Kadimah Coaching Celebrates a Year of Student-Centered Learning Across Ten NYC Schools

Mayberg Foundation partner Kadimah Coaching recently wrapped up a year-long professional development program in which administrators and teachers from ten NYC schools worked to shift their teaching methods to include greater student engagement and autonomy. This initiative, run in partnership with the Jewish Education Project, culminated in a "Celebration of Learning" where participating schools gathered to present student work, share ideas, and reflect on both successes and challenges as they plan for year two.

The results were striking: teachers who once doubted whether student-centered learning (SCL) was realistic found it not only achievable but transformative, discovering that giving students greater voice, agency, and choice deepened engagement with curricular goals rather than undermining them — and that students who typically struggled were among the most positively impacted. Educators also reflected on the shift to a facilitator role, noting that modeling SCL for students first is key — like helping someone ride a bike, you hold on until they've got it and then let go. And once students take ownership, the results speak for themselves. Teachers came away recognizing that SCL isn't an occasional strategy but something that informs every day of learning.

Looking ahead, Kadimah and the Jewish Education Project are developing plans to deepen the work and expand it to more teachers across participating schools. Notably, this was Kadimah's first full year of operation, and beyond this cohort, they also collaborated with JEIC on follow-up programming and launched an Israel education fellowship with Nefesh B'Nefesh. This work reflects the Mayberg Foundation's commitment to supporting programs that foster student-centered, God-centered instruction and a more lasting connection to Jewish learning and life.