benefits

In Pirkei Avot, Ethic of The Fathers, we are taught תורה אין, קמח אין, ani kemach ani Torah – “if there is no flour there is no Torah.” Our rabbis go on to teach from this expression that if someone is not able to provide food, they cannot learn or even teach Torah. From this we learn as a community that we must provide for our educators. In New York City through sources of city, state and federal funding, I am able to provide for my talented, qualified and dedicated educators every day while offering a free 3s and 4s education to families. My teachers who hold masters’ degrees and state certifications earn on par with their public school counterparts with a fringe rate calculated at 43%.

For a long time, studies have told us the vast majority of Jewish children do not attend Jewish schools for kindergarten through twelfth grade. However, many more attend Jewish early childhood centers. As different local funding opportunities continue to make their way down the legislative pipeline, our communities must stay up to date and accept this funding. Many synagogues, Jewish community centers and even day schools in New York City are working within the framework of public funding to offer education steeped with universal Jewish values and applicable culture. If our communities are given the opportunity to offer free education, this is an opportunity we cannot miss. We cannot make our families choose between free and private pay programs.

Not long ago I spoke with a friend who is an assistant rabbi at a synagogue with a thriving early childhood center. They were struggling to recruit educators and a new director. As I dug deep and asked tough questions, I learned that their ECC staff were not receiving benefits and his son’s teacher often came to ask the rabbis for tzedakah to make ends meet. I asked him, “As a rabbi do you receive health insurance?” “Does your synagogue make contributions to your retirement fund and continuing education?” as he answered “yes,” I saw the light go on for him. While our clergy care for our communities of today, our educators ensure our communities of tomorrow. How do we show them we care? We pay them salaries and benefits that make sense.

The Talmud teaches in Shabbat 119B, “The world is sustained by the pure vapors of the children of Beit Rabban.” Our tradition values our youngest learners, and we need to make sure we value their educators.

Emily Hausman

Director of Early Childhood Education

JCC Riverdale

Bronx, NY