Welcome from the Head of School

List of 7 items.

• November 27, 2024: Head of School Message: Thanksgiving Gratitude

  Dear GOA Community,

   

  As we gather with family and friends to celebrate the great American holiday of Thanksgiving, we at Golda Och Academy feel special gratitude for the blessings of our school community. We are grateful for:

   

  • The dedicated and talented teachers, administrators and staff who make the education of GOA students their top priority, bringing wisdom, and kindness, and belief in the unique potential of each child.
  • Our awesome students, from Ganon all the way to senior year, for their curiosity, skill, friendship, and commitment to continued growth.
  • Our awesome alumni who represent GOA values out in the world, leading Jewish communities in college and modeling the integration of proud Jewish identity with academic and professional success in the broader society.
  • Our visionary parents, grandparents and donors whose commitment to Jewish education has built and sustained the school, for investing in their own children and in our broader enterprise of bringing the light of Torah to illumine the world.

   

  On this Thanksgiving eve, we are also grateful for the new cease-fire on the Israel/Lebanon border, which we hope will lead to true tranquility and the opportunity to rebuild and repopulate the devastated northern communities. At the same time, we continue to hold the Israeli hostages held in Gaza in our hearts and minds, praying for their safe release, and for the end of Hamas terrorism that has caused so much destruction. 

   

  May God bless our community with peace and prosperity, and may our expression of Thanksgiving inspire each of us to acts of kindness and generosity for those in need.

   

  Happy Thanksgiving,

   

  Rabbi Danny Nevins

• October 23, 2024: Head of School Message: Sorrow, strength and joy on Shmini Atzeret

  Dear GOA Community,

   

  The final days of the Jewish fall festivals are intended to achieve a crescendo of joy, a fulfillment of the prophecy in Deuteronomy that we will become “completely happy” on the festival (והיית אך שמח). 

   

  Yet even in normal years, there is an underlying anxiety to our festive gatherings. The temporary Sukkah reminds us of our essential frailty. The Hoshana prayers (“Rescue us!”) are a catalog of calamities from drought and famine to disease and war. Yizkor reminds us of the beloved people whom we have lost. Because we read about the death of Moses on Simchat Torah, there are also ancient poems of lament for the loss of the greatest of our prophets. 

   

  This year Jewish communities around the world have responded to the horrors of October 7, 2023, and the war that followed with many modifications to our services. Some synagogues will add a new lament (kinnah) to their Yizkor prayers tomorrow. Some will walk in silence, or sing mournful songs for one or more of the normally festive hakafot on Simchat Torah. And yet most communities, even those hit hardest by the losses of the past year, will make room for a defiant assertion of joy. 

   

  At GOA we marked the secular anniversary of October 7 with special programing on each campus. However, we also wanted to use the liturgical calendar to deepen our engagement. Today at the Upper School the Hoshanah Rabba prayers became the occasion for reflections on the anxieties of this time of war in Israel and division in America. For each of the circuits (hakafot) our students and staff called out the challenges of our time, pleading with God to rescue the captives, and to finally bring us peace. Naming our sorrows is an ancient method for summoning communal strength to face them with resilience and hope. 

   

  As our families close out the festive season of 5785, we pray that God will spread over us a Sukkah of peace, blessing our people here, in Israel, and everywhere with true joy.

   

  Chag sameach,

   

  Rabbi Danny Nevins

• October 1, 2024:L Head of School Message: Today's Attack on Israel and Commemorating Oct. 7

  October 1, 2024 28 Elul 5784    Dear GOA Community,   Our normal anticipation in celebrating Rosh HaShanah this year has been profoundly affected by the escalation of hostilities in the Middle East. Today’s missile attack by Iran on Israel, and Israel’s continued campaigns against Hamas in Gaza and Hebollah in Lebanon, have shaken us even as we prepare for our festive prayers and meals. We pray for the safety of our family and friends in Israel, and for the ultimate peace of this entire region. May God inscribe and seal us all in the great book of life for a good new year.   Next week is the first civil anniversary of the most horrific attack on the Jewish people since the Shoah. The past year has affected us very personally. Many GOA students and staff have been directly affected by these attacks, and all of us have felt anguish over the suffering of our people in Israel and of their neighbors. The greatest consolation has been our students — to witness their curiosity and commitment as young Jews is to feel hope for our people’s future.   We will commemorate October 7 as a school community. We are grateful to our Israel educators, Rabbi Meirav Kallush and Ms. Noa Kolomer for organizing a meaningful day for our students on Monday. Upper School and Lower School students will be engaged in developmentally appropriate learning to honor and respect the sorrows of that day and the strength of our people in responding to this calamity. Our youngest learners will light a memorial candle and highlight messages of hope and resilience. Our older students will hear from our Rishonim, experience artwork connected to October 7, and pray in memory of those who have been cruelly taken from our extended family.    May God strengthen the hostages and their families, and comfort the many families who have lost loved ones. May the people of Israel and its neighbors know the blessings of peace and prosperity in this new year.     Shanah tovah umetukah,   Rabbi Danny Nevins

• September 1, 2024: Head of School Message: Tragedy in Israel

  Dear GOA Students, Parents, and Staff,

   

  At Golda Och Academy, community is not limited to the people present in our buildings, but extends to our families, our congregations, to our large alumni population, and in a real sense, to our extended family of the Jewish People. Today was the first day of school in Israel, but it became a day of sorrow as the nation learned the names of six hostages who were killed just as their rescuers approached. Our hearts go out to the families of Carmel Gat, Eden Yerushalmi, Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Ori Danino, Almog Sarusi and Alexander Lobanov, and to the nearly 100 remaining captives, whether or not they are alive. May they soon be returned to their families.

   

  The wisdom of our tradition teaches us to hold conflicting emotions together – the joy of new beginnings, the sorrow of horrific losses, and hope, always hope, for a peaceful future. Our children nurture that hope in their parents and teachers, and we will continue to model it for them. As Jeremiah says, there is hope for your future, that your children will return to their place.

   

  May God grant strength to our people, and may God bless us all with peace. 

   

   

  Rabbi Daniel Nevins

  Head of School

• August 21, 2024: Head of School Message: Welcome to the 2024-25 School Year!

  Dear GOA Families,

   

  The halls of GOA on both campuses are buzzing with excitement for the arrival of our students and the start of the 2024-25 school year. Over the summer, our administration, faculty and staff have been focused on making the coming year an outstanding opportunity for learning and personal growth. There are 61 new students and 37 new families joining us at GOA. Welcome! Or, as we say in Hebrew, berukhim ha’baim.

   

  Our educational leaders at the Lower and Upper Schools have been working in close coordination all summer to ensure that the GOA experience is consistently outstanding from Pre-K through 12th grade. I am deeply grateful to our Lower School leaders, Principal Carrie Siegel, and Assistant Principal Heather Brown, our Upper School educational leaders, Acting Principal Paul-Michael Huseman and Middle School Director Jamie Himmelstein, and our all-school Student Services Director Lori Jaffe. 

   

  You will soon hear important information from the Principals about how to log on to access your child’s schedule and other essential information for the year. In partnership, parents, teachers and administrators will support our students to grow in knowledge, skill, and character in the coming year. Also, keep a look out for a parent survey. We have engaged a firm called Thrive Hive to help us better understand and respond to the needs of our community, to retain and recruit students, so that GOA will continue to flourish in the years ahead. Please respond to this important survey.

   

  As we begin this new year, let us be reminded of the Torah's words, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” (Leviticus 19:18). Let us model for our children an enhanced level of kindness, empathy and understanding, so that they can explore new ideas and friendships, confident that they are part of a loving community here at GOA.

   

  Warmly,

   

  Rabbi Danny Nevins

  Head of School

• May 3, 2024: College Campus Unrest

  Dear GOA Community,

   

  This year’s celebration of Passover, “our season of freedom” was marred for many by intense anti-Israel activism on college campuses across the country, sparked by a student encampment and then building takeover at Columbia University. I live just three blocks from this Morningside Heights campus, and I walked the perimeter in dismay as the citadel of learned discourse devolved into an intolerant sea of angry chants. I wasn’t frightened for my safety walking about in my kippah, but I was shaken deeply. Amid the sound of helicopters overhead, the sight of young people wearing keffiyehs, waving Palestinian flags and chanting “free Palestine” was all around. In the closing hours of the holiday on Tuesday evening, we watched from our rooftop as the NYPD moved onto campus and arrested hundreds of students who had refused to evacuate — a sad, if necessary, outcome. 

   

  What are we at Golda Och Academy to make of this? As a school that proudly declares “love of Israel” as a core value, how shall we respond to those who demonize the Jewish state and ignore the horrific crimes of Hamas? As Americans who promote freedom of expression, how shall we view expressions of hatred for Israel, at times morphing into crude expressions of antisemitism? And as families that cherish higher education, how shall we regard the universities where so many students and faculty speak not of peaceful coexistence between Israelis and Palestinians, but of replacing one nation with the other?

   

  First, it does no good to create a mirror image of the hatred and intolerance expressed toward Israel by many of the protestors (some of whom are in fact Jewish). Hamas launched this war, Hamas committed horrific crimes against Israelis, and Hamas has used its own people as a shield. Yet, it gives us only sorrow to see others suffer. We are not full of hatred toward Palestinians or any other people, and we recognize their human rights. The suffering of non-combatants in Gaza is a human tragedy. The Jewish people self-identifies as rahmanim b’nai rahmanim, “merciful people, from merciful people,” and we should never give up this legacy. 

   

  Second, we cannot ignore the fact that the Palestinian leadership, lately of Hamas, but previously of the PLO and others, has employed grotesque violence against Israeli and Jewish civilians around the world, especially when there was a chance for peace. This was the case during the Oslo process of the 1990s, and this was the case again this year when talks between the United States, Israel and Saudi Arabia were focusing on a peaceful resolution to the conflict. As Julian E. Barnes reported regarding the current hold-up in negotiations (The New York Times, May 1, 2024, “The Morning Newsletter”), “​​But some involved in the discussions — Americans, Egyptians and Qataris have been mediating — worry that Hamas appears willing to sacrifice even more Palestinian civilians. Its officials believe that the deaths in Gaza erode support for Israel around the world.”

   

  Third, we dare not disengage from the debate on campus, unpleasant and frightening though it may be. While some of the protesters genuinely hate Israel and want to see it destroyed, others are just appalled by the vast suffering caused by this war. I do not know why they were not similarly moved by the initial massacre of Jews on October 7, nor do I understand why they do not protest the deaths caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which are about 10 times as high (estimated at over 500,000). Still, if we who love Israel withdraw from the debate, then an entire generation of young people may conclude that Israel must be entirely to blame for this ongoing conflict and that America should discontinue its support for the Jewish state. 

   

  Fourth, we also must not concede our place at universities, research institutions, and the professions and corporations where the future is forged. Many of my close friends are Hillel rabbis and other campus professionals, and I am in awe of their work. This is a time to support the work of Jews on campus — students, staff, and faculty — to strengthen them and give them the resources needed to reach hearts and minds, not only of Jews, but of all people who genuinely care about a just and peaceful future for all people. Many Jewish families are asking whether a given campus is safe for their students. My advice is to speak with current students and Hillel staff at that school, to learn what the challenges have been, and how the administration has managed the conflict. We must be strong enough to encounter disagreement with courage, but no student should be expected to suffer harassment or intimidation for their identity or views. 

   

  Fifth, we should continue to reach out to our Israeli family and friends, some of whom are more worried about us than about themselves. One Israeli cousin of mine contacted me today from India to make sure that I was okay. The essential fact is that we rely on one another. We rely on the Israeli government to make difficult decisions to secure a more peaceful future for all. Our Israeli family and friends need our support and solidarity now more than ever. They rely on us for encouragement and to bolster their resilience.

   

  To do this, we must be well-informed, deeply rooted, and resilient. We must confront hatred — from whatever direction — with moral clarity. We must invest in Jewish education and recruit other families to join us at Golda Och Academy, so that their children may also have the benefit of a deep, joyous, kind, and proud Jewish identity. I am so pleased that our seniors on Neshama have nearly completed three months in Israel and that our 9th grade students are preparing to go on Na’ale. Our students return from these trips with a depth of knowledge and identification with Israel that allow them to advocate for a better future for Israelis, and indeed for all people who are willing to live together in peace. 

   

  Shabbat Shalom — May God bless Israel and all the world with peace.

   

  Rabbi Danny Nevins

  Head of School

• February 13, 2024: Boys Basketball Game Follow-Up

  Dear GOA Community,

   

  Following up on my note from Friday about the incident with the basketball coach from Newark Lab School, I want to inform you that we have now received sincere letters of apology from the coach himself, and also from the school leadership. These letters (and other calls and email exchanges between us) have indicated their strong sense of remorse for the offense caused. The coach, Joezer Antoine, acknowledged that his choice to wear that shirt, even after we explained its offensiveness, was hurtful and inappropriate. 

   

  In his note he wrote, “Please consider my deepest apologies for the harmful imprint I have left upon your community. I aspire to assuage all distaste by proving my great respect for Golda Och Academy, its students, staff, and the Jewish community. It is my hope that I can exemplify growth from this experience and continue to contribute safely and positively to your community.” 

   

  Interestingly, Mr. Antoine is a Haitian immigrant whose family was assisted following the 2010 earthquake there by the IDF, and he expressed gratitude for this assistance. He is also an English teacher who has developed a curriculum based on Elie Wiesel’s memoir, Night, and has been preparing to share his program with the national KIPP network. In his letter to me, he wrote, “This incomparable text teaches us all about the atrocities of the Holocaust and asks questions centered around the human response to unthinkable horrors.”

   

  I plan to invite Mr. Antoine to visit GOA so that he may learn more about our school and its values, and to give him the chance to apologize in person. The best outcome would be to create an opportunity for teshuvah, for growth, and for reconciliation.

   

  Finally, I am aware that someone posted about this incident on social media. I’m sure that this was well intentioned, but it is stirring up enormous anger in the community—against the KIPP school, and also against GOA. If the response from KIPP and Mr. Antoine had been different, then we too would have taken a different approach. But given their remorse, we have the opportunity to turn this into something positive.

   

  Once again, I am proud of our students and staff for the strong, proud, and dignified conduct through this challenging episode. We will emerge stronger as a result.

   

  Warmly,

   

  Rabbi Danny Nevins

  Head of School