Veteran educator Brian Thomas has been named interim head of school at Saul Mirowitz Jewish Community School. The appointment of Thomas was announced on Wednesday, July 23, by Scott Levine, president of the school’s board of trustees. Levine’s introductory statement singled out Thomas’ “calming presence, relational leadership and proven skill at holding community that set him apart.”
Thomas, 63, is a Chicago native. He earned a B.A. degree in history from Yale University and an M.S. degree in education from Portland State University. He brings 36 years of independent school leadership experience to Mirowitz. Prior to his new interim position at Mirowitz school, Thomas was the head of Proctor Academy in Manchester, N.H.
He was previously associate head at Bentley School in Oakland, Calif., head of school at Presidio Hill School in San Francisco and head of school at Andre Agassi College Preparatory Academy in Las Vegas. Thomas also spent time in St. Louis — from 2016 to 2021 he was assistant head of school at MICDS.
Thomas officially started in his new position at Mirowitz on July 23, though remotely from New Hampshire. During the week of July 28, he will be on the Mirowitz campus to meet with the administrative team. He replaces Raquel Scharf-Anderson, who served as head of school since 2022. She concluded her active duties and transitioned out of all daily leadership responsibilities as of June 30.
Levine said Thomas’ immediate focus will be to prepare for the launch of the 2025-26 school year and work with the board on strategic planning and financial stability initiatives.
“I’m very excited about the school and the opportunity,” Thomas told the Jewish Light. “The school is in really good shape. It has been very well run over the years, the board is engaged and there was so much hope when I interviewed. I’m really expecting to go in to learn as much as I can about the school, about the community and really preparing for kids to come back.”
Initially, Thomas plans to learn as much as he can about the current state of the school and determine how he can best support the strategic direction established by the board.
“I have been in communities that are in some transition, so this is something clearly situated in my wheelhouse,” he said.
Before entering education, Thomas worked in the entertainment field as a stage, TV and film actor. Away from work, he now enjoys playing baseball and he plans to rejoin his former St. Louis ball team. He also has two adult children living in California.
“I cannot wait to get out there and throw the baseball around with some of the (Mirowitz) kids,” said Thomas, who grew up a Chicago Cubs fan but now roots for the Cardinals. “I also do a lot of writing. I published a chapter in a book that included a lot of St. Louis authors called “Flow, No Grow.” I published a chapter about my mom’s beginning phases of her Alzheimer’s disease. And I just finished a coming-of-age novel about a boy going away to college.”
