by stacey palevsky & jacob berkman
special to j.
Most principals of Jewish day schools are happy with their jobs, though women are often paid less than men for serving in such positions, according to a recently released study.
Eight out of 10 day school principals characterized their jobs as rewarding, according to “A Survey of Day School Principals in the United States” conducted by Marvin Schick, president of the Rabbi Jacob Joseph School in Staten Island, N.Y., and published by the Avi Chai Foundation. Another 14 percent described their jobs as satisfactory, while only 4 percent said they had negative feelings about their posts.
“I am definitely in that group considering it rewarding,” said Dean Goldfein, head of school at Contra Costa Jewish Day School in Lafayette. “To be a part of the day school movement at this moment is exciting because you really are part of building a Jewish future and developing our Jewish community, as well as developing individual students and staff.”
His colleague Bathea James, head of Tehiyah Jewish Day School in El Cerrito, echoed that sentiment.
“It’s very rewarding because you’re making a difference in the lives of children and you’re doing something meaningful for the future of the Jewish people,” James said.
Nearly two-thirds of the principals surveyed have been at their schools less than five years. One in eight said it was their first year as the head of their schools — and the same number reported being at their current school for more than 20 years.
Goldfein is the founding head of CCJDS, joining the school eight years ago. He jokes that makes him a veteran in the field.
“There’s a real need for day school leadership, and I think the survey might be a good motivator to encourage people into the field,” he said.
The survey, conducted during 2005 and 2006 and released in August, included principals of 380 community, Reform, Conservative and centrist Modern Orthodox schools — nearly 75 percent of the field. The survey did not include yeshiva, Chassidic or Chabad-Lubavitch schools.
It is thought to be the first comprehensive survey of day school principals, and Schick said he hopes there will be a follow-up.
Day school principals also got along remarkably well with their schools’ lay leadership, with nine out of 10 reporting excellent or good relations. And virtually 100 percent are happy with their teaching staffs and the parent bodies at their schools.
“Anyone who’s been in their position for more than a few years knows they have to get along with the lay leadership — it’s too critical for development of the school to have friction,” Goldfein said.
But all is not rosy, according to the report.
While some 45 percent of day school principals are women, they are paid far less than men. Sixty percent of men who have been at their current jobs for five to 10 years command an annual salary of more than $120,000, compared to only 45 percent of women with the same experience.
James, and Lillian Howard, principal at Kehillah Jewish High School in Palo Alto, said that while the difference in pay may be a reality, neither has heard anyone locally grumbling about it.
“I know that’s a national issue, but I think it’s changing,” said James, who formerly worked as the president of RAVSAK, a network of Jewish community day schools. “I hope we’re moving toward parity.”
Schick said despite the pay differential, he found no relationship between job satisfaction and gender.
“If 100 percent of principals were happy with their jobs, then there couldn’t be any gender dissatisfaction,” he said. “Here we have 90 percent job satisfaction, so gender does not seem to play a role.”
Current day school principals are an educated bunch. Eight out of 10 came to their present position with previous day school teaching experience. More than one-third are ordained rabbis. Six out of 10 have a graduate degree and one in four has a doctorate in education.
“The data from the survey gives us benchmarks, and we can measure ourselves a little bit by what colleagues doing across country,” Howard said. “It helps better connect each of us to the larger network of day school education.”
CopyrightJ, the Jewish news weekly of Northern California