head of school
Miriam Esther Wilhelm
Head of School
"What a joy to watch the dream of a Jewish Day School for our Knoxville community thrive. The wonderful community of staff, parents and students that make up our school have developed a KJDS climate and culture that makes anything possible. Students and staff are comfortable pushing themselves further, are not afraid of failure and are supportive and caring of one another. Each day at KJDS I experience the joy of students and staff making the most of opportunities and growing together."
Miriam Esther Wilhelm, our founding Head of School, is a devoted educator with over 18 years of experience in Jewish Education. Miriam Esther has taught at Seymour J. Abrams Jewish Day School in Chicago and Associated Beth Rivkah Schools in Brooklyn. Locally, Miriam Esther has taught at both the preschool and university level, as a Lead Teacher at the Arnstein Jewish Community Center Preschool, and as a Hebrew instructor at the University of Tennessee. Mrs. Wilhelm received her teaching degree in 1998 from Beth Chana Tzfat in Israel. Intrigued by the Montessori style of teaching, she officially completed her Montessori training in July of 2006. With Miriam Esther’s extensive experience and passion for researching new education methodologies, she brings to KJDS a fresh and dynamic approach to elementary education.
