Examining some recent good news about American Jewish educational institutions, Paul Bernstein, who directs an organization for Jewish day schools, writes:

Most notably, in the early years of the millennium, particularly after 2008, enrollment in Jewish day schools outside the ḥaredi sector was in decline. Some even questioned the future viability of such institutions. That decline is over.

Jewish day schools excelled during COVID-19. Enrollment is up across all denominations and most geographic areas. Families turned to Jewish schools that were open when so many other schools were not, and they found a high-quality education; a close, supportive, welcoming community built on meaningful relationships; schools that care deeply for and nurture the whole child; and an environment that promotes strong Jewish values. None of this magically appeared because of the coronavirus. Our schools were at their best because of what they were before the pandemic and what they continue to be as we emerge from it.

A full 72 percent of students who enrolled due to the pandemic reenrolled for the 2022-23 academic year. Even more exciting, enrollment in preschool programs increased by 5 percent this year, suggesting the pipeline is strong for future students.

When he called upon Hamas to end the war and release the hostages last week, the Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas was also getting ready for a reshuffle within his regime. On Saturday, he appointed Hussein al-Sheikh deputy president of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), which is intimately tied to the PA itself. Al-Sheikh would therefore succeed Abbas—who is eighty-nine and reportedly in ill health—as head of the PLO if he should die or become incapacitated, and be positioned to succeed him as head of the PA as well.

Al-Sheikh spent eleven years in an Israeli prison and, writes Maurice Hirsch, was involved in planning a 2002 Jerusalem suicide bombing that killed three. Moreover, Hirsch writes, he “does not enjoy broad Palestinian popularity or support.”

Still, by appointing Al-Sheikh, Abbas has taken a step in the internal reforms he inaugurated last year in the hope that he could prove to the Biden administration and other relevant players that the PA was up to the task of governing the Gaza Strip. Neomi Neumann writes:

Abbas’s motivation for reform also appears rooted in the need to meet the expectations of Arab and European donors without compromising his authority. On April 14, the EU foreign-policy chief Kaja Kallas approved a three-year aid package worth 1.6 billion euros, including 620 million euros in direct budget support tied to reforms. Meanwhile, the French president Emmanuel Macron held a call with Abbas [earlier this month] and noted afterward that reforms are essential for the PA to be seen as a viable governing authority for Gaza—a telling remark given reports that Paris may soon recognize “the state of Palestine.”

In some cases, reforms appear targeted at specific regional partners. The idea of appointing a vice-president originated with Saudi Arabia.

In the near term, Abbas’s main goal appears to be preserving Arab and European support ahead of a major international conference in New York this June.