So what would happen if a few thousand Jewish day school and yeshiva students registered this summer to attend their local public schools?
They are entitled to.
There’s nothing in the law stopping them.
Many of their parents pay taxes to keep the schools operating, and they derive no benefit from the public school systems, city or county.
Years ago, I wrote an article about a little Orthodox girl with a disability. She attended Bais Yaakov for most of the school week, but on certain days she’d go over to Millbrook Elementary School for appropriate therapy and schooling.
She was entitled to it. There was no debate, no discussion.
Flash forward to another friend whose child has learning disabilities. This child could not be educated in any of the Jewish parochial schools, so the city now pays her tuition to attend a specialized secular school.
Again, these things happen, and they can be taken care of.
I also remember a discussion I had with a fund raiser for a yeshiva here in Baltimore. He told me that the number one enslaving pressure on his mind was finding a way to raise enough money to feed the amazing rabbis and educators. He felt the pressure was on him alone to put a roof over their heads. So his solution was to borrow funds from one source, be it a bank or other lending institution, and pay back the money owed to the first source.
Some plan.
It was all that he could do, though. And he gave it his best effort.
The Associated’s visioning strategic plan has taken away overlap in services across the community, cutting waste and saving money.
Like we have in the past, we strongly suggest that the yeshivas and day schools find a way to do get out of the 1960s model and do a little visioning as well.
A meeting should occur immediately with the city and county school top officials, including their boards. We are seeing an overlap in services. If school systems are providing English, math and history paid for with public dollars, then why are we duplicating those services in Jewish schools while straining our own bank accounts?
Jewish schools could possibly design their days where students attend secular courses in public school then return for Jewish studies.
Again, my least favorite phrase, “We have no money.”
And about this issue of mixing our Jewish students with non-Jewish students, please.
Doesn’t Ner Israel send students to Hopkins, Loyola, Towson and other schools? Aren’t there women at those schools, not to mention gentiles.
Nobody’s Jewish personal infrastructure is in danger here. If it is, it was something probably developing inside the child long before he or she ever left the yeshiva.
Don’t just throw this idea a way and think it’s crazy.
You want to save money?
By the way, if you are paying property taxes, you are paying for this anyway.
You want to keep the Jewish educators paid?
You want to play to the strengths of Jewish education?
Then let’s stop trying to maintain something that we can’t afford right now, secular studies.
Let the public schools provide that. It’s our right as citizens of our city and our counties.