuals – parents, alumni parents, grandparents, and caring community members -- bring a variety of talents and provide an invaluable source of guidance and direction for the future of our school and our community.   It was an extraordinarily positive gathering that ended with one board member, alumni parent Mark Edelstein sharing this heartfelt sentiment:   “Our family’s lives were forever changed when we came to Davis.”   We hope this school year is getting off to a great start for all our families and that, like the Edelsteins, this will be just one of many years that add up to a remarkable difference in your family’s life.

We also wish all families and community a Shanah Tovah as we enter our holiday season!
For more new year inspiration, please read Rabbi Micah's blog, entitled The Force of the High Holy Days.

This has been a big week for Admissions!  We are so excited about our Mechina & Kindergarten classes for next year when we will welcome even more families to Davis.  While many of our classes have waitlists, other grades have openings, so we hope newcomers and potential transfer students will consider our amazing school. 

At the same time, we’re proud of our continuing excellent record of high school and college placements.  Our Eighth Graders have been accepted to some of Atlanta’s outstanding high schools, including:  Pace Academy, Westminster, Woodward Academy, Atlanta International School, The Weber School, magnet programs at Riverwood and North Springs High Schools, Marist, and more!  We are also hearing great news from some of our college-bound alumni from the Class of 2008 who have already been accepted at such schools as:  Harvard, Stanford, Vanderbilt, Washington University, University of Texas, University of Pennsylvania, University of Michigan, NYU, University of Miami, Georgia Tech, and University of Georgia.  We look forward to hearing more great news at our upcoming College Sendoff event in May.

It’s the year 5771 on the Jewish calendar, 2011 on the Gregorian calendar and the first day of school on my calendar. The start of a new school year marks another milestone for me as Head of School, much like a holiday, a birthday or another special day on the calendar. With hundreds of youngsters arriving including a new generation of little ones, I reflect on that special feeling along with the awesome opportunity and responsibility that is ahead.

“Innovative. Intimate. Child-centered. Inspirational. Visionary. Professional. Goal-oriented. Warm.” These are just some of the words recently used to describe our school, not only by our faculty, families and friends, but by the educational experts who studied Davis from a professional perspective through our successful re-accreditation process. We are proud of these accolades yet we dare not rest on our laurels.

As professionals and as educators, we are actively reflecting on our ever-changing, fast-paced, globally interconnected and technologically based world and envisioning how we provide all that is necessary for our students.  What will the future demand of our children? What skills and values will they need to be successful in future educational settings, the future workplace, as family members and as citizens? 

While we know that some things like strong academics, exceptional teachers, a supportive and warm community and solid foundation based on Jewish values will continue to be the essence of our school, we also know that our school of the 21^st century will evolve.  Our approach to education must be dynamic, innovative and forward thinking.

This year our students will work with tablet technology, interactive screen technology and new computers across the grades.  Two completely transformed media centers, project studio space, and mediascape and communications classrooms will promote collaborative learning while revised schedules reallocate learning time and enable greater exploration and initiatives in global perspectives. A dedicated 21^st century learning specialist, a teaching team trained in three unique professional development tracks and a brand new playground that will rival any park in town are just some of the new tools and resources which will ensure the “next generation of Davis” continues to be at the forefront of education.

It’s 5771 and Davis students will live the Jewish calendar every day – seeing the world through a Jewish lens and learning they are an essential part of a history, a people, a civilization. At the same time it’s 2011 and they are the beneficiaries of a vibrant and progressive school community deeply committed to exploring and investing in our children and their future in the 21^st century. At Davis we bring together the best of both worlds.  It is our opportunity and our responsibility. And it is our blessing.

By Rabbi Micah Lapidus

With Passover in full swing at The Davis Academy I’ve been thinking a lot about Jewish food and charoset in particular. A little anecdotal research has confirmed my suspicion that there are as many different recipes for charoset as there are Jewish communities!  In spite of the abundant culinary nuances of charoset one thing all recipes have in common is that charoset is sweet—very sweet.

But a question arises: If charoset symbolizes the mortar that the Israelites used to bond the bricks of slavery, then why is it sweet?  As I’ve reflected on this obvious tension between sweetness and servitude I’ve come up with two possible reasons for why charoset is sweet:

 1)      While there’s nothing sweet about slavery, there is dignity and honor in the fulfillment of responsibilities. The responsibilities we carry: as parents, as grandparents, as students, as teachers are part of what defines us. The responsibilities we fulfill are an extension and reflection of who we are. When we pause to consider the sacred nature of our responsibilities to family, friends, co-workers, and community then the burden of responsibility can become sweet like charoset.  

2)      Mortar, which charoset symbolizes, is a binding agent. It creates cohesion, structure, and integrity. Individual bricks have little value without the mortar that binds. The same can be said of the Jewish community— the ties that bind us are a source of sweetness. We exist most fully when we are bound to others.

This Pesach, as we travel near and far, I hope we can all find a few moments to reflect on the charoset in our lives, the sweetness. Whether we find this sweetness in the fulfillment of life’s countless responsibilities or through the relationships that bind us to family, friends, and community, it is my prayer that we all emerge from our Passover celebration with a lingering taste and memory of this sweetness.  Wishing us all a chag sameach.

Drew Frank, Davis Academy Lower School Principal
Jamie Kudlats, Davis Academy Middle School Principal

A few weeks ago, we went on a faculty field trip with several teachers from our Lower and Middle Schools to Savannah, where we attended a technology conference led by Apple and visited a school that has integrated portable devices such as iPads in their curriculums.  This trip was part of our continuing mission to investigate some of the emerging tools and technologies now available that are designed to enhance learning in the classroom.

Through site visits such as this one, as well as our own study of current books and research, what we are learning is that creating the 21st century classroom goes far beyond any technology.  It means shifting many of the traditional approaches to education that most of us are familiar with. It might mean changing classroom environments or requiring new materials and new types of class projects. It will all come down to better preparing our students for a constantly evolving, connected global landscape.

While the trends are incredibly exciting, we know that these kinds of changes and implementations must be approached with caution and careful deliberation.  To that end, Davis is evaluating a variety of approaches to teaching and tools for the classroom.  The possibilities provoke the imagination…

Imagine school being a completely integrated part of the larger community, uniquely designed to teach real world skills and community values, where students and faculty engage in relevant discussions about current world issues -- instead of disconnected concepts through outdated methodology. 

Imagine interactive novels, for example, which enable students to receive an instant definition from a dictionary linked for words they do not readily recognize and have the ability to hear comments about the settings, characters and plot from the author herself.  Imagine podcasting reports, discussions and presentations to an entire grade, or even an entire community, rather than just the few kids in a single class.  Imagine the engagement of students participating in interactive games and play and classrooms set up in ways that are more comfortable and conducive to learning, studying, discovering and collaborating. 

We think it all comes down to a vision and the realization that no technology will ever replace expert teachers who love and encourage their students – that will always be the heart and soul of our school.   But it is time to think ahead and get creative, for as our world changes, we must adapt our classrooms and our methods to reflect how our students learn and interact with each other and the world. The traditional approach may not always be the best approach.  At Davis, we see this as an extraordinarily exciting opportunity to be in the forefront of planning the 21st century school.

Have a comment or feedback about this topic?
Email:  blog@davisacademy.org