By Janis Siegel, Jewish Sound Correspondent
Despite having to leave its building in Seattle’s Maple Leaf neighborhood after a six-year, post-recession, uphill financial struggle to buy it, the Menachem Mendel Seattle Cheder has found a new site and is now open and bustling. Nearly 80 students from preschool through 8th grade have followed the school to its new location in Seattle’s Greenwood neighborhood.
“We were not successful in raising the necessary funds to conclude the long-term purchase of the Maple Leaf building, so the mortgage-holder took it back and is in the process of selling it,” said Tziviah Goldberg, MMSC’s business and advancement manager. “While we had hoped to complete the negotiation of a long-term lease with him, in the end he decided to sell.”
Despite the need to leave what the dual-curriculum day school had hoped would be its permanent home, Goldberg said the school itself is thriving.
“Losing the Maple Leaf building was a blow,” Goldberg told The Jewish Sound, “but we’re resolved to live up to the confidence all of our supporters have shown in us to ultimately overcome financial obstacles.”
The K-12 school had to suspend its 9th through 12th grade girls’ high school classes due to space limitations, though it plans to restore them next fall. At the same time, however, MMSC expanded its Montessori preschool program, the only Jewish program of its kind in the state, and enrolled 15 more new students. Families appear to be adjusting to the sudden change.
“The whole MMSC community rallied and mobilized over the summer to find a wonderful new facility just 10 minutes west in Greenwood,” Goldberg said.
MMSC has a three-year lease on the property situated at NW 85th St. and Dayton Ave. N., with an option to renew for another two years.
The new site takes advantage of its proximity to a public library, a Boys’ and Girls’ Club that MMSC occasionally rents to augment its own outdoor play area, and a public park, Goldberg said.
Devorah Kornfeld, MMSC’s head of school, told The Jewish Sound that finding the building was a blessing.
“Our goal is to continue the emphasis on educating and nurturing leadership skills in our students,” said Kornfeld, “preparing them educationally, socially and morally to meet the challenges of our world as educated Jews who will make a positive difference for all those with whom they come in contact. ”
MMSC received an anonymous private donation and a matching grant from The Samis Foundation that allowed them to make the move. The school was also the recipient of a $70,000 Department of Homeland Security grant that it will use to make necessary facility upgrades.
“We believe that the economy has improved sufficiently that current donors will remain loyal and prospective donors will be in a better position to respond positively when we make the case for supporting MMSC’s mission,” said Rabbi Shimon Emlen, development manager at the day school. “One of the lessons we’ve learned from the recent challenges we faced is that we need to expand that core and broaden our base of support.”
According to Goldberg, the funding shortfall for each child’s tuition at the school is $3,445 per student. To close that gap, MMSC will not only request the full financial support of its board, parent base, staff, and faculty, but it will mount a vigorous public outreach campaign toward the greater Seattle Jewish community.
It’s an effort that will utilize any and all communication strategies that are available to organizers including email, phone campaigns, letters, and all social media.
“We chose the theme, “It’s your MMSC!” to emphasize that we all have a stake in Jewish community — in making the world a better place,” Goldberg said. “Everyone in the community is a stakeholder in our mission of educating and nurturing the next generation of Jewish community builders.”
While the MMSC leadership continues to develop plans to expand and manage the growth of its early childhood program, which will require modifications to maximize the building’s space, said Kornfeld, those watching the bottom line are also planning to gather the knowledge and experience of MMSC alumni around the world. They want to bring them into the larger Seattle cheder family of volunteers and donors.
Emlen, who also is looking at the big picture, is working toward even longer term goals.
“Sustainability isn’t just about one source of support,” he said, “but a diverse stream of sources, such as tuition, donations, and grants — and down the line, hopefully, an endowment.”