Tuesday, July 24, 2018
Group Files Suit Against New Exemption for Yeshiva Schools
An advocacy group filed a lawsuit Monday alleging that a recently amended New York state law that relaxes educational standards for ultra-Orthodox Jewish schools is unconstitutional.
In the lawsuit, Young Advocates for Fair Education, a nonprofit organization that seeks to bring secular education standards to ultra-Orthodox schools, known as yeshivas, argues that the measure violates the Constitution's First Amendment by granting special treatment to yeshivas.
The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Brooklyn, names as defendants New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, Education Commissioner MaryEllen Elia and Regents Chancellor Betty Rosa. The legislature passed the measure as part of the state budget in April. Mr. Cuomo signed it into law on April 12.
"With this lawsuit, we're sending a clear message: Hasidic students deserve the education that is constitutionally guaranteed to them by the state of New York," Naftuli Moster, the advocacy group's founder, said at a Monday news conference. He alleges that some yeshivas don't prepare students for the broader world.
Yeshiva leaders have in the past expressed concern with government-mandated standards, saying they intrude on religious tradition.
State guidelines require private schools offer a "substantially equivalent" education to that of public schools, and charge school districts with enforcing the standard.
The Felder Amendment, named for state Sen. Simcha Felder, exempts certain schools—nonprofit institutions that offer bilingual programs and long school days—and puts the commissioner of the New York State Education Department in charge of evaluations.
Mr. Felder has said the amendment was intended to help parents choose the education their children receive.
The amendment's parameters for exemption from existing state guidelines are so specific that the new standards can only be applied to ultra-Orthodox schools, according to Eric Huang, legal counsel to the advocacy group.
The exempted schools must uphold standards of "substantial equivalency," but the Felder Amendment specifies fewer subjects of instruction than the current state guidelines.
Emily DeSantis, a state Education Department spokeswoman, said it doesn't comment on litigation. A representative for Mr. Felder, a Brooklyn Democrat who caucuses with the Republicans, didn't respond to a request for comment.
Mr. Moster also called on state's education department to complete its investigation into allegations that 39 of the state's 83 yeshivas failed to teach enough secular studies. The state Education Department announced the investigation in July of 2015 but hasn't produced a report of its findings.
Jaclyn Rothenberg, a New York City mayoral spokeswoman, said the city has visited 15 of the 30 yeshivas it determined must uphold the requirements. In light of the Felder Amendment and lawsuit, the investigation is continuing, and the city is awaiting guidance from the state's education department, she said.
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