Alumni Profile

Anita Schmidt ’98: Research Manager, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles

From an early age, Anita Schmidt’s parents gave her a double blessing – a strong sense of pride in her Mexican-Jewish heritage, and the opportunity to let those roots flourish and grow. Their approach: frequent trips to visit family in Mexico, and a foundational education from Sinai Akiba.
 
“My parents are both Mexican Jews, but my mom grew up feeling like she had missed out on formal Jewish learning,” Schmidt said. “Sending me to Sinai Akiba ensured my ability to explore my Judaism, and simultaneously put me in the best position to thrive academically.”

Thrive was exactly what Schmidt did, graduating from Sinai Akiba in 1998 before matriculating to Harvard-Westlake and then on to Emory University in Atlanta. She maintained her Jewish connections as an undergraduate, serving as president of Emory’s Hillel. After completing her degree in psychology and women’s studies, she moved home to Los Angeles and accepted a full-time position at Sinai Temple.

“I was program director, which was an incredible first job,” she says. “They put a lot of faith in me and gave me a lot of responsibility.”
Two years later, Schmidt was ready for something new, so she packed her bags and headed to New York City, where she began working for the Cancer Research Society. She found the field of public health fascinating and ultimately decided to pursue a master’s degree in the subject at Columbia. Today she serves as research manager for the Division of Emergency and Transport Medicine at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.

“I work with doctors interested in doing clinical studies. My job is to help them refine their research questions – and, at the end of the process, to help them publish their results,” Schmidt says. “What I do pertains directly to skills I built at Sinai Akiba: thinking critically, writing effectively and asking crucial questions.”

Indeed, Schmidt says, it was her formative years at Sinai Akiba that planted the seeds for her current professional success. “I was privileged to have the best teachers,” she recalls. “I think kids need great teachers who know how to make subjects jump off the page. Heather Lipman was a prime example of that for me. She was an amazing math teacher and always made the assignments so much fun. My job requires me to use math and statistics every day.”

The list of Sinai Akiba instructors who had an impact on Schmidt is extensive and includes Renee Kraus, Patty Green and Marcia Fellner. “I have special memories of Ms. Fellner teaching me how to read in 1st Grade,” she says. Schmidt also remembers Donna Kerman, her 2nd Grade teacher, fondly. “She had us put on a show, Charlotte’s Web, and I played Templeton the rat. People still come up to me and comment on my performance!”

Though two decades have passed since her Sinai Akiba days, Schmidt remains grateful for its enduring influence. “I met my life-long best friend there, in pre-K,” she says. The school also equipped her with the tools to make a positive difference in the world. “Any time you give someone an education that empowers them to make good choices and participate in community, you ultimately change the world for the better.”
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About Sinai Akiba Academy

Sinai Akiba Academy is a private Jewish day school in Los Angeles, serving students in Early Childhood through Grade 8. We also offer a variety of parenting classes and programs for children through our Parenting Center. A Sinai Temple school.

Notice of Non-Discriminatory Policy As to Students

Sinai Akiba Academy admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national and ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic and other school-administered programs.