Engaging Parents and Families

Parent and family involvement is an essential component to creating thriving Jewish cultures and traditions through the generations. Therefore, we offer experiential learning for the whole family. To learn more about our Sunday Family Program, please click here.

Looking ahead: Your Child's B'Mitzvah

Once in 7th grade, students join our Or Shalom B’mitzvah program. To learn more about this program and its curriculum, please click here.

Learn the Alef-Bet as a Family

We have designed a Family Alef-Bet class. To learn more about this program, please click here.

Meet our Community School staff!

Mira Stern
Head of Youth & Family Education
mira@orshalomsf.org

Hi! I’m Mira Stern—a queer, white Jewish mama, a fourth-generation San Franciscan, and a lifelong educator. After 15 years working in K–12 schools as a classroom teacher (10th grade World History!) and a program manager, I launched my own consulting practice focused on liberation education and advising. I work with tech companies, organizations, and school systems to develop equity strategies that have long-term impact, all rooted in racial justice and community building.

I’m a Jewish ritualist and love drawing from ancestral practices and weaving them together with body-based, pleasure-centered approaches to create spaces of belonging, healing, and collective liberation. I lead retreats, workshops, and online courses—all with the goal of cultivating real human connection, vulnerability, and room for each of us to step into our highest selves.

When I’m not chasing after my fiery, bold toddler on some epic Bay Area adventure, you can find me on my mat in hot yoga or pilates, tending to my 24 fruit trees in East Oakland, hosting delicious Shabbat dinners (Martha Jewart is my alter ego!), or planning my next getaway on this wild and beautiful planet.
I’m so excited to step into this role and bring my whole self—educator, parent, ritualist, and community curator—to the work ahead. I’m especially eager to build out robust programming that centers deep embodiment of Jewish magic and ritual for young people and families, helping instill the incredible medicine we’ve inherited—and the tools to reshape it for the chaos and beauty of right now. I’m also deeply honored to help build a teen program that roots our next generation in social justice, community interconnectedness, and fierce self-love.

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Or Shalom Community School (OSCS) embraces the wholeness of each child through education and a kid-centered community of Jewish life. Our learning program engages our students with joyful and dynamic experiences. Children will learn age-appropriate curriculum on the themes of Jewish food, music, and ritual objects, explored through the lenses of diaspora, Earth, and liberation.

You don’t need to be a member of Or Shalom to join our school.

Enrollment for 2024-2025 is now closed!

Thank you to our community for a wonderful school year! We had a tremendous time with our 1st-6th grade students.

Please stay tuned for information about the 2025-26 school year. For any programmatic questions before then, please contact the Head of Youth and Family Education, Mira Stern, at mira@orshalomsf.org. Please complete the enrollment form first before requesting financial aid.

How to Enroll

Curriculum and Details

The curriculum for Or Shalom Community School is experiential, hands-on, and inter-age. Students across the school engaged with the same content and ideas in developmentally appropriate ways, making ongoing conversation and learning possible for the whole family! This year, children and families will learn about Jewish food, music, and ritual objects, explored through the lenses of diaspora, Earth, and liberation.

Classes will be held in Bernal Heights (both in the office and outdoors)

Or Shalom Community School Calendar 5785 (2024-2025)

OSCS meets on Mondays from 4:30 – 6:00 pm. A light snack is provided.

4:30–5:00 pm: Tefillah (Prayer) and All-School Programming
5:00–6:00 pm: Class-Based Learning

We also have Fall and Spring family Shabbat services, and a closing youth programs celebration on Lag B'Omer!

September 2024

September 16
September 30

October 2024

October 21
October 28

November 2024

November 4
November 18

December 2024

December 2
Friday, December 6: Family Shabbat Service
December 9
December 16

January 2025

January 6
January 13
January 27

February 2025

February 3
February 10
February 24

March 2025

March 3
Friday, March 7: Spring Family Service
March 10
March 17
March 24

April 2025

April 7
April 21
April 28

May 2025

May 12
Thursday, May 15: Lag B'Omer Bonfire & Closing Youth Programs Celebration

Cost of Program

The cost for the Or Shalom Community School is $1050 for members and $1,350 for non-members. When you pay the non-member rate, your family is provided with a complementary membership package for your first year of participation. If you need financial aid, please reach out to us AFTER completing the enrollment form. No one will be turned away for lack of funds.

Or Shalom Community School