Pictured: Pilot cohort of the Certificate in Israel Leadership for Miami Jewish Day School Leaders, full caption below
Preparing the next generation to engage thoughtfully, knowledgeably and confidently with Israel in a complex world requires more than a new Israel curriculum.
From January to March 2026, CAJE and Spertus Institute piloted a new program, the Certificate in Israel Leadership, specifically designed for Day School Leaders. Twenty-three participants—educators, administrators, and lay leaders from eight Miami-area day schools—gathered to learn together over the course of two in-person seminars. Engaging with difficult topics across denominations and with different challenges and priorities, participants explored approaches to nuanced leadership and the importance of building trust within and across their communities, built around a core of Dr. Keren E. Fraiman’s research on barriers that educators face around Israel.
Audrey Maman Bensoussan, alum of Spertus Institute’s Executive MA in Jewish Professional Studies and Director of Day School Programs and Services at CAJE-Miami, authored an op-ed in eJewishPhilanthropy sharing the program’s framework and future goals as a model for communities across North America.
Top Photo: Certificate in Israel Leadership Phase 1 Cohort and Instructors
Bottom Row (left to right): Audrey Bensoussan, Director, Day School Programs and Services, CAJE Miami; Rabbi Efrat Zarren-Zohar, Executive Director, CAJE Miami; Gili Gibli, Lay leader, Innovative School of Temple Beth Sholom; Rabbi Dovid Nathan, Executive Director, Yeshiva Elementary School
Second Row (left to right): Dr. Bella Tendler-Krieger, Director of Adult Learning and Growth, CAJE Miami; Risa Chopp, Lay Leader, Posnack Day School; Jodi Bruce, Head of School, Lehrman Community Day School; Pamela Wolfson, Lay Leader, Lehrman Community Day School; Maura Hollub, Curriculum & Professional Development Coordinator, Rambam Day School Temple Beth Am; Dr. Dayna Wald, Upper School Principal of Hebrew Language, Posnack School; Barbara Shimansky, Senior Director of Judaic Studies, Innovative School of Temple Beth Sholom; Craig Carpentieri, Chief Academic Officer, Scheck Hillel Community School
Top Row (left to right): Dr. Keren Fraiman, Vice President and Chief Academic Officer, Spertus Institute; Rabbi Joanne Loiben, Temple Beth Sholom; Rabbi Avi Greene, Director of Judaics and Hebrew Language, Scheck Hillel Community School; Daniel Sultan, Lay Leader, Scheck Hillel Community School; Yossi Brock, Assistant Principal, Pardes Day School; Rabbi Dr. Levi Druin, Pardes Day School; Rabbi Shlomo Cohen, Upper School Director of Judaics, Posnack School; Dr. Dean Bell, CEO and President, Spertus Institute
Bottom Photo: In the Classroom
Dr. Keren E. Fraiman, Spertus Institute’s Vice President and Chief Academic Officer, and Dr. Dean P. Bell, President and CEO of Spertus Institute, facilitating a session with participants from the Certificate in Israel Leadership Phase 1.