Benchmarking for Good Video Lessons for Leaders: Positive Work-Life Balance: Insights from Avery Joel of Fuchs Mizrachi School

By Dr. Harry Bloom, Founder and President, Benchmarking for Good, Inc.

In a recent recorded video session Dr. Bloom explored with Fuchs Mizrachi Head of School Rabbi Dr. Avery Joel how to achieve staff satisfaction in work/life balance. Click on this video link to access the full interview. 

Rabbi Dr, Avery Joel, Head of School, Fuchs Mizrachi School

5 Keys to Positive Work/Life Balance Perception

Rabbi Joel emphasizes that work-life balance is not a standalone metric but a component of a larger ecosystem involving partnership, culture, and collaboration. Below are some of his insights:

1. Culture of Transparency and Value

A foundational element of faculty satisfaction is ensuring staff feel seen and valued. Rabbi Joel advocates for:

• "Pulling back the curtain": Leadership should be transparent about the thinking behind school decisions, even when those decisions—such as the school calendar or snow day policies—must balance the conflicting needs of parents and teachers.

• Team Inclusion: Demonstrating that faculty voices are a part of the decision-making team helps mitigate the impact of decisions that may not exclusively favor work-life balance.

  
  

2. Active Listening and Feedback Loops

Effective leaders must proactively seek out the faculty’s perspective on their "lived experience". Rabbi Joel utilizes several forums for this:

• Division Lunches: Opt-in lunches where leadership provides dessert and asks teachers what is going well and how the school can better support them.

• Table Talk: During school-wide meetings, small-group discussions are held, and notes are collected to ensure every voice is recorded and considered.

• Accountability: Listening must be followed by action. Rabbi Joel advises leaders to identify specific items raised by staff, implement changes, and hold themselves accountable for those improvements.

  
  

3. Structural Support and Flexibility

Generous and flexible policies provide the "technical" support necessary for balance.

• Generous PTO: Fuchs Mizrachi maintains a policy of three personal days and ten sick days, with the ability to carry over up to 30 sick days.

• Empowered Leadership: Divisional principals and directors are empowered to handle flexibility requests on a case-by-case basis, allowing them to manage their specific teams’ needs.

• Internal Coverage Systems: To avoid overstaffing while maintaining flexibility, junior high and high school teachers are expected to cover a set number of classes for colleagues (four periods per semester).

• Fair Compensation: Teachers who provide coverage beyond the base expectation receive additional compensation, as the school prefers to pay internal staff rather than outside substitutes.

  
  

4. Boundary Management and Parent Education

Because teachers often encounter parents in "immersive" settings like the grocery store or gym, the school must actively manage expectations.

• Communication Protocols: The school established a task force of parents and educators to draft written expectations for the school-home partnership.

• Response Windows: Clear guidelines help define reasonable timeframes for parents to expect a response from a teacher.

• Complex Boundaries: The school provides guidance on specific community challenges, such as the dynamics that arise when students serve as babysitters for their teachers.

  
  

5. Intentional Collegiality

A supportive "team" culture is vital for faculty morale.

• Recruitment: The school prioritizes "supportive teammates" during the hiring process to ensure the culture remains collaborative.

• Mutual Support: A strong culture where teachers "have each other's backs" makes the burden of covering classes and managing workloads feel more manageable.

Advice for Leaders

For schools struggling with work-life balance, Rabbi Joel offers a two-step approach:

1. Listen: Provide opportunities for staff to share what matters to them without making immediate promises.

2. Follow Through: Pick one or two items, share that they were heard, and implement changes to show that the faculty’s time and input are respected.

How Benchmarking for Good Can Help

Benchmarking for Good’s Faculty climate research can help your school understand its staff’s priorities and satisfaction on what matters most: paving the way to targeted, positive action by school leadership. Contact harrybloom@benchmarkingforgood.org to learn how you can access our research services.