A Message From Our Next Head of School

Dear Kehillah Students, Faculty, Parents, Board of Directors, and Search Committee:

I am both excited and humbled to introduce myself as the new Head of School for Kehillah Jewish High School. I was initially drawn to the description of Kehillah as a unique offering within the Silicon Valley educational landscape, balancing academic excellence with holistic support. Creating a place where students can truly be themselves, be challenged, and be successful, is quite an accomplishment. From my first contact with the Search Committee, Kehillah’s genuine warmth and indefatigable commitment to this purpose shone brightly.

When I visited the school and interacted with students, faculty, and families, I saw how the Four Commitments are lived. I was especially impressed by my interview with the student representatives to the search. Wrestling with complex concerns, they demonstrated maturity beyond their years, compassion for everyone under the Kehillah tent, and a commitment to understanding and applying Jewish principles in their lives and to a complicated world. It is no surprise that our children, Annie and Wren, felt at home on their shadow day. Hearing the enthusiastic descriptions of the day, my husband RM and I found ourselves wishing their older siblings were still in high school and able to join us in Palo Alto.

I have been fortunate to work in independent schools around the world as a teacher, psychologist, and administrator, as well as serving my Jewish community as an educator, camp counselor, and staff trainer. As your next Head of School, I will endeavor to ensure that we are an inclusive community focused on the human development of each child and their responsibility to themselves, to others, and to the world. I look forward to ongoing collaboration with the Board of Directors, faculty, students, and families, to support and enhance the strong program already in place and promote the further advancement of Kehillah as an innovator not only in the world of Jewish schools but on the national independent school stage.

Our family will join yours in July, including our two Bernese Mountain Dogs, Ghibli and Gilmore. Our younger two children, Annie and Wren, are excited about the prospect of attending Kehillah. Annie, a senior, is interested in exploring photography, musical theater, and Judaic studies. Wren, a sophomore, is looking forward to technical theatre, illustration, and searching out ice-hockey clubs. Ghibli and Gilmore will mostly lie around the house like small bears. Our eldest child, Ruby-Kate, a recent graduate of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, is launched as a model horse designer in New Jersey, and our second child, Max, is studying to be an international elementary school teacher in the unified program at the University of Kansas. They are both planning on NorCal vacations in the near future.

We are ready to begin this journey!

L’Shalom,

Daisy