Davis Stories

This is our story. A story that began over 30 years ago with a vision for a new Reform Jewish day school in Atlanta. It’s our story as founders, and it’s our collective story of The Davis Academy...

Our Davis story began when our oldest daughter’s PreK teachers recommended that we “must look at The Davis Academy” during Parent-Teacher conferences, sharing “it provides just the right balance of structure and nurturing that Alexa thrives on.” So...

I can’t believe it has been 6 years since I’ve graduated from the Davis Academy. Having started in kindergarten, I’ve spent almost half of my life at Davis, and it honestly feels like I was just there not long ago, wearing my Davis shirt and khaki shorts, carrying my binder from class to class.

Our Davis story begins with a lesson that no matter the plans you make and believe will happen, life will unfold and suggest a better way! Both of our children (Jacob now 8th grade and Hannah 5th grade) grew up attending...

My Davis story began in the summer of 2007 when I was hired as the lower school media specialist. I came on board prior to the official post-summer “return to campus” date in order to familiarize myself with the school’s library collection. 

My Davis journey began in August of 2010. That was when my oldest child, Ella, started kindergarten at The Davis Academy. I held it together while I dropped her off in the morning carpool, and then the tears poured out. Had Justin and I chosen the right school for her?

The Davis Academy will always be our home. Our family’s story at Davis began back in 2009 when we chose Davis for our oldest daughter, Emily. At the time, we considered several private schools in the Atlanta area and just felt that 

Twenty-six years ago, I walked into the hallways of this amazing school as a new teacher - “hallways” that consisted of one floor of classrooms and a lunchroom in a trailer. There was no playground, however, the spirit and energy of The Davis Academy were then, as they are today, alive and palpable.

My Davis story begins as a 15-year-old sophomore at Riverwood High School. I knew at that point in my life that I wanted to be a teacher and a coach. The teachers and coaches I had gave me the confidence and passion for learning and athletics, and I wanted to have an impact on future generations of student-athletes in the way they did for me.

72,000 miles. It all started with a 20-mile drive back in 2013 and will end with 72,000 miles traveled ten years later.
 

From Kindergarten all the way through 8th grade, Davis developed Harris’s character, self-confidence, resilience, work ethic, curiosity, enthusiasm, and love for learning. Harris had multiple informal and formal leadership opportunities in the classroom as well as extracurriculars in the arts, sports, and clubs that cultivated a sense of ownership, accountability, and responsibility to himself, our family, and the greater community.

Momentum around the idea of a Reform Jewish Day School in Atlanta was gaining, and our family had the opportunity to help make it a reality. My wife Dulcy and I joined with her brother Jay Davis and his wife Ann, in making a gift and honoring Dulcy and Jay's beloved parents, Alfred & Adele, by naming the school. We could never have imagined what the next thirty years would bring.

Over 30 years ago, a task force began discussing the possibility of creating a Reform Jewish Day School in Atlanta.  Ann, along with Carol Nemo, Jan Epstein, Rabbi Alvin Sugarman, Harriet Zoller, and others, served on the committee. After one of the meetings, it was decided to form an interim board, and the participants would be asked to contribute financially to seed the project.