Community — Writing

Sports Le-Shem Shamayim: The Sacred Mission of High School Athletics

Our vision of the role that competitive athletics can play in the lives of high school students is a deeply personal one.

Published ArticlesMarc BakerMarch 20, 2017Character, Community, Education, Growth, Identity, Judaism, Leadership, Spirituality, Sports, Values

Deepening The Conversation About What Schools Can Learn From Camps

We believe that there is a growing need to ground our work in theory and to develop a shared language about what it means to bring the best of the Jewish camp experience to our schools.

Published ArticlesMarc BakerMarch 20, 2017Camp, Community, Education, Gann Academy, High School, Identity, Judaism, Learning

It Doesn't Have To Be “Lonely at the Top”: Developing High Functioning Leadership Teams

The vastly expanding demands put upon school leaders provides schools with an opportunity to create their own form of distributed leadership.

Published ArticlesMarc BakerMarch 20, 2017Community, Education, Gann Academy, High School, Judaism, Leadership, Teaching, Team

Researchers and Soul Searchers

This week I observed an exquisite example of what the educational world calls “project-based learning,” driven by a task with real-world consequences.

Planting Trees

I just returned from a two-day trip to Israel, where I visited places and people with whom Gann is building collaborative partnerships, spent time with Gann alumni, and—the reason for the trip—joined our nearly 30 Gann juniors for the final days of their Israel experience.

Election Reflections

So much has already been written and said about the presidential election. I am not sure that I have much to add nor that I want to follow my inclination to rush immediately to words.

Our Messy Democracy

With this election finally coming to an end next week, many of us are feeling a great deal of anxiety, both about the outcome and about what feels like the fragile, if not damaged, state of our country and our democracy.

Under Our Roof

I have recently been reminded why Gann Academy chose to build its culture and community on a foundation of Jewish pluralism, a commitment to diversity and engagement with the “other” that is too rare in the Jewish community and that, while a hallmark of American democracy, seems to be growing more rare in American society.

“The Times They Are A-Changin”

After the news broke about Bob Dylan receiving the Nobel Prize in Literature on Thursday, my inbox and social media were filled with messages.

Two Minutes Matter—A Yom Kippur Reflection

In the spirit of Yom Kippur and this season of teshuva—reflection, introspection, and repentance—I want to share one way that I recently missed the mark (probably the best translation for the Hebrew word for “sin”) as Head of School and what I learned from it.

From Generation to Generation

On Monday we welcomed almost 95 grandparents and special visitors into the school for our second annual lunch and learn. It was a unique opportunity for them to see where and how their grandchildren spend so much of their time during high school and to learn from three Gann teachers.