Rockland County, NY – Class Action Lawsuit Against Charedi Yeshivas Sparks New Bill Aimed At Improving Non-Public School Education

    26

    FILE - Ultra Orthodox Jewish boys seen studying together at a schhol in Brooklyn. September 21, 2014. Photo by Mendy Hechtman/FLASH90Rockland County, NY – On the heels of the class action lawsuit filed last week against the state and the East Ramapo School District by local families, a Rockland County assemblyman is set to introduce legislation that seeks to improve on a 90-year-old law guaranteeing quality education to private school students.

    Join our WhatsApp group

    Subscribe to our Daily Roundup Email


    LOHUD.com (http://lohud.us/1NNS4rv) reports that Assemblyman Kenneth Zebrowski (D-New City) said his office had been researching an existing an obscure 1928 law which allows the state to enforce penalties on private schools not offering a legal standard of “substantial equivalence,” but the lawsuit filed by East Ramapo families forced his hand in speeding up the process of writing the bill.

    “I don’t think parents or students should have to resort to the courts in order to receive a quality education in New York,” Zebrowski said.

    The current 1928 law—which State Education Department spokeswoman Jeanne Beattie admits has seemingly never been enforced—holds district superintendents responsible for ensuring that private schools in their district meet state guidelines. Zebrowski’s new bill would transfer that responsibility to the Commissioner of the State Education Department.

    Zebrowski’s new law would broaden the available penalties for the commissioner to impose on schools not meeting state guidelines, running from “imposing a corrective action plan within the district” to “permanently revoking a school’s registration and prohibiting it from operating.”


    Listen to the VINnews podcast on:

    iTunes | Spotify | Google Podcasts | Stitcher | Podbean | Amazon

    Follow VINnews for Breaking News Updates


    Connect with VINnews

    Join our WhatsApp group


    26 Comments
    Most Voted
    Newest Oldest
    Inline Feedbacks
    View all comments
    albroker
    albroker
    8 years ago

    nothing will change as long as the corrupt Andy is the governor.

    thegreatone
    thegreatone
    8 years ago

    Zebrowski with his Jewish “education activist” should also worry about the fine education the public schools gives.

    Its scary to watch how public school students behave every day when they leave school. Its scary to be around those “educated” kids.

    And watch how the “uneducated” orthodox kids behave.

    And to all you so called orthodox parents who complain,here is a suggestion:
    Go to the yeshiva where your kids learn and go there during english session and make sure your own child behaves.
    Make sure he listens to the teacher.
    Make sure you make homework with him.And if he gets a failing test you should give him hell. Stop complaining about yeshivas.They are this good only with the parents help.

    8 years ago

    The silent majority are finally starting to see some light in this dark tunnel.

    Parents are petrified to open their mouth and to complain, because if they do; their kids will be thrown out from the yeshiva or not be accepted the following year in school.

    thymely1
    thymely1
    8 years ago

    Our H.S. grandson in Lakewood receives NO secular education in his school. There are H.S.s that do give some secular education. This is why the yeshiva young men of today can’t speak or write English correctly. Most of their speech is Yinglish. What a shame!!

    8 years ago

    Oh ya! Let’s start with this silly argument that 40 people who are builders and have no english education are millionaires. Without even mentioning that 70 percent of our community are on all kinds of government subsidies, struggling to make ends-meet. And that owner of B&H also didn’t graduate high school and so on and on….

    OhevYisroel
    OhevYisroel
    8 years ago

    I HAVE ONE QUESTION! HOW MUCH TUITION ARE THEY PAYING? DO YOU THINK WITH SO LITTLE, YOU CAN PAY A FULL DAY REBBI AND TOP ENGLISH TEACHER WITH THE SAME LEVEL AS THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS?! THE GOV. DOES “NOT” HAVE A PROGRAM THAT SPONSORS ENGLISH OR HEBREW EDUCATION!!

    InsideOne
    InsideOne
    8 years ago

    Very good to hear. Let’s hope all of these efforts, over time, do away with our own madrassah-equivalent mosdos.

    8 years ago

    As a parent and teacher in a chasideshe yeshiva I have one question for these rabble rousers. Do you talk English to your sons. Do you encourage your sons to talk English to his friends? If the answer no then you are the problem not the yeshiva. Do you think that a child who hears English for a maximum of 8 hours a week (If he has two hours of English a week) will know how to communicate in English. Second I call these people rabble rousers because they know the yeshivos have certain red lines. !) They will never allow English to be taught before Kitah gimal. 2) They will never agree to have a bar mitzvah boy go to English.3) As I said as long as Yiddish is not only the first language of these children but English is maligned no law suit will change anything.

    jack-l
    jack-l
    8 years ago

    Leave the modern Lakewood guy alone.
    He feels lied to and cheated, as do many of my and my childrens generation.
    Life is not about sitting in a koilel or marrying the rich girl.
    Its about keeping Torah every day about being yerars shomayim , doing what one can to support a family when the right time comes and leading by example to ensure the next generation and the one after that does the same and pays tuition for their children. Not professional schnorers.
    Everyone needs a basic education. Then let G-Ds help and a yiddisher kop do the rest.
    Ignoramouses need not apply.
    We were once proud that those in our Sanhedrin or Yoseph spoke 70 languages. perhaps our illustrious chareidi leaders could encourage our precious children to learn at least know one.