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August 1, 2003/Av 3 5763, Vol. 55, No. 49
New leadership
Administrative changes in effect at day schools
BETH OLSON
Staff Writer
The Jess Schwartz Jewish Community High School and Pardes Jewish Day School have both hired new administrators to head their schools.
Janice Johnson of Scottsdale, previously the interim head of school at the Tesseract School, a private school in Paradise Valley, will serve as headmaster of Jess Schwartz.
Jill Kessler of Phoenix, previously the dean of external affairs at All Saints' Episcopal Day School in Phoenix, is the new head of school at Pardes.
Johnson, who earned a doctorate in education at Arizona State University, has held many teaching and administrative positions in the Valley, from special education teacher to principal to assistant superintendent of the Cave Creek School District.
She succeeds Jess Schwartz's founding headmaster Jay Schechter, who retired from the school in June.
"Mr. Schechter's job was to get the school up, running and the doors open," said Daniel Feller, president of Jess Schwartz. "It's a different skill set to begin to build the academic and intellectual community and family of students. ... That's (Johnson's) area of expertise - organizing faculty into a cohesive group ... and bringing the students together."
Johnson said her task is to implement the mission statement created last year as part of the school's accreditation process by North Central Association Com-mission on Accreditation and School Improvement, and to increase enrollment.
"The challenge will be to make sure every student who's enrolled here has the opportunity to be the best that they can be," she said.
Johnson, who is not Jewish, said the community has reached out to her to provide her with information and to answer her questions about Judaism.
"I've been invited to different synagogues and people have given me books to read," she said. "Everyone has been extremely gracious and respectful about making sure that I have as many resources as I need and wish."
Feller said finding a Jewish headmaster is a "daunting task" and that the average search takes one to three years; some schools spend four or five years.
"Our Jewish school - that has a Jewish heart and soul - eventually will need a Jewish headmaster. In the meantime ... we're interviewing for the head of Judaic Studies Department," Feller explained.
In addition to her career in education, Johnson took several years off to work with her husband, Bob, on their family business, an antique and collectibles business called The Vintage Zone. Her husband manages the business.
The Johnsons have a son, Ryan, 20, a junior at ASU majoring in communications.
At Pardes, Kessler will replace Bonnie Morris, who was the founding head of school.
Kessler has a master's degree in child development from Sarah Law-rence College and a master's in edu-cation from the University of Phoenix. For 11 years she worked at the Tesseract School, first as early childhood director and most recently as head of school.
"Jill has a lot of experience and expertise in not only running a school but in building (one). She brings all of that into her position, and coming in from the outside she has a perspective that those of us who are there might not have," said Karen Goodman, Pardes president. "It often is advantageous when someone comes in from outside. At the same time, she has completely bought into the culture of the school and the founding principles of who we are and what we are."
Kessler said her goals are to increase awareness of the school in the community, increase the level of philan-thropic giving in order to add programming, provide professional development opportun-ities for faculty and instill a love of learning in the students.
Kessler is a member and a board member at Temple Kol Ami and par-ticipates in an adult learning class taught by Rabbi B. Charles Herring.
"I have found my own learning process very, very exciting and I hope I can share that enthusiasm with our students here," she said. "And it sends a wonderful message - you're never too old to learn."
Kessler's husband, Daniel, is a develop-mental and behavioral pediatrician at St. Joseph's Hospital.
"We share a love for helping children be-come the very best in-dividuals that they can be," she said.
The Kesslers have two children, Sam, 19, a Barrett Honors College student at ASU; and Hannah, 15, a freshman at Chaparral High School.
Contact the writer at beth_olson@jewishaz.com.
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