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 For two years, a group of motivated administrators, lay leaders, and educational consultants have spent hours meeting and planning with one goal in mind: developing Ida Crown Jewish Academy’s strategy of improvement. What they have developed--and begun to implement throughout this past school year--is a strategic plan to raise the institution’s bar, creating and reaching goals that reflect the learning needs of the 21st century. “On the Mark!,” ICJA’s Strategic Plan, has had far-reaching influence on nearly every area of the school. From finances to curriculum, this plan is guiding the school community to further the mission of academic excellence for all students. Consulting funding for On the Mark! is provided by a joint grant from the Institute for University School Partnership of the Center for the Jewish Future of Yeshiva University and PEJE (Partner for Excellence in Jewish Education). For a day school to create and implement a research and data-based improvement plan is nearly unprecedented; ICJA is one of only a handful of day schools nationwide working on school improvement as part of this joint initiative. Perhaps most apparent to staff and students are the educational improvement plans. Each year, staff will focus on improving two curriculum areas. The two areas of review for 2010 are mathematics and tefillah. The math department this year implemented the ACT’s QualityCore® instructional improvement program, designed to help ensure that the outcomes of math courses are aligned with essential postsecondary skills. QualityCore® provides research-based educator resources to shape rigorous course content and improve outcomes. A new tefillah initiative will begin in the fall, together with Rabbi David Aaron, co-founder and dean of Isralight, an international Jewish educational organization with centers and programs in Israel and North America. Rabbi Aaron will visit the Aca  demy next year to meet with students and staff to improve the quality of davening. The goal, says Rabbi Dr. Leonard Matanky, dean of ICJA, is to “raise the appreciation, impact and power of tefillah.”The tefillah initiative is the first of its kind among day schools. In addition to the tefillah program, there will be a new seminar for ICJA students in the fall to focus on the philosophy of Modern Orthodoxy. The seminar will be offered before school hours, for credit, to instill in students “pride and knowledge of Modern Orthodoxy so that they may leave the Academy armed with the knowledge of who they are,” says Rabbi Matanky. Rabbis from the YU Torah Mitzion Kollel of Chicago will lead the seminar. To build upon the Academy’s successful mechanechet program, which provides a female role model for girls, Rabbi Ira Wallach will be joining the staff next year to work with boys. Both the mechanachet, Mrs. Elyse Litwack, and the mechanech will be available in the building every afternoon, working with students during their free periods in formal and informal programming. In the area of fiscal viability, the finance committee launched a new, web-based scholarship application process in order to make applying for a tuition scholarship faster, easier and more confidential. The initiative is a direct result of parent feedback, based on last year’s parent survey. FACTS Grant & Aid Assessment helps hundred of private schools across the nation decide how to best allocate financial aid. The goal is to create a better process for parents, while remaining committed to provide a day school education to all students, regardless of their financial situation. ICJA’s teacher mentoring program, which was piloted in the 2009-2010 school year, will be fully implemented next year for teachers in their first four years of teaching. New staff members will be paired with more experienced teachers who can serve as role models and sounding boards for new teachers. Research has shown that new teachers with more support in the beginning of their careers are more likely to remain at the school where they are employed and to become stronger teachers. Next year will also feature expanded testing and data analysis, which will help the Academy further gage successes and necessary areas of improvement. Together, these steps of improvement, and the many more that are to come in the remaining two years of the strategic plan implementation period, combine to create an even stronger learning environment for Academy students. |
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