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November 21, 2003/Cheshvan 26 5764, Vol. 56, No. 9
Promoting Jewish education
Day School Consortium hires marketing coordinator
BETH OLSON
Staff Writer
All five local Jewish day schools are working together to promote Jewish day school education in the Valley.
Linda Zell, former administrator at Temple Kol Ami, has been hired as the first day school marketing coordinator, a half-time position at the Bureau of Jewish Education, created through a Jewish Community Foundation grant of $40,000 to the Day School Consortium.
The consortium, a joint effort of the BJE, the foundation, the Jewish Federation of Greater Phoenix and the five local Jewish day schools - Pardes Jewish Day School, Tri-City Jewish Community Center Day School, Phoenix Hebrew Academy, Jess Schwartz Jewish Community High School and The King David School - to promote Jewish day school education, first met in February of 2001.
"We're really trying to affect a culture change in Phoenix - to make the consideration of day school a normative process for parents," said Elaine Schreiber, chairwoman of the consortium. "Our concept is not about which day school, but just to consider day school as a choice for education of children."
The consortium has since developed a marketing plan for the day schools, which serves students in kindergarten through high school. Results of that plan have included a collaborative advertisement in Jewish News for all the day schools, and a joint booth for all of the schools at the community Yom Ha'atzmaut celebration.
In addition, a 2001 grant from the foundation to the BJE provided transportation for day school students to participate in four joint events, including the annual Maccabiah Games and Torah Fair.
So far, members of the consortium, including lay leaders and the directors of the day schools, have taken on the responsibility of implementing the plans, but Schreiber said it was time to for someone to take on the role of marketing coordinator.
"It reached the point where (the marketing) really needed a professional to take it to the next level," she said.
Zell, who attended Jewish day school herself as a child in South Africa, feels that a Jewish day school education is important to instilling a positive Jewish identity in children.
"As parents, it's our responsibility to ensure that our children increase their knowledge, and it's the duty of every Jew to pass on this information to future generations. Most of us as parents are not Jewishly knowledgeable enough to do it," Zell said.
Zell has already begun creating marketing materials and she plans to meet with the directors of the day schools on a regular basis. In addition, she plans to aggressively market the day schools to parents of children in Jewish preschools.
"Those are parents who are already committed to giving their children a Jewish education," she explained.
Janice Johnson, head-master at Jess Schwartz, hopes that Zell's work will result in increased student enrollment at all of the day schools and more com-munity support for Jewish education.
"She's one of the pieces that weaves us all together so we really stand as a united front," said Johnson.
Zell is in search of members of the local community who attended Jewish day school as children. Contact Zell at 480-634-8050, ext. 1302, or e-mail lindaz@bjephoenix.org.
Contact the writer at beth_olson@jewishaz.com.
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