Head of School Message
Mission & Core Values
Mission
The mission of the Rashi School, the Boston Area Reform Jewish Day School, is to
provide a dynamic, child-centered program of academic excellence that integrates
rich secular and Jewish studies
curricula and nurtures in its students critical minds
and compassionate hearts.
Core Values
Limud – Learning
Our goal is for each child to love learning as a lifetime pursuit and to be motivated to reach his/her highest potential. Our faculty is charged with helping youngsters understand that learning involves taking risks, making mistakes and having the resilience and curiosity to persevere. We encourage Rashi students to think and reason in the process of making informed choices and to develop the skills that are basic to the major academic disciplines. We offer a strong general studies curriculum interwoven with Jewish studies, Hebrew language and the values of our tradition.
Kehillah – Community
Walk into any Rashi classroom and capture the sense of caring and concern for one another that is apparent in hundreds of interactions every day. This environment enables our children to become proud, knowledgeable and compassionate Jews who are secure in their heritage. Students develop a strong sense of self-worth, love and respect for people and a feeling of reverence for the natural world. Our community draws together teachers, students, administrators, support staff, parents, grandparents, siblings, families, friends and others in the community who resonate to and participate in Rashi’s message and mission.
Tzedek – Justice
The Rashi community embodies the concepts of Tzedek (justice), Tzedakah (righteous acts) and Tikkun Olam (repair of our world), providing many opportunities to explore, study and do all of the above. Rashi students learn about the situations of Jews in communities around the world and about human rights for all people. They study Torah as text and as a lifelong guide to making decisions and taking action. They develop the tools to carry out the imperative to create a strong and confident future. Learning to see the world through Jewish eyes, Rashi students learn to act, with compassion and commitment, in ways that make important contributions to humanity.
Kavod – Respect
From kindergarten on, Rashi students learn that differences are to share and celebrate. Each person deserves to be treated with dignity; each has a responsibility to protect our world. We demonstrate kavod by developing a healthy self-awareness, by taking pride in our work, our words and our deeds, and by learning to advocate for our beliefs. Kavod is about our relationships with others: listening, respecting other opinions and learning to disagree without anger. It is about knowing how to offer help without destroying pride and learning how to accept it without shame or anger.
Ruach – Spirit
Spiritual strength (literally, the breath of God) is infused into each Rashi classroom, into the curriculum, into the connections that people make with one another during each day. Individual talents are treasured gifts to be nurtured and encouraged. Each day brings opportunities for discovery and wonder, for creativity in the arts, the sciences, in the ways we worship and celebrate and in our relationships with the larger world. It is that spirit that fosters the inclination to reach out, with understanding and sensitivity, to others. Ruach surrounds all who enter our doors asserting, “God is in this place.”
