There has been a change in leadership at Louisville Beit Sefer Yachad.
In a letter to parents, LBSY Board Chair Leigh Bird wrote, “The Board of the Louisville Beit Sefer Yachad considers our first priority to make sure all of our students get a well-rounded, top-notch Jewish education. To achieve this goal, the Board has decided to move the school in a new direction, which will include a change in administration.
“The Board would like to thank Rabbi Feder for his service and for all he has done for our children since 2012. We wish him well in his new endeavors.
“For the next year, Louisville Beit Sefer Yachad will be led by Beverly Weinberg as Interim Head of School.” Bird also announced that Andi Callam will continue as assistant director.
Further down in the letter, Bird wrote, “The Board of LBSY will soon be undertaking the search for a permanent Head of School beginning with the 2017 school year to continue Louisville Beit Sefer Yachad’s growth as a multi-denominational Jewish School.”
Weinberg is an educator with 44 years of experience teaching in the Jefferson County Public Schools. She retired in 2008, but still works part time as a teacher for children with special needs at Wilder Elementary School. She earned a BA in education and an M.Ed. in special education.
In addition to her teaching experience, Weinberg has 12 years of administrative experience in Jewish religious schools. She served as principal at Adath Jeshurun; at KITS, the combined Keneseth Israel/Temple Shalom religious school when the congregations first merged their programs; and then at KATS when Congregation Adath Jeshurun chose to join them.
Callam is the assistant director of the Keneseth Israel Preschool, a position she has held since 2007, and has over 25 years of administrative service.
Weinberg is already immersed in planning for the upcoming year. She will implement a new curriculum with scope and sequence for kindergarten through eighth grade and a new Hebrew program.
“I’ve been working very diligently to get excellent staff in place,” Weinberg said, “and I have teachers who have a commitment to the Jewish education of our Louisville students in place right now.
“I’m looking forward to working with our parents and teachers and Board for the coming school year,” she continued.
Keneseth Israel Executive Director Yonatan Yussman recommended the Chai curriculum that Weinberg is implementing. She described it as a spiral curriculum that grows with enduring understandings for each level and it’s focused around the concepts of Torah, avodah (worship), and gemilut chasadim (acts of lovingkindness).
Weinberg is also planning ongoing teacher in service training on the new curriculum.
Bird is also looking forward to the new school year and had words of praise for Weinberg.
There has been one additional change since the letter went out to parents. For the coming year, LBSY will return to The J. “We thank Anshei Sfard for housing us and being good to work with,” she said.
Through the coming year, Bird is looking for input from parents, Board members and community members to determine the best direction to move forward.
She’s also hoping for more parent involvement because teaching a child Judaism is more than what happens in the classroom.