17 Av, 5783
Dear LGA Community,
I am so thrilled to be taking the helm as LGA’s new Head of School this year. I am now writing to you to share a few introductory words, and pragmatic announcements, which you’ll find toward the end of this email. I am also recording this message as a video for accessibility and convenience.
“A gratitude / had begun / to sing in me,” wrote the poet Denise Levertov, reflecting on a spiritual moment. Well, a gratitude began to sing in me when, back in January, I joined the LGA community for a Monday morning song-filled gathering. In another context, arriving for a job interview would have found me nervous with anticipation. Instead, I felt warmly welcomed and instantly drawn in, deeply moved by students, parents, and staff.
Over these last two months, the start of my LGA tenure, this feeling of deep gratitude only intensified. I am continually inspired by the dedication, wisdom, thoughtfulness, kindness, and joy of the LGA community, and feel honored to have the opportunity to help the school grow to its fullest potential.
Jacques Derrida wrote that time is the only gift that is truly reciprocal. Jewish Education is a space where such reciprocity flows not only between educators and learners, but also ripples outward, across all time.
My own Jewish journey began in a small, provincial Soviet town, where I was denied access to the very basics of Jewish learning. The urge to repair that predicament for myself and for those around me has been with me since. A few days ago, my son returned from his 4-week blissful stint in Northern California’s Camp Ramah, and shared with me that two of my former students – from different settings – were on staff at the camp, as emerging educators. That feeling of a full circle, of my students educating my own children, makes my time as an educator feel not only reciprocal, but sacred.
My LGA involvement has been mostly remote, and I continue to work from across the country until my move to Massachusetts later this month. Libi b’mizrach, wrote Judeo-Spanish poet Yehudah Halevi nearly 1,000 years ago: “My heart is in the East, but I’m at the edge of the West.” Halevi was not thinking about the East Coast, nor was he writing from Los Angeles, where I now sit in a lovely backyard, contemplating the poet’s words, while a POD with my family’s belongings is enroute to Western Massachusetts, with our own date of departure less than two weeks away now. But Halevi’s yearning resonates profoundly, as I cannot wait to arrive and meet all of you in person.
Speaking of being in person: it’s already August! The start of the school year is only weeks away, and so here is the pragmatic part of my message: this year, we’re going to have many exciting volunteer opportunities, old and new. Later this month, you will be receiving an invitation with a variety of options to contribute your time in a way that would nourish the school community, and also feel meaningful to you. That is Derrida’s dream of reciprocity made real.
Also, enrolled families will soon be receiving an email regarding our move to FACTS, where parents can upload forms with ease. For returning families, this will be taking the place of Magnus and will allow for a more efficient and seamless system. All families will receive login information for filling out back-to-school forms – please look out for that email in the next week or so.
Lastly, the LGA calendar for this year is live on the website – please take a moment to look and get the dates synced.
There is much more to share with you all over the next several weeks, but in the meantime, please reach out if you have any questions or concerns, or just want to say hello!
Shabbat shalom!
Jake Marmer
Head of School
P.S. Below, you will find a photo of my family, on our recent journey to Northern California. All four of us are thrilled to be a part of the LGA community.
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