388 Day Schools with 81,000 Pupils Reported in U.S. and Canada

Torah Umesorah, the National Society for Hebrew Day Schools, reported today that there were currently 348 Jewish day schools in 30 states with an enrollment of 71,000 pupils and an overall annual budget of nearly $35 million and 40 such schools in Canada with 10,000 pupils. The report, issued by Samuel C. Feuerstein of Brookline, Mass., Torah Umesorah president, marked the 25th anniversary of the organization. The report also cited the establishment during those 25 years of 112 high schools, 56 of them located outside the New York metropolitan area. The high schools, located in 15 states, have a total enrollment of 14,000 students, the report said.

Mr. Feuerstein, who will be honored at a silver anniversary dinner here Sunday, reported also that the organization had approved plans for expansion during the next decade, covering additional schools, enrollment increases, acceleration of teacher-training programs and “lend-lease”to Jewish communities in other countries of the organization’s skills. He said that the plans called for creation in the next 10 years of 100 new elementary day schools and the goal of a total enrollment in day schools of 200,000. Creation of another 30 high schools also is projected, he said. To alleviate the teacher shortage, he reported, Torah Umesorah planned to set up two teacher training schools, one in the midwest and one on the west coast, to supplement such institutes under Torah Umesorah sponsorship now operating in New York, Baltimore, Cleveland and Chicago.

The day school leader said that the organization planned to set up a Latin American department and an overseas department to help create day schools in other countries. He reported that a survey team, led by Dr. Joseph Kaminetsky, Torah Umesorah director, would leave Nov. 24 to make a day school education survey in Britain.