School History

Founded in 1998 by a group of dedicated professionals and parents, many of whose children had attended the Bloor JCC Nursery School, the Downtown Jewish Day School was borne of a need to provide a high quality intensive Jewish education to the children of Toronto's dynamic and expanding downtown Jewish community. Even before opening its doors, the unique plan for a pluralistic school with an integrated and arts enhanced curriculum was recognized by the Partnership for Excellence in Jewish Education, which awarded us start-up funding to develop our challenging academic program.

In 2003, the school was fortunate to be the recipient of funding from the estate of Paul Penna, thus changing our name to the Paul Penna Downtown Jewish Day School. Born in the west end of Toronto, Paul Penna worked for a decade as a penny stock salesman before taking over Agnico, a struggling Cobalt area silver producer. Under his direction, AgnicoEagle made great strides in the mining industry and today boasts some of the most active gold mines in Canada. Upon achieving his success, Paul Penna did not forget his roots. He dedicated significant time and money to the local Jewish community, details of which can be found in Mike Macbeth's Silver Threads Among The Gold.

With the renovation of the Miles Nadal JCC, the school had the opportunity for a permanent home in the heart of this historic Jewish community. This location not only places students at the centre of Jewish life downtown, but also gives them access to the rich cultural resources of the city.

Since our doors were first opened, we have expanded from 10 to 150 students. The enthusiasm for the school has grown along with our numbers, and we are proud to be opening our middle school in the fall of 2006. Our students will continue to benefit from the challenging integrated curriculum and meaningful Jewish experiences they have come to expect from the Paul Penna Downtown Jewish Day School.