“There are many ways to lead” writes former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani in his current New York Times bestseller Leadership. Giuliani mentions the diverse styles of Franklin Roosevelt, Joe DiMaggio, Winston Churchill and Ronald Reagan, who led – according to Giuliani – by stirring speeches, example, brave oratory and character, respectively.

The vision of leadership put forward by Giuliani is someone who is well prepared for any situation, forms strong opinions and communicates them clearly, hires good people, and holds them – and himself – accountable.

It is not all that surprising that the former mayor does not find many educators among his diverse leadership pool. When looking for models of leadership, people look more often to the worlds of politics or business – even sports figures. Nevertheless, those of us in education know that educational leadership has even higher demands than those enumerated by Rudy. The educational leader is expected to be a visionary, problem-solver, school-community facilitator, instructional leader, community activist, negotiator, inspirer, voice of reason – the one on whose shoulders rests the ultimate responsibility for the educational enterprise.

I believe that the diverse nature of Jewish educational leadership is well represented by two notables of the first century, CE, Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai and Yehoshua ben Gamla. Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai is, of course, the well-known Tanna, who, having succeeded in saving the educational enterprise “Yavneh and its scholars” from Vespasian’s armies (TB Gittin 56a-b), continued to rebuild a society that commemorated the destroyed Temple in Jerusalem even as it looked towards the future (Mishna Rosh HaShana 4:1-3). This forward looking leadership paved the way for a successful – even flourishing – Jewish community that survives to this day.

For all of Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai’s success as an educational leader in a period of crisis, it is his contemporary, Yehoshua ben Gamla, who is venerated by the Amoraim with the tribute “were it not for him, the Torah would have been forgotten in Israel” (Bava Batra 21a). Yehoshua ben Gamla does not appear to have been a Torah scholar; we do not find the Mishna replete with his opinions (he is mentioned once in passing –Yevamot, 6:4). Nevertheless, as one of the later High Priests in the Second Temple period (most of whom were appointed for their wealth and family connections, rather than their piety and erudition) he founded a public school system that offered universal education for all. This contribution was perceived by the Rabbis as what saved Torah for the Jewish people.

Differences aside, both of these leaders understood the unique needs of their time and realized that for the future of the Jewish people, essential changes needed to be made in the form and substance of Jewish education. A keen understanding of the contemporary reality and a willingness to innovate in response to changing reality are the qualities that saved Jewish education – and the Jewish people – at that crucial moment in history.

The Lookstein Center is proud to introduce Jewish Educational Leadership as a vehicle to help current Jewish school leaders grapple with the challenges of contemporary Jewish education. The journal aims to investigate topics and ideas that are at the center of current discussion in the broader educational world, while never forgetting the need to adapt and apply those topics to the world of today’s Jewish schools. We intend to raise questions and issues that teachers and principals will discuss in the lounge and library, in the hope that those discussions will lead to a rethinking about the way things are done in our schools. To accomplish this, the journal projects a multiplicity of voices – scholars and academics, school administrators and classroom teachers – each with its own unique perspective.The journal is divided into two basic sections. Regular features will discuss issues of general interest to the Jewish educator, including a guest perspective on Jewish educational leadership, an article reprinted from a general education journal with responses from Jewish educators and a selection from a “classic” source on Jewish education. The special focus section will contain a variety of articles revolving around a specific topic.

In this inaugural issue we focus on technology and its introduction into the school environment, with specific attention paid to its place in the contemporary Jewish school. The articles in this section include a digest of literature on the impact of technology on classroom instruction and a primary research study of computer use in Jewish schools by members of the Lookstein Center staff. In addition, Dr. Rich Mayer of the University of California addresses the design of multi-media presentations, and Dr. Craig Cunningham of the University of Chicago examines how to use the Internet for inquiry-based learning. In addition, classroom teachers who use technology in their classrooms describe applications of the theories presented in the articles; these applications make up a major part of the journal.

We hope that some of these voices speak to you and the needs of your school, and invite you to join the discussion.

Shalom