Showcasing Creativity and Care: A Visit from Hong Kong Educators

Community is the heart of Hausner. Our Development team has long used this as our guiding theme—and it couldn’t be more apt. We pride ourselves on how inclusive we strive to be and how our community rallies together in every situation. I have personally been a recipient of our community’s caring and empathy. We can talk at length about community, but it takes on a new dimension when a completely new visitor—someone with no prior connection to Hausner—raves about it. That’s exactly what happened last Friday, when we hosted a group of educators from Hong Kong.

One of my professional contacts at Stanford’s Graduate School of Education (GSE) reached out asking if we would welcome fifteen Hong Kong educators who were in the area for a week-long program. Hausner was one of six schools selected for their visit. They were particularly interested in how technology and creativity intersect—especially in a faith-based setting like ours. Once the schedule was confirmed, I turned to our welcoming Hausner staff to handle the logistics.

Our team sprang into action. Sarrie, our Creativity Lab lead teacher, designed a hands-on lesson that wove together our core values and creative exploration. All the faculty prepared eagerly to host the group on campus. Emilia, our kitchen manager, greeted guests with her delicious, healthy, multi-option menu. And Felix, our campus custodian—despite being busy setting up for the Annual Spring Benefit—arranged a beautiful, cloth-draped room for lunch and collaboration. My contact at GSE, Rachel, had already briefed me on security and drop-off procedures for the elementary, middle, and high school educators.

The group arrived through the middle gate, and I escorted them past the playground to the front office. On our way, they paused to admire the kindergarten bulletin boards, each brimming with student artwork on a single theme but bursting with individual creativity. It’s something we see every day and often take for granted—until you experience your own school through someone else’s eyes. After a brief overview of Hausner and my various roles here, we spent several minutes observing and discussing the two kindergarten classrooms. From the students’ writing and artwork to the real oven for baking challah, from the terrarium and hands-on manipulatives to the cozy classroom library—everything captivated them.

Next, we headed to the Creativity Lab, one of Hausner’s crown jewels. The educators entered in awe and took a moment to absorb their surroundings before Sarrie guided them through a project: crafting a symbolic design tied to one of three Jewish values, enhanced with paper circuits. You can see slides from her fantastic lesson here. Not only were our visitors fully engaged, there was a near-perfect silence as they immersed themselves in their creations—just as our students would. After an inspiring share-out, we moved outside to observe children at play.

Our guests were curious about the purposeful design of our play structures and the blue blocks that encourage collaborative, creative building. They noted the children’s independence, their calculated risk-taking, and their pride in playground achievements—from constructing slides to forts—and more.

When we entered the cafeteria, I heard collective “oohs” and “aahs” at our buffet of hot entrées, salads, and sandwiches. Our ever-smiling Emilia was on hand to serve each guest with warmth and hospitality. We then convened in the Beit Tefillah at three neatly arranged round tables, joined by members of our leadership team and a few teachers. Toward the end of lunch, I invited Rabbi Danny to speak about the significance of our worship space. With passion and eloquence, he described the ark, showed the Torah scroll, highlighted the carved wooden window screen, and explained the symbolism of the “rimon” (pomegranate) cutouts—symbols of abundance and tradition. In gratitude, the visitors presented Rabbi Danny with a beautifully laser-cut artwork created by their students, complete with its faint carbon scent.

To conclude, we toured the Troper building and revisited the playground. The group was so enchanted by everything they saw that they were reluctant to board their waiting bus—and they nearly ran late returning to Stanford.

Throughout their visit, our guests encountered nothing but joyful, welcoming faces—both adults and children—truly feeling the warmth of Hausner. They departed with full hearts and vivid memories of the care they experienced.

As I write this on my way to the AI & Learning Sciences Symposium at Northwestern University, I recall Mitch Resnick—founder of Lifelong Kindergarten at the MIT Media Lab—saying that the most important skills we need to empower our students with are Curiosity, Caring, Collaboration, and Creativity. Those are precisely the skills our students live out here at Hausner every day—and the very qualities that enamored our visitors. Amen!