While many large philanthropic projects have ambitious goals of “changing the world,” JLA grew out of a much humbler objective: to instill a sense of identity and community in our most successful Jewish children. Miami is home to many of the most successful Jewish day schools in the country, small and large, Pluralistic and Orthodox, dotted across many of our neighborhoods. Yet, as children reach middle school, we often lose the most ambitious of them to elite secular private schools or to the public school system. More worryingly, many of these children graduate and go on to top universities with a successful academic track record, but without a sense of purpose and belonging that we believe is so important in leading a meaningful and fulfilling Jewish life. As we looked into addressing this challenge, we explored many alternatives. They ranged from developing improved teacher training in our current schools, to developing grants for performance-based pay for Day School teachers. We considered significantly increasing financial aid for students that agreed to “give back” to the community. We even attempted to help improve board governance and school culture at a micro-level. Ultimately, and after almost a decade of trying to address the issue, we concluded that the problem did not lie within our current Day Schools. In fact, many of our schools are excellent at meeting the needs of most of our community. That is why we call them community schools: they try to provide a space for everyone, from the struggling child to the academic prodigy, while keeping tuition as affordable as possible. They teach Judaism and do an enviable job in keeping our community tight. Yet, by trying to cater to as wide of a population as possible, we (as a community) struggle to truly meet the needs of those few that wish, or can, achieve more. We struggle because the leading secular schools can be selective in choosing their student body, and a Jewish community school cannot. We struggle, because the leading secular schools can charge the true cost of an elite education to the vast majority of their student population, and a Jewish community school cannot. In fact, our success in ensuring that no Jewish kid is left without the opportunity of a Jewish education is precisely why we are unable to offer an exceptionally rigorous experience to the few that would like one. We therefore decided that the only way to solve this problem was to start from scratch and develop a bold vision for a new Jewish Day School that would challenge our most ambitious students academically while inspiring them to live a life of service to others. A school that would recruit the absolute best teachers. That would support them and compensate them in ways that few schools can. A school housed on a campus that would be better than some top-tier universities. One that would accept that we would not be everything to everyone, and therefore could be selective in admitting our student body. And so JLA started to take shape: a small , state-of-the art institution that will be focused on academics, Judaism, integrity and community service. Understanding that providing all the above would be expensive, we committed from day one to make this a “need-blind” institution. That is, the ability to pay will not be a consideration in the admissions process, and the tuition of any child that is accepted will be reflective of their families’ ability to pay. Hopefully that will bring a socio-economic diversity to our student body that is more reflective of our overall population than that of traditional private schools. We also hope to avoid many of the common pitfalls of communal Jewish institutions. JLA will have no broad capital campaign. Our board was selected strictly on their ability to steer the organization towards a sustainable future in accordance with our by-laws. They were selected because of the diversity of opinions and expertise they provide, and not because of their financial abilities. The school will carry no debt, and our campus will be 100% paid for by the time the school opens. But most importantly, our objective is not to create a “Jewish version” of our top secular schools. Yes, we are looking for strong academics. But there is more than SAT scores and AP classes to developing a well-rounded Jewish young adult ready to go into demanding colleges. We will be devoting meaningful time to teaching the core tenets of Judaism. Our students are expected to develop a strong identity with the State of Israel, and every student, from 9th grade through graduation, will spend close to 4 weeks every year immersed in an integrated curriculum in Israel focused on Hebrew Language, Judaics, and contemporary Israeli culture, politics, and society. They will also, during the year, be involved in true community service on a regular basis throughout their entire stay at JLA. Being part of our community is a critical part of who we are, and who we want our students to be. The dream of graduating 45 of our most talented children every year with an outstanding academic education, a strong sense of belonging to our past, and a desire to build a better future has encouraged us to devote meaningful resources to making this a reality. We are sure that challenges will be numerous, and it won’t be an easy road. All that we can do is work hard and never settle for anything less than the best. The best teachers, the best campus, the best students. And we are confident that with the help of Hashem, this dream will become a reality. We hope you will be part of it. Gisela & Daniel Ades