Neighborhood preservation has always been at the core of CHAI’s mission, and for more than 30 years the organization has worked to stabilize northwest Baltimore City’s Jewish population and institutions. Now it’s bringing its expertise to the Pikesville community.
In one of its newest initiatives, CHAI is working with Pikesville public schools to ensure that they continue to provide high quality education in exceptional learning environments. We know, explains Mitch Posner, executive director of CHAI, that strong schools mean strong neighborhoods.
“We want to keep Pikesville vibrant,” adds Jeffrey Rosen, parent of a Summit Park Elementary School girl and president of the board of CHAI, an agency of The Associated: Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore. “We want people to see this as a place where they want to move, raise a family and take advantage of community amenities.”
Thirty-three percent of Baltimore’s Jewish population resides in Pikesville, making it the geographic and communal core of Jewish Baltimore. This concentration, says Posner, is a primary reason why our community is one of the most vibrant and connected in the country.
Since it was first launched, CHAI has embarked on a number of efforts to strengthen the schools. This work has been coordinated by two professionals with extensive experience in the field of education who assist with parent and community engagement.
Initially, CHAI worked with residents, neighborhood and school leaders, and elected officials to launch the Pikesville Schools Coalition, a broad-based volunteer organization committed to securing resources for and advocating for the area’s schools.
Working closely with the schools, the Coalition has successfully advocated for the full renovation of Pikesville High, created a structured forum to give the community a voice in their schools and helped bring Pikesville Middle and Pikesville High into the era of digital learning by advocating for them to be one of the first adopters of the Lighthouse schools program.
Jeff Jerome, chair of the Pikesville Schools Coalition, works closely with CHAI professionals who bring their expertise to help reach the community’s goals.
“CHAI graciously provides us with the staff to help us do our work,” explains Jerome. “We are a volunteer organization and it is too much work just for volunteers.”
The impetus for the initiative began in 2014 when, at the bequest of The Associated, CHAI began looking at the challenges facing Pikesville. It soon became apparent that the best way CHAI could utilize its expertise and resources was by making an impact on the schools.
“Schools are the anchor of the community,” says Jerome, who graduated, along with his son, from Pikesville High. “When people buy houses, schools are often the second question young families ask about.”
Moving forward, Rosen says, CHAI would be interested in exploring partnerships with community groups who share a similar vision of keeping the Pikesville community stable and thriving.
“We’ve only just scraped the surface,” says Posner. “We’re just getting started.”
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