Steve Freedman, at The Blogs

Oct 8, 2024, 3:28 PM

Since October 7, I have taken a deeper dive into the conflict between Israel, the Palestinians and others in the region. My year's journey into reading and listening to a wide range of perspectives has given me a deeper...

Oct 19, 2023, 7:44 PM

Your Strong Opinion Does Make It Fact

Opinions, misinformation, and alternate facts, along with ignorance are powerful forces distorting the truth about the brutal slaughter of innocent Jews on October 7 and the conflict between Israel and Hamas. We are at an inflection point for Israel...

Oct 13, 2023, 1:02 AM

If I Am Not For Myself: In Defense of Ourselves

One of the most famous quotes of Beit Hillel is, “If I am not for myself, who will be for me? But if I am only for myself, what am I? And if not now, when?” It perfectly encapsulates the...

Nov 4, 2022, 3:55 PM

Silence is complicity

Note: I wrote this blog on Wednesday before the F.B.I. issued an alert in our State about a "credible threat against NJ Synagogues." This is not the blog I wanted to write this week, but recent events leave me no...

May 20, 2021, 9:04 PM

Conundrum With Israel

The truth about what has led to the endless cycle of violence in Israel, including this current conflict, falls deeper and deeper behind a dark cloud of distortion, misinformation, and collective amnesia with each passing year. Our conundrum with Israel...

Feb 12, 2021, 12:08 AM

The second pandemic

From March through October 2020, the proportion of emergency department visits related to mental health increased 24% for children ages 5-11 and spiked 31% for adolescents aged 12-17, compared to the same period the previous year. Those writing about...

Jan 28, 2021, 7:12 PM

I’m just one person

“No snowflake in an avalanche ever feels responsible.” - Voltaire At my school, every morning begins with school-wide announcements that include daily birthday wishes, the Pledge of Allegiance, the bracha for Torah study, and a quote of the day. My...

Jan 14, 2021, 7:30 PM

Standing up for what is right

In October, I wrote a blog, Masking Truth, about the consequences of living in a Post-Truth world. At that time I was focusing on COVID-19 and the fact that millions of Americans were not following the scientific protocols established...

Dec 3, 2020, 6:56 PM

Lose to Win: The Mystery of our Lives

There is a short story attached to an illustration that hangs in my office. In part it reads: “…I think the universe has different plans for me…this is the thing we all come to and this is the thing we...

Nov 10, 2020, 5:54 PM

Masking Truth

The elections are over and more than a week later, COVID19, in fact, did not disappear as some predicted. Why? “Where you stand determines what you believe no matter what the facts show you and what the sum of the...

About Me

Steve is Head of School at a Jewish day school and has served as a Head of School for over 22 years. He also served as a Congregational Education Director. Steve has taught and mentored new educational leaders, has led sessions on leadership and change at Jewish Educational Conferences, and at Independent School Conferences.