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August 23, 2002
RJDS welcomes a new leader
Ben Karmel brings his views on learning and listening to Richmond.
KYLE BERGER REPORTER
According to Ben Karmel, after 10 years of successful development,
the Richmond Jewish Day School is at a sort of crossroads.
Now that the school has established a solid base in the community,
Karmel said, it is time to focus on increasing enrolment and improving
programs. As the school's newly hired principal, he is looking forward
to making that happen.
"[The leaders of the school] have built up a number of layers
from the bottom in a very short time," he said, comparing the
school's progress to the layers of a wedding cake. "They should
be very proud of where they've come to and I have no qualms that
the school is going to grow."
Karmel said that one of the keys to the school's growth in the future
will come from the academic success of the students. And one of
the keys to academic success, he explained, is creating the best
learning environment possible – as much in the playground as
in the classroom.
"I believe that personal and social development, how children
learn about common values and how to treat each other, helps to
promote that really high-edge quality of academic excellence,"
he said. "If we can get the message to children that they have
power in their hands as to how other people will treat them, then
I think the focus on the studies will be clearer and you don't have
to stress out about social issues."
Karmel said he would also like to create more learning opportunities
for students who excel at their studies.
"I want the school to provide enrichment for children who are
good students or have finished assignments," he said. "They
could be given enrichments so that they can continue onto the next
phase so that [their studies are] more self-paced and they're not
waiting for the rest of the class to catch up."
When asked what he brings to the hallways of the Richmond Jewish
Day School, Karmel said he is a good listener. He plans on using
those listening skills to guide any necessary improvements to the
school's program.
"I don't believe I have all the answers," he said, "and
I believe that the Richmond Jewish Day School community stakeholders
and parents can contribute valuable information as to how we can
grow and they need to be listened to.
"What I believe is that we should be getting external input
that is objective as to exactly how our academic programs are doing,"
he continued. "We're going to embark on a process to ensure
that that happens."
Karmel was born and raised in Vancouver but he moved to Israel in
1970 at the age of 17. He split his time in Israel between Kibbutz
Yad Mordechai, located at the northern tip of the Gaza Strip, and
Jerusalem, before coming back to Vancouver in 1986.
A couple of years later, he moved his family to Calgary, where he
spent nine years as part of the Judaic faculty of the Calgary Jewish
Academy, the latter two years as an administrator. While teaching,
he worked part time on his master's in education, which he recently
received.
He discovered his passion for teaching when he lived on the kibbutz.
There, he explained, a person's attitude and work ethic identified
who they were. Through that, he learned the importance of role modelling
and how that transfers into society.
" I had very good instructors who taught me how to instruct,"
he added.
Karmel and his wife, Tammy, have a 23-year-old son, Gidon, who is
a security guard for a Jewish organization in Munich, Germany. They
also have two daughters, Ariela, 7, and Noa, 4, who will be attending
the Richmond Jewish Day School.
For more information about the Richmond Jewish Day School, call
604-275-3393.
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