On the 5th and 6th of Kislev, 12 mechanchim from across the country traveled to the West Coast for a two-day symposium on Chabad school leadership. Hosted and facilitated by Rabbi Mendy Greenbaum, the visit allowed the participants of the yearlong leadership program to take the next step in their quest to becoming a quality menahel for their school.
Rooted in a strong Chassidishe approach to Chinuch, the program included instructional rounds and continued to focus on standards-based education, assessments, consulting protocol, creating culture change in a school, and envisioning the future of excellent Chassidishe-imbued education.
The principals learned how to conduct classroom observations and debriefings, as well as how to push children’s thinking and determine depth of knowledge and rigor of study. Following the series of facilitated discussions and seminars the participants did a walkthrough of the local boys yeshivah, Cheder Menachem.
“Participating in the MEF Leadership Program has given me a new perspective on leadership in Chinuch,” explains Rabbi Henoch Rosenfeld, a new principal at Yeshiva Schools of Pittsburgh. “I plan to implement the essential tools that we’ve learned and observed into my daily routine.”
The unanimous positive feedback from participants agreed that the guidance from experienced educators and the opportunity to collaborate with others in an applied way was an invaluable tool for growth and development. In addition to the lectures, the principals also enjoyed farbrengens with Rabbi Cunin and Rabbi Raichik who highlighted the importance and privilege and responsibility of Avodas Hachinuch.
Rabbi Greenbaum says he was personally inspired by the experience. “It is a great thing to see new generation of principals who are not complacent, but are eager to learn and grow and try to do things better and better on an ongoing basis.”
Rosenfeld concludes, “with Rabbi Greenbaum’s guidance we were able to work together and collaborate on ways to enhance our role as leaders in our respective schools.”
The Chabad School Leadership Program is a project of the Menachem Education Foundation.
