Reply To: Rejection from yeshivos/school for no tuition

First to clarify – I did NOT suggest anything about a single yeshiva being opened for poor students. I commented on the absurdity of it and how it was certainly unfeasible, though the idea has a ring to it that initially sounds rational. It represents an effort to solve the problem without pushing kids into public school.

Lior noted quite accurately about the crazy notion of restricting having children because of inability to pay tuitions. Who are we to assume the authority of preventing the birth of a child who could be a Godol be’Yisroel because of a yeshiva invoice?

As a community, we face a dilemma. Yeshivos have monetary needs, and these are not being met adequately. All are hurting. Many have fared poorly with public funding and charitable contributions over the past several years, and their desperation is real. This is not debatable. The point I wished to raise in this post is that the resolution that many have chosen is to squeeze parents more (actually not completely unreasonable) by holding the future of the child in balance. If money is not fronted, the child is refused entry. I argue that this “punishes” the innocent, and destroys the possibility of the child remaining protected from the dangers of the streets, drugs, chilul Shabbos, and the range of yetzer horah influences that reign there. Even if financial matters get resolved, many of these children will not leave the embrace of the public school environment. And the yeshiva will not want these kids who have had exposure to the world decadence back in their environment. Essentially, the neshamos have been discarded, and I hold yeshiva administrators responsible, even though they have unsatisfied financial needs. There has to be a better way, one that protects children and Torah Yiddishkeit. There have been a few suggestions. Limiting family size is not the answer.

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