New York – Jewish business owners around the United States will be asked to add a $1 line item to their invoices seeking voluntary contributions to a fund for Jewish education.
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That and a nationwide group health insurance plan are the first parts of an ambitious Orthodox Union program to increase revenue and lower costs for yeshivot and Orthodox day schools to help them survive the economic crisis.
“I would like to contact all of the Jewish vendors across the country and ask them to add a line item to their invoices, and I don’t mean only Jewish interest,” explained Rabbi Saul Zucker, the Orthodox Union’s new director of day school and education services.
Zucker took up his post in September after serving as rosh mesivta (head of school) of Mesivta of North Jersey, and before that as principal of The Frisch School in Paramus. He immediately began to seek ways to deal with the economic crisis that threatens Jewish schools that are dependent on tuition dollars from parents who, increasingly, may themselves be struggling financially.
“Would you contribute a dollar to the OU education fund? And use that as a start for the OU to then be able to assist schools that need assistance,” he said.
Zucker convened representatives of 45 schools at the OU’s Manhattan headquarters last week, with another 25 in virtual attendance online. On Monday he held a follow-up conference call with 25 schools during which four items were selected for immediate action.
“One of my mantras … is tachlis,” or brass tacks, said Zucker Monday after the conference call.
“People can have a meeting on this type of subject and wring their hands and cry, and so forth, but if you’re not discussing very specific, practical steps it may be encouraging and it may be cathartic, but it’s not helpful.”
Local schools that are involved include Yeshiva of South Shore, Machon HaTorah, HALB, HANC, and North Shore Hebrew Academy.
Rabbi Dovid Kramer, the executive director of Yeshiva of South Shore, attended the meeting in Manhattan. In an interview Tuesday he pronounced himself impressed and eager to participate in the effort.
“We want to do whatever we can. We’re in the same boat as everybody else. So it’s worthwhile to we do whatever we can to make payroll.”
Zucker is sending out questionnaires to 600 Jewish schools nationwide seeking the names of Jewish business owners who can be asked to participate in the invoice program. Schools are also being asked to immediately provide the basic information needed to allow competing insurance agents to prepare proposals for the group health policy.
Schools will also be asked to commit to “put aside the idea of merit-based scholarships” which, Zucker explained, “represent tuition we could otherwise get,” and to eliminate spending on recruitment.
Instead, he proposes an OU sponsored public relations campaign to educate the public about the true financial cost of a Jewish education. The campaign would be aimed in particular at grandparents and others without school-aged children.
“I really hope this begins a paradigm shift,” said Zucker. “For as long as Jewish education has been an enterprise on these shores it’s been user-supported. We need a paradigm shift more along the lines of American education, where the community supports education.”
While his children did not attend public schools in Teaneck, NJ, where he lives, Zucker noted, “the theory is that I benefit by living in a town that has a really good public school. Kal v’Chomer,” (certainly), he said, people benefit from living in a Jewish community with good Jewish schools.
“I definitely benefit from the yeshivos in my area and I should pay for that.”
With all of the stories in the news about Jewish businesspeople evading taxes, it would indeed require a “paradigm shift” to get them to go along with a new tax.
Interesting idea… lots of places put voluntary items on their invoices. Even your 1040 form has something for Presidential Election money.
Personally, I’d rather see a voucher program for yeshivot. But knowing how the yeshiva lokeach kesef movement works, they’ll just ajck up tuition or other fees by the amount of your vouchers.
The JNF, March of Dimes, Hadasah, etc. all grew with small donations
Who will disburse the funds? To which Yeshivas? What is the criteria? Who will make sure the businesses do not keep the extra money for themselves?
The reason why group health insurance won’t work is because, as part of a group, if even one school missed a payment all of the schools lose their coverage. Who is going to guarantee that the premium gets paid in full each month? What’s protecting schools that pay their premiums, but lose coverage because other schools could not make the payment?
One question!
Will there be any funding for a child that is special? I asked that years ago when there was a campaign to have people add some Yeshiva fund to their will, never got a straight answer. How many people donated but could not help their own grandchildren because they ended up special.
As bad as the economy is there are plenty of people with money b”h. The tuition crisis can be solved in one year if yeshivos do not waste money and be a little more responsible with the monies that they recieve.
Tuition problems can also be solved if people giving tzedaka gave THEIR OWN COMMUNITIES FIRST. Tzedaka starts at home and not giving to different countries so you can get aan award at a dinner.
Taking care of your own communities first is an obligation but most could not care less.
Yeshivos cry they never have money but they add on floors or make add ons to their buildings! If yeshivos really have no money where are they getting the money to still build in todays horrible economy? Where are the priorities?
Why do we need marble toilets and sinks everywhere? It’s more important to pay teachers than on lavish stupidity that goes on in many of the yeshiva buildings.
If Bloomberg took over the yeshiva system they would be out of a deficit in one year!
Yeshivas should present to parents and trustees honest bookeeping and financial statements as well as honest tuition system.
And if you don’t add the line item you won’t get the new business hechsher tzedek.