Making A Different
more recognition we get," said
Isaacs, who this spring saw "interim"
Staff Writer
dropped from his title as executive
director of the Agency for Jewish
C onsidering his first trip
Education of Metropolitan Detroit.
through Detroit, it's a won-
"It's going to take time. Things aren't
der Judah Isaacs came back.
going to change overnight."
July
1967,
and
was
"It
Within two weeks of Isaacs' July
we were driving back from the
1,
1998,
start as interim executive
Montreal Expo to Dayton," he
director,
a national educational con-
recalled. "Someone told us that we
sulting
agency
reported that AJE was
couldn't take 1-75 through Detroit
in
substantial
trouble.
The report of
because of the riots. We drove
the
Jewish
Education
Service
of
through anyway."
North America cited "fuzziness"
The 35-year-old Isaacs is six years
about the respective roles of the AJE,
into his return trip to Detroit. He
other education services and the
just finished his first year heading
grant-making Jewish Federation of
this community's nerve center for
Metropolitan Detroit in providing
Jewish education programs and
educational
programs and services.
resources.
The
JESNA
report suggested that
"I don't know how much we've
AJE's
planning
process was often
changed, but the more we do, the
`'chaotic."
"There were a lot of good
and valid points raised in
JESNA," Isaacs said.
fir a go.
Now, he says, the agency's
o
t'E
A zw'
sze
planning process is much
AVrrhe*
more organized. For exam-
za
w .0 mi
mku
ple, the Hebrew-only Mifaash
3.0
program for Americans and
With two new leaders at the helm,
Israelis is completely sched-
uled for next year, as are 90
LONNY GOLDSMITH
:Rz
.45
the Agency for Jewish Education
Love of learning
has helped
ease transition
for new chief
of AJE.
percent of the offerings for next
year's workshops for congregational
school teachers.
The trick is to help the differing
units broaden their view of the edu-
cational system. "No one's looking
at Jewish education as a life-long
experience," Isaacs said. "If the AJE
can be part of their plan, it will be
good."
The way staffers at the Southfield-
based agency are talking, the AJE may
be ahead of Disney World and Saturn
dealerships on the list of "happiest
place to work."
"Internally, we have a lot of people
smiling and enjoying their jobs," said
Wendy Sadler, AJE's director of
school services. "It makes what you
do here incredibly pleasurable."
Is the new atmosphere attributable
to Isaacs?
"When you look at the head of any
company, they set the climate," Sadler
said. "I think a lot of credit goes to -
him and I can unequivocally say it's
been wonderful. He's the type of per-
son every major company would love
to have. You know if he heard you,
there will be follow up.
Isaacs had worked five years as an
associate senior planner at the
Federation before he was tapped to
help revamp AJE. The move came a
a good time for him.
"I knew there was no place for
advancement," he said. "I was lookin
to do something else."
Isaacs was born in Wisconsin and,
after a short stint in Dayton, Ohio,
his parents moved to New York, in
part to assure access to high-quality
Jewish education. Isaacs went to the
Salanter Akiba Riverdale Academy
(SAR) in Riverdale, N.Y., where "I
learned to love learning," he said.
University schooling at Queen's
College led him to Yeshiva
University's Wurtzweiler School of
DIFFERENCE on page 10
of Metropolitan Detroit is poised
for the communal programming
hurdles of a new century.
Communal Activis
Favor for rabbi evolves into presidency of Agency for Jewish Education.
DIANA LIEBERMAN
Special to the Jewish News
7
he new president of the
Agency for Jewish
Education of Metropolitan
Detroit has no radical
ideas for the group.
Instead, James Jonas, who took over
the gavel from Lynda Giles on June 9,
hopes to maintain the policies of inter-
agency collaboration and continuous
improvement that he said have given the
AJE new credibility and effectiveness.
"The agency will continue to gain
communal support by continuing the
legacy that Lynda has created," Jonas said,
upon accepting the presidency at a pro-
6/25
1999
gram held at the Jewish Community
Center's D. Dan & Betty Kahn Building
in West Bloomfield. "My hope is to build
on what Lynda has begun," he said.
Jonas, a former president of Temple
Israel, said he anticipated no problem
working in partnership with congrega-
tions. "In fact," he said, "I began my
volunteer career with the agency
because Rabbi Harold Loss asked me
to. It was the 'do me a favor' policy."
Jonas has done more than his share
of "favors" in the Jewish community
over the years.
In addition to his continuing involve-
ment with Temple Israel, the Detroit
native has served on local, regional and
national boards of the Union of
American Hebrew Congregations.
He was co-chair of the first task
force uniting the Jewish Federation of
. Metropolitan Detroit with area syna-
ocrues an effort that has become a
cr bb
standing Federation committee. He.
has been a proactive board member
and officer of the AJE, and most
recently served as co-chair of the Teen
Mission 2 Israel.
Ellen Krivchenia, who maintains a
close relationship with the AJE board
in her position as the agency's admin-
istrative manager, said she looks for-
ward to continued growth under
Jonas' leadership.
"He is very much trusting of the
staff because he knows we will do the
best job we possibly can," she said,c_\
and he is ready to give us the suppol
and the tools to do so.
Giles said Jonas was "a wonderful
choice" for AJE.
"With the Teen Mission, he not
only worked on programming for sev
eral years, but also met with teens, tal
ing to them about what they felt was
important," Giles said. This past
mer, he and his wife used part of thei
vacation to go to Israel with the kids.'
Jonas is a CPA by profession, spe-
cializing in the field of real estate.
"Because of his expertise in the area,
we always knew we could call on hir
whenever we needed work on the
building," Giles said.