Donna Klein, a Boca Raton philanthropist, cared deeply about children. It was her dream to ensure that there be a school to provide the finest academic and Judaic studies program in a warm, caring environment for the children of the Greater Boca Raton Jewish community.

The school was founded in 1979 by a group of visionary parents with the help of the South County Jewish Federation. In 1987, Sam Klein, a Jewish community leader, endowed the school with a contribution in honor of his beloved and ailing wife, Donna. When Donna Klein passed away later that year, the school was renamed Donna Klein Jewish Academy in her memory. That support enabled the school to move to a beautiful new facility on the Federation campus and grow in size from 100 students to the more than 700 students we have today.