There are of course major fundraising events, like banquets, concerts, picnics, Melave Malkas, raffles, etc.
And there are the wealthy Orthodox entrepreneurs that donate generously to the school (…to the tune of millions of dollars over the years. Some doing so anonymously.)
But even with all of that, it is not enough. The demand for high quality education requires it be paid for accordingly..,. and the numbers just do not add up.
How do we make up the shortfall? Some parents – understandably upset by high tuition costs – have suggested that their school wastes a lot of money on things they don’t need. Saying for example that the school has too many secretaries.
But they are really in no position to judge whether the school wastes money or not. Overseeing the school budget to make sure there is no wasteful spending belongs to the board of directors. I assure you that not a single one of them wants the school to waste a single dollar. Dollars that they have either donated or raised for the school by their hard work.
Which brings me to the OU. They have announced a massive push to get the government to fund Jewish education. Allen Fagin, Executive Vice President of the OU said at their bi-annual convention:
“We all recognize that the real solution to the tuition crisis lies in using our political power and our advocacy efforts to increase state and local government funding for yeshivot and day schools,”
Ordinarily this might be seen as a violation of the separation clause of the first amendment. An amendment continues to serve the Jewish community quite well. I wouldn’t want to tamper with it. But the truth is that there are areas where the government can help that do not violate the constitution and are already being utilized by religious schools.
There is one area however that in my view in no way violates the constitution and yet is denied to us. It is controversial – and I understand that. But I do not understand why. If there is going to be a government mandate for free secular education, it should be applied to all taxpayers regardless where their children receive their education. This means that any subject that is taught in the public schools and paid for by the government should be taught and paid for in parochial schools. I see no reason to differentiate between public private educations when the government requires that the exact same subject be taught in both schools.
Is it not a denial of rights to not pay for secular education of those who chose to add a religious dimension to their children’s education? If there is a fear that religion would somehow corrupt the secular curriculum, why not set up standards to see that it does not happen? And even if I were to concede that religion might enter into some subjects (like science), at least those subjects that are religion neutral (like math or US history) can easily be given the same treatment in parochial schools as they are in public schools. Why not fund those teachers no matter where they teach, instead of only paying them if they teach in public schools? How would that violate the separation clause?
I realize that this will never happen for a variety of reasons, mostly having to do with state government’s own financial shortfalls. And the accusation by opponents that doing so is a violation of the constitution. But I don’t see how anyone could honestly say that teaching math in a parochial school is any different than teaching it in a public school. If taxpayers are paying for educating their young citizens, then no one should be penalized because they have added religious classes to their curriculum. I have never had this position satisfactorily explained to me.