A national survey of the financial needs of Jewish day schools, and the responsibility of the Jewish community to meet those needs, will be undertaken by the American Association for Jewish Education, it was announced today by Samuel H. Daroff, chairman of the board of governors.
The study is an outgrowth of a recommendation made at a recent Assembly of the Council of Jewish Federations and Welfare Funds, the national coordinating body for the fund-raising agencies of the Jewish community. The Jewish day school movement today numbers more than 270 schools attended by more than 50, 000 children. It provides both religious and secular training on the elementary and secondary school level.
The problem of financing the Jewish day school is directly related to the question of state versus private aid for parochial school education. A recent survey conducted by the AAJE revealed that leaders of the American Jewish community were almost unanimous in their opposition to the use of federal or state funds for parochial school education. They regard this as the responsibility of the sponsoring religious community.
Leaders of the day school movement, who face rising costs and continuing deficits, have asked the Jewish Federations in their local communities to help defray the deficits of most of the day schools. Federations, while contributing substantially to communal institutions of Jewish education, have resisted financial involvement in day school education because such schools are usually sponsored by only one element of the Jewish community.
Isaac Toubin, executive director of the AAJE, reported to the agency that his survey of leadership opinion demonstrated that a new attitude towards the day school had developed within the Jewish community. Whereas these institutions were formerly regarded as isolationist, they are now looked upon as a legitimate part of the American school structure and as necessary for those who desire an intensive form of Jewish education.
The study now being undertaken by the AAJE will look into the total needs and feasibitity of federation allocations to meet these needs. The findings of the study will be submitted to the next annual assembly of the Council of Jewish Federations. The study will be under the direction of Dr. Uriah E. Engelman, who is director of research for the association. The American Association for Jewish Education is a national service agency for coordination, promotion and research in American Jewish education.
The National Council for Jewish Education, an organization of educators of all ideological Jewish groupings, at its executive board meeting today, adopted a resolution to call upon Jewish Federations and Welfare Funds throughout the country to extend financial assistance to Jewish day schools. The resolution noted, with deep satisfaction, the growth of the day schools.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
