Hebrew Schools--Getting Rid Of The Albatross

George D. Hanus, chairman of the Superfund for Jewish Education and Continuity, writes about how Hebrew schools are now having the opposite effect of what they were intended for:

As documented by WJD's Mindy Schiller in last month’s cover story, "What’s Wrong With Hebrew School?" according to a new study by noted Jewish American sociologist Steven M. Cohen, the likelihood of intermarriage actually increases among students who attend once-a-week Sunday schools, and attending congregational school—two or more times a week, for less than seven years— hardly decreases that percentage.

The obvious solution is to fix these schools, or failing that, get rid of them. But despite the well known problem, that option does not seem to be on the table--

Because they are funding mechanisms for synagogues, which depend on the dues of families paying for their children's bar/bat mitzvah and confirmation ceremonies to survive. If it weren't for Hebrew and Sunday schools, synagogues would have a lot of families show up from time to time without becoming members. The discontinuation of the Hebrew school model would disrupt the financial structure of congregational Jewish life in this country.

That would explain why those synagogues feel threatened by the entry--and success--of Chabad into the area of Hebrew School education.

Hanus sees the solution in the hands of each Jewish community to adopt the policies necessary to implement universal Day School education. The FAQ page of Superfund for Jewish Education and Continuity offers a starting point:

Betty Ehrenberg, of the Orthodox Union, suggests three ways to improve the cash flow for Jewish schools. “First by increasing the number and amount of contributions to day schools and by encouraging federations to give more money to day schools. Second, by lobbying the government to offer tax credits and other programs that would alleviate the burden on parents. And third, by helping schools save money by managing their funds more efficiently. But most importantly, in her view, “the attitude needs to change.” The Jewish community needs to realize there is a crisis.

What remains now is to put this into action. The Superfund's goal is to help all Day Schools, regardless of affiliation, but the description of the kinds of schools currently being helped seems to indicate that Yeshiva Day Schools believe they can handle the problems on their own.

That would be news to the Orthodox Jewish community.

Technorati Tag: Jewish Education.