Published:
May 7, 2010
Source: eJewish Philanthropy
In a post from the eJewish Philanthropy's Growing Jewish Education in Challenging Times series, Yossi Prager, the North American Executive Director of The AVI CHAI Foundation, addresses the problem of maintaining Jewish Day School sustainability in the face of challenges of a slowly recovering economy.
He writes:
” I am skeptical of hopes that new ideas will rescue the day school system (though I would be delighted to be proven wrong and eager to help new ideas be tested). Instead, what’s needed is persistent, tenacious hard work in three directions: smarter financial planning and fundraising, endowment building and advocacy for government funding. The combination of these elements can secure the future of day school education….
So, notwithstanding the current challenges, I look ahead to the future of day school education with optimism. The system won’t fix itself, but the steps needed to set the schools on better financial footing and make day school education affordable are achievable. The only question is whether we act before it is too late."