A Man of Principles
Published in Hamdia Magazine August 18, 2010
Shimon Waronker has big plans for the U.S. public school system. He’s a Chabadnick from Crown Heights, a former officer in the U.S. army and a seasoned educator in New York City’s public schools. When he was the principal of Middle School 22 in the Bronx, he transformed the school from a crime-laden, gang-controlled school to a model of education and academic accomplishment. Come September, Waronker will be opening a radically new public school based on innovative educational principles. He even has plans to take the idea nationwide by opening dozens of new schools based on its philosophy.
Waronker was born in Santiago, Chile and raised in a Conservative Jewish home. He was eleven when his father passed away and his mother subsequently moved the family to the United States, settling in Rockville, Maryland.
Growing up, Waronker was far removed from most Jewish rituals. When a cousin gave him a pair of Tefillin after his Bar Mitzvah, he didn’t even know what to do with them.
“I asked our [Conservative] rabbi,” Waronker recalled. “He said Tefillin - that’s an anachronism. We don’t do that anymore.’ I really didn’t know much so I accepted it.”
Years later when Waronker visited Israel for the first time, he had his first experience interacting with frum Jews. He was approached by a Chabadnick at the Kosel who asked him if he would like to put on Tefillin.
“I looked at him and said, ‘we don’t do that anymore, right?’ He said, ‘No, we still do.’
Waronker attended college at the University of Maryland-College Park. He was a member of the college’s ROTC U.S. Army program, and after college served on active duty as a lieutenant in a military intelligence unit. For the next two years he served in many roles in the military, including a training officer, executive officer of an army company and an aide-to-camp for a general.
Finding Hashem
Following his army service Waronker began questioning his purpose in life, his religion and the order of the world.
“I though that either life has a purpose or it doesn’t. Either someone endowed it with a purpose or there is none,” Waronker explained. “It made more sense for me to believe that life did indeed have a purpose, and that G-d created the universe and that there was only one G-d, not multiple gods. I realized I needed to find more about my roots.”
At the same time Waronker had a friend who had become observant and attended the Rabbinical College of America, the Chabad flagship yeshiva in Morristown, New Jersey. Waronker was deeply impressed with his friend’s transformation and growth in the yeshiva. At the time Waronker was just beginning to explore his Judaism, and upon seeing the changes in his friend’s life, decided to try out the yeshiva as well. He entered the yeshiva in May 1994, just one week before the Rebbe’s passing.
Upon first stepping into the yeshiva, Waronker knew that this was the lifestyle for him.
“The energy level was so amazing. It was like a chasuna. Walking into the hall and hearing the roar of learning was incredible.”
In a Tanya shiur on his first day in the yeshiva, Waronker heard a profound concept that had guided him ever since.
“Most of you are wondering why you are here. We’re now going to find out. The world is a dwelling place for Hashem. You’re here to made a Heaven on Earth for Hashem. You’re here to make this a better world,” the rabbi taught.
The words hit a deep chord in Waronker.
“It struck me as true and good and solid,” Waronker said. “That lesson the first day there stuck with me. It helps one focus. Every action we take should make this a better world. It was really powerful.”
Waronker spent three years in the yeshiva, during which he became observant and married a ba’alat teshuva named Marisa. The couple then moved to Crown Heights, New York, where they live until today with their six children.
A Promising Beginning
The words that Waronker had heard on his first day, compounded by many other ideas he learned during his three years, sent him on a mission to improve the world and positively impact the lives of others.
His first job after leaving yeshiva was teaching English and Math to second and fourth graders in a Satmar school in Williamsburg, New York. Waronker made quite an impression on the leadership of the school and after only a few months was promoted to Assistant Principal.
Waronker knew that he was making a difference in Williamsburg, but thought that becoming a teacher fulltime would be the best fit for him. He applied for a teaching job in the New York City public school system and was hired in 2001 to teach in an all-minority school in Crown Heights. Again he caught the attention of his superiors, and after three years the school’s principal and district superintendant recommended him for a spot in the New York City Leadership Academy.
The New York City Leadership Academy had just been created by Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Schools Chancellor Joel Klein. Its mission is to prepare promising candidates for principal positions via a one-year intensive training program, followed by a full year of mentoring.
Waronker excelled in the program. After completing the Academy, Waronker and his fellow graduates were then sent into the field to lead schools throughout the City. Waronker’s assignment was virtually doomed to failure from the start. He was assigned to be the principal of the Jordan L. Mott School in the South Bronx, also known as Middle School 22. It was one of the twelve most violent schools in the City and was on the New York State list of failing schools. Gangs ruled the school and used it as their headquarters for their drug trade. Six veteran principals had quit over the previous two years, and even the large police presence stationed in the school was unable to control the students.
To put it mildly, Waronker was absolutely terrified.
“For three days I prayed and didn’t sleep,” Waronker said. “I had a growing family then. I was very concerned for my life and my children, but I felt like a soldier. This was my mission.”
Waronker also spent those days working on his bitachon, the combination of faith and knowledge that things would turn out as planned. After three days of davening, Waronker boarded the subway and set off for his new assignment. As a principal he knew that his first task was to check the school’s register to see the number of students in the school. He checked – and did a double take when he saw the number. The school had exactly 770 students. Waronker took the number, the same number as the address of the Chabad central headquarters, as a direct sign from Hashem.
“I said ‘yes boss, I’m here by Divine providence,’” Waronker recounted. “It was with pure bitachon. I told myself ‘I’m not going to be intimidated. I’m not afraid. I’m here because I have 770 students on my registrar. That’s faith, crystal clear.”
Putting Faith To The Test
Waronker entered MS 22 with a keen sense of his mission, based deeply on the lessons of tikkun olam that he first heard in the Chabad yeshiva.
“There are three principles that schools need to follow – they need to focus on relationships, empowerment and transparency,” Waronker explained. “To the kids, they need to understand what their mission is and why they’re here on this planet. It’s to create a better world.”
The student body was composed of a mix of minorities – including African Americans and recent immigrants from Africa who spoke only French, but it was predominantly Hispanic. Waronker’s native command of the Spanish language and South American culture helped him immensely to gain acceptance and to make his voice heard among the students.
From his first day on the job, Waronker focused on eliminating the rampant violence and gang infrastructure. For this task, his military background helped considerably. He instituted hallway patrols, suspended and expelled many students and had others arrested. He also instituted a school dress code to purge gang colors from the school. He received several death threats, both from students and parents, but he continued with his mission.
Waronker realized that the student body was too large and disordered for any leadership to gain control over it, so he divided the school into mini schools. He invited teachers to design their own programs. In total eight mini schools were created, each with their own faculty, students and resources.
One of the mini schools was centered on a dual-language program which taught all classes in both English and French. This particular program was designed to help acculturate the new French-speaking immigrants. It earned Waronker recognition from the French government, which knighted him and awarded him the French Ordre des Palmes Académiques.
Pepe Gutierrez saw the changes in the school first-hand when he was hired as a first-year teacher by Waronker. He and two veteran teachers created a dual-language Spanish mini school and saw dramatic results from it. In fact Gutierrez was so impressed with Waronker that he will be joining the new public school that Waronker is opening in September.
“Through the mini school model we were very successful in having that small community feel,” Gutierrez said. “Students saw that the teachers were caring. They started to come into the classrooms and not just stay in the hallway.”
The New York City Board of Education, as well as students and parents of MS 22, initially doubted whether a suit-wearing, bearded Jewish man could run the minority, lower-class school. Though he experienced some minor cases of anti-Semitism when he first assumed the position, the incidents soon dropped off and Waronker began creating a large group of fans for himself.
One year in December, an endless line of parents dropped off holiday presents at his office. Waronker finally pulled one aside and asked the reason for the presents.
“It’s because you’re Jewish and we know that Jews value education,” the mother said. “That’s why we know our child will have a great education here.”
Waronker introduced many other changes in the school, including group tutoring, frequent field trips, and even lessons in proper manners from an etiquette expert. Waronker said his goal was to help the students visualize a life outside the one of poverty and violence they were accustomed to. In his goals, Waronker succeeded beyond his imagination.