A Potomac resident and longtime Jewish educational leader was appointed the chief executive officer of The Rabbi Sacks Legacy, a nonprofit organization that aims to perpetuate the work, ideas and teachings of the late Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks.
Beginning in mid-August, Jonathan Cannon will focus on the organization’s global strategy, expansion within the United States and fundraising, alongside the newly appointed president, Joanna Benarroch.
“I’m very, very honored because of who [Rabbi Sacks] was and excited because it’s really an incredible opportunity,” Cannon said.
Sacks served as chief rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth in the United Kingdom from 1991 to 2013. He was considered one of the world’s deepest thinkers in terms of religion and the challenges of modern life.
The Rabbi Sacks Legacy was formed after Sacks’ death in November 2020 to continue the rabbi’s wisdom as a “teacher of Torah, a moral voice and a leader of leaders,” according to the organization’s website.
“Rabbi Sacks has long been a guiding voice in my life,” Cannon said in a press release. “It’s a true honor to help carry his legacy forward in this role. His religious and ethical guidance is needed now more than ever, and I’m excited to work with the outstanding professional team and lay leaders — as well as educators, communities and institutions — to bring his teachings to an even wider audience and into the heart of Jewish life.”
Cannon brings more than 35 years of experience with Jewish day schools, including 23 years as a head of school, according to a press release. He most recently finished seven years as the head of Ramaz School in New York City after a stint in consulting.
Cannon has worked in and with schools across four continents, including as head of Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School for 12 years. He notably received the inaugural Chief Rabbi’s Award for Educational Excellence, presented by Sacks.
“Professionally, [transitioning to CEO of The Rabbi Sacks Legacy] feels like the next step in my career after leading schools,” Cannon told Washington Jewish Week. “This will be a real chance to focus more professionally on strategy, on ideas, on education.”
Of the organization’s main priorities, the primary one is global strategy, Cannon said. The Rabbi Sacks Legacy is located in England, Israel and the United States, with a team working with schools in Australia.
“Part of it is to bring this all together strategically, all the incredible work everyone’s doing,” Cannon said. “We haven’t really had a chance to look at how it all fits together.
“A second priority is the American [aspect]. There hasn’t really been a big focus on the U.S., where the passion for Rabbi Sacks’ teachings and writings and ideas is huge and very much untapped, so we want to bring as much of him as possible throughout the states.”
The mission mirrors Sacks’ belief that Jewish education starts with school-age children. The chief rabbi had worked with Jewish and non-Jewish students across all types of schools: public, private Jewish day schools and independent.
“[Sacks] had a real gift for being a major teacher to the Jewish community,” Cannon said. “He also was very, very gifted in explaining Judaism to the wider world community in a way that was not apologetic but also was very, very sensitive.”
Sacks had been “far and away the most popular and requested” faith leader to speak on BBC Radio 4 in England, which did a daily segment with a different religious leader, despite the fact that a majority of the station’s listeners were not Jewish.
“He said things and did things that resonated far beyond the walls and brought Judaism into a much more positive focus,” Cannon said.
Cannon said the chief rabbi was “very, very prolific,” especially through his weekly Torah commentaries. The Legacy’s work involves translating this literature into various languages across Europe and making his writings accessible, then disseminating that material through educational programs.
The opportunity to serve as CEO is more than solely a professional one for Cannon, whose family had been “quite friendly” with Sacks. Cannon’s father sat on the selection committee that chose Sacks as the chief rabbi. Sacks was a witness at Cannon’s wedding to his wife, Gilly.
“He was a teacher whom I was fortunate to have a close relationship with,” Cannon said of the chief rabbi. “We did a lot of education work together.”
Benarroch, the Legacy’s president, worked for Sacks for 25 years.
“For us, it’s so exciting that here’s someone who really knew Rabbi Sacks and learned from him directly and is going to be leading this mission in the U.S. I’m really excited to be partnering with him,” Benarroch said of Cannon.
Cannon will allow the Legacy to progress according to its three pillars: publication, digital education and leadership, she added.
“Education underpins everything we do,” Benarroch said. “That’s the basis of what Rabbi Sacks left us. Education is where it all comes from. Jonathan [Cannon]’s deep knowledge in the education space is only going to broaden the reach of Rabbi Sacks’ teachings and wisdom.”
“I bring a love of students, a love of Jewish education and I live by a lot of Rabbi Sacks’ ideals, so hopefully they’ll all come together,” Cannon said.
