A prominent advocate for religious schools has accused New York education officials of discriminating against Jewish students by restricting their ability to learn in Hebrew — while allowing others to learn in languages other than English.
“It’s a double standard,” said Aaron Twersky, a professor at Brooklyn Law School, whose grandchildren attend religious schools as do his own children.
Twersky noted the state’s approval of 200 “bilingual schools” offered by the New York City Department of Education for public school students who want to learn a second language.
But he claimed that the state prevents religious school students from receiving some instructions in Hebrew.
“Discrimination happens. I don’t know if it’s intentional or not, but it’s the result of politics.”
“It is blatantly unconstitutional,” he added. “If the state does not change its policy voluntarily, the court will change it. The state not only allows dual language education in public schools, but also encourages it.
Advocates for religious schools and other private schools filed a lawsuit last fall to object to new rules that require them to provide a curriculum that is “substantially equivalent” to that taught in public schools.
Twersky and other supporters say that under the new policy, students in religious schools should be allowed to learn in Hebrew, like public school children in bilingual programs.
They pointed to comments made by a senior official at the state Department of Education, which oversees private schools, as evidence of double standards.
During a recorded conversation conducted Nov. 2 with West Nyack school district officials, one local public educator, David Frank, asked an SED administrator, “Even in our bilingual programs in public schools, we often teach math, science, or social studies.” In a language other than another language. English…so I assume if we do that in our public schools, it will be similar in our non-public schools.
During the conversation — audio of which was provided to The Post and first reported by Twersky in a recent column he wrote for The City Journal — the questioner said she was “confused” about the English language instruction requirements in private school rules.
“So providing education in core subjects taught in English really hurts me,” Frank replied. “I don’t think it’s the best educational practice… That’s one of the differences between the substantive equivalency regulations and what’s happening in the district.” [public] Schools.”
Twersky said Frank’s comments rebut an affidavit filed in the lawsuit by state Education Commissioner Betty Rosa that claims language education rules apply equally to public and private schools.
“They misled the court,” he claimed, referring to education officials.
The debate over whether students in seminaries get adequate secular education in core subjects such as English, mathematics and science has raged for a decade.
Nearly 20 private schools run by the Hasidic Jewish community failed to provide the education required under state law to students who attended private religious institutions, a long-awaited city Education Department investigation released in June found.
The New York State Board of Trustees approved new, stricter rules in September 2022 to ensure that Hasidic Jewish schools teach core subjects such as English and math and provide a secular curriculum and instruction that is “substantially equivalent” to their public school counterparts.
But religious school advocates claimed the state went further.
“They are saying that education can only be provided in English in private schools but not in public schools,” said Avi Schick, a lawyer representing the Jewish schools in the ongoing lawsuit.
“What is worse is that state officials blatantly misled the court about what they were doing. What is promoted in government schools is prohibited in private schools,” he added.
The US Department of Energy had no immediate comment.
But Rosa defended the policy as a lengthy affidavit was filed in Albany Superior Court last December, saying advocates had misinterpreted guidance on “diversity and culturally responsive education.”
“The requirement that English be the language of instruction is not new and does not exclude religious schools,” she said in the affidavit.
“The goal of this requirement is to ensure that every student learns the dominant language of the United States so that they can become productive members of society,” Rosa said. “The regulation does not exclude content taught in a language other than English.”
The debate over the issue of New York’s alleged discrimination against Jewish students by not allowing instruction in Hebrew has sparked controversy and outrage among religious school advocates. The claim that denying Hebrew instruction is a form of discrimination has ignited a heated discussion about the rights of religious minorities in the state’s educational system. As advocates continue to push for their voices to be heard, the issue has brought to light the ongoing struggle for religious freedom and equal educational opportunities for all students in New York.