Sixty girls are attending the new דרכי שרה High School (seminary) in Yerushalayim, opened this year by the so-called new chareidim, situated in a Jerusalem office building. The school will provide an education that permits graduates to obtain a matriculation diploma.
The school is the result of efforts of the “Tov” party which is seeking to offer an alternative to Degel Yisrael, a stream that has become known in Eretz Yisrael as the ‘new chareidim’.
According to principal Sima Wallis, who spoke with Haaretz, the only difference between the school and a mainstream Beis Yaakov is the fact that her graduates will earn a matriculation diploma. She explains that since the wife often has to provide the main income, it is a waste for graduates of seminaries to have to pay for courses towards earning their matriculation exam, and in their school, this will not be the case.
One of the fathers of a student explains that for him, since the petira of Maran Rav Elyashiv zt”l, accompanied by the events in Yated Ne’eman, the ousting of the working chareidim, he realized it was time for a change.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
Defying the gedolim will get them nowhere.
“One of the fathers of a student explains that for him, since the petira of Maran Rav Elyashiv zt”l, accompanied by the events in Yated Ne’eman, the ousting of the working chareidim, he realized it was time for a change.”
I see. The Godol HaDor was niftar, so they decide to drop the derech the Gedolim set out to start their own new derech.
We’ve heard this new path before.
With major success, hope that more Beis Yaakov’s will go in this direction.
Matriculation doesn’t make this school unique. The well known main stream Bet Yaakov sem, Bnot Elisheva started doing matriculation this year.
What makes sense is that seminary students can now earn a degree which will lead to a real job! In the USA a girl can be frum and get her BA, but up until now, in Israel, she had to do it secretly if she wanted to gain employment. The charedim can not continue the endless cycle of poverty and today, a degree and computer knowledge is necessary in almost every single paying position.
I hope they open yeshiva’s with matriculated secular studies for the boys too!