In 1966, a vision became reality in Kansas City: the school that is now known as Hyman Brand Hebrew Academy opened its doors. While there were previous attempts to start a Jewish day school in Kansas City, for a wide variety of reasons it wasn’t until 1966 that The Hebrew Academy was successfully established.
“The stars finally aligned, but we attribute the successful launch of the Hebrew Academy to the right mix of people involved. The founding families were very dedicated to the success and longevity of the new school, but we could not have done it without supporters like Rabbi Margolies of Congregation Beth Shalom and Sidney Deutsch who was with the Jewish Federation,” said Blanche Sosland, one of the founding members of HBHA. Blanche and her husband Neil are also this year’s HBHA Civic Service Award honorees.
In addition to honoring the Soslands, the Civic Service Award event will celebrate HBHA’s 50th anniversary with an exclusive Kansas City Symphony performance — conducted by former CSA honoree Michael Stern — at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts, on Monday, April 11, 2016. The event is co-chaired by Pella Fingersh and Marcia Karbank, who are also former Civic Service Award honorees.
According to Neil Sosland, at the time HBHA was founded, community Jewish day schools — schools that teach students from various branches of Judaism — were opening up on the East Coast. As more observant young parents became interested in providing their children with a Jewish day school education, it became apparent that the time was ripe to start the Hebrew Academy.
“We were also fortunate to have had Rabbi Yehuda Fleischmann as the head of Judaic Studies, and co-director of the school in the early years. He set the tone for the school: Each child was treated as an individual learner, and each student was given a strong foundation of Jewish knowledge. He instilled a love for lifelong learning in his students,” said Blanche Sosland.
“Neil and I wanted our children to be able to make their own knowledgeable decision about their level of Jewish observance, and the day school was the place where they could gain that capacity. We believed that too many of our contemporaries were opting out of Jewish observance because of lack of Jewish education,” she continued.
As time passed, the number of grades grew. HBHA started off as a K-3 school, then expanded year by year with the oldest grade. Initially, founders had envisioned the Academy as a K-8 school. However, another HBHA founder, Joan March, had the idea to create a high school, since there were no feeder schools for the eighth-grade graduates.
“We were one of the last cities of our size to start a day school, but one of the first to have a high school,” said Neil Sosland.
“Everything we did, we did for the students,” said March.
A few years later, the first class of seniors — nine students total — graduated HBHA in 1976.
Leading the Charge for a Jewish Day School
Having Hyman Brand — for whom the school is named today — as the Academy’s board president from 1966-1977, was another key factor in the school’s success. Brand was a well-known businessman and community leader who agreed to lead the Hebrew Academy’s board after being asked by nephew Carl Puritz, another founder of the day school.
“Hyman said to me, ‘I started my life in education, and I’d like to end it that way. I will accept your offer to be president.’ He then spent the next two weeks raising $40,000 to get the school in strong financial standing,” said Puritz. “It was his passion. His integrity and credentials gave so much to the school. People understood Hyman wasn’t gaining anything for the work he was doing.”
Brand was a tireless supporter, working through the end of his life to ensure the school had the funds it needed to keep the school running. But it wasn’t until after his death, in 1977, that the school adopted his name, in honor and memory of the man who gave so much of himself to support the school.
“It was suggested early on to name the school after Hyman, but he would not hear of it,” said Puritz.
Anita Loeb, who was the office manager early on in HBHA’s history, agrees that Hyman Brand was a key to the school’s success, as was Puritz. According to Loeb, Puritz worked diligently alongside his uncle to benefit the school. She said Puritz was a driving force behind the success of the school’s fundraising dinners, which began in 1974 with more than 500 people in attendance.
“To this day, Puritz continues in his passion for the health and well-being of HBHA,” said Kerry Cosner, director of development at HBHA.
Fifty years later, HBHA holds strong with an enrollment of 230 students in grades K-12. As the school looks to the future, it keeps in mind the core values that remain at its foundation.
In fact, when asked about their most memorable experience at HBHA, the Soslands could not pick just one.
“Every program that we come to, we see how this school has allowed each student to develop: It is a reminder of the fact that this school educates the whole child, following the original concept of the day school, which is not to compartmentalize Jewish and secular life, but to bring it together through a comprehensive education,” said Blanche.
To learn more about the HBHA Civic Award Service Celebration, or to purchase tickets to the event, go to www.hbha.edu, or contact Kerry Cosner, , 913-327-8156.
