Jewish Groups Craft Plans to Save Hard-Hit Day Schools

Jewish day schools across the country are considering emergency measures as the recession drains their coffers and causes a drop in enrollment, the Los Angeles Times reports.

Many of the nation’s 700 Jewish day schools, which educate some 200,000 students and charge an average tuition of $14,000, are being stretched by rising demand for financial aid and pull-outs by economically ailing families.

“If things continue the way they are, schools are going to be so cost-prohibitive, the system will collapse,” said Rabbi Saul Zucker, director of educational services at the Orthodox Union, a New York education and service organization.

The union has proposed several changes, including stripped-down alternative schools for parents who can’t afford established institutions and a low-cost health-insurance program for employees nationwide.

(Free registration is required to view this article.)