Thursday, June 30, 2005

Public schools could put this Yeshiva out of business...

Herald Community reports that many parents in 5 -towns are fed up with the high costs of Yeshiva education. They are proposing their children attend the local Lawrence public school system while getting their religious studies after school. This is only preliminary and there are of course your typical issues of church and state. The Lawrence district is very interested since these additional funds would help pass the school budget.
Here is the great part of the article:

Rabbi David Leibtag, educational director at the Hebrew Academy of the Five Towns and Rockaway, said he realizes that the cost of a yeshiva education is rising faster than the rate of inflation. "A quality education costs money," he said. "But my concern is that although it is well-meaning, what they are trying to do is not good for a Jewish child."He said that concerned parents should sit down with Jewish leadership, local rabbis and yeshiva administrators to come up with a plan to help them out.

Isler said he is paying about $19,000 a year to educate his two children in the yeshivas, and that many parents are "up in arms" over the costs of a yeshiva education.He said that to start with, the committee wants at least five to 10 Orthodox children to attend each of the second, third and fourth grades. To make them feel more comfortable, they would be kept in the same class on their grade level, making up about 25 percent of the class. He said it may not be realistic to start the program in September 2005, so the committee may set its sights on September 2006.


The part that they don't tell you is this... HAFTR could be put out of business if this really became a reality.
The school is financially mismanaged and has been bailed out several times by a donor (who loaned it) to make payroll. If anyone is looking for some prime property in the 5 towns that may be up for sale in the next 5 years. think HAFTR.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Oh, Puh-LEASE!!!

With all the cushy lives they lead, NOBODY could come up with enough to help some people out? What about a tuition fund? I don't buy it.

AS said...

Some? This problem effects more than some people. People even of average means are fed up eith the costs. The property taxes in the 5 towns range from 6-10K(depending on location) for a house with 3-4 bedrooms. If you think everyone that lives in the % towns lives Cushy lives you are mistaken. Granted there are some very wealthy people in Lawrence but they are not the majority.