April 10, 2024 by
It has been ten years since the South Campus of Milton Gottesman Jewish Day School opened its doors to welcome the youngest members of our community. The dream of JPDS faculty, leaders, and families in 2012 has grown into a vibrant learning community.
“We had the vision from the top leadership all the way through to teachers in the classroom,” says Laura Cohen, who has taught on South Campus since the beginning. She continued, “And we dreamed big, when we had this vision, and now we also had the building. Everything just came alive, and we I think all referred to it as magic around here.” Ms. Cohen is now Curriculum Coordinator for General Studies on South Campus.
South Campus Principal Melissa Davis is incredibly proud of what the team has built together, “So when I think about anybody who has walked on this floor, right, touched these walls, taught in this classroom, made a mark, an imprint. So whether you were here, as a teacher, one year, three years, five years, the whole 10 years, everybody has made an impact, and everybody has made a mark, and everybody is responsible for making this what it was, because everybody here has the mindset of, we always have room to learn, we always have room to grow.”
Purim Ball attendees had the opportunity to make a physical contribution to South Campus by adding tiles to a commemorative mosaic. The celebration of our early elementary campus was a major theme of the celebration. A commemorative video was created, Ms. Davis spoke, and each teacher who has worked at South Campus was invited to stand to great applause.
The completed mosaic depicts the seven species of Israel, for which the early elementary classrooms are named. It was delivered by artist Rena Fruchter and will be hung above the fireplace in the entryway over the summer where it will inspire many more generations of MILTON students!
