Yeshiva Sanity: He'atid Announces Tuition for 2013-2014

Saturday, October 20, 2012

He'atid Announces Tuition for 2013-2014

Dear Parents,

We are delighted to open registration for the 2013-2014 academic year at Yeshivat He’Atid.

We are pleased to announce that tuition will remain the same for the 2013-2014 school year. The tuition schedule for the upcoming academic year is as follows:

Pre-K: $7,990.00 (Initial non-refundable deposit, to be applied to tuition: $995)

Kindergarten, First and 2nd Grades: $8,990.00 (Initial non-refundable deposit, to be applied to tuition: $1,245)

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ABC · 649 weeks ago

Even though they said the plan was to keep tuition rises at the same level of inflation, I'm glad to see they aren't raising anything for next year. Based upon their current space constraints, I would suspect the enrollment will be oversubscribed for next year...

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Guest · 649 weeks ago

Kind of hard to get excited. They are still "new" have had millions come in via fundraising recently and they are in a tiny, small, rental property, with limited to NO facilities [auditorium, library, gyms, etc.].

I am happy tuition is not going up for next year, but I think in year 4 or 5, when they have a new building, perhaps less in fundraising, does their model, without subsidies, keep tuition at these levels?

Overall, good news, but the real picture is premature.

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End Welfare · 649 weeks ago

"Overall, good news, but the real picture is premature."

Lol. The "real picture" is that many in town are savings tens of thousands of dollars next year! You go and speculate about what will be 4-5 years down the road while the smart ones in town continue to save tens of thousands of dollars next year.

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guest4 · 649 weeks ago

Heatid's tuition is set in a bubble. It doesn't really matter what their expenses are or the actual cost to educate a student. They just plan on getting suckers to subsidize the difference. It will be interesting to see how long they can keep it up for. I wonder how much "start up" they will need this year to open a few classes.

1 reply · active 649 weeks ago

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End Welfare · 649 weeks ago

"They just plan on getting suckers to subsidize the difference. It will be interesting to see how long they can keep it up for."

Ummmmm. I think the "suckers" in the room are those who continue to get ripped-off by the legacy schools.

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Sora · 649 weeks ago

guest 4 - can't you say that about every school? not one school actually charges what it costs - they have donations, subsidies. I guess you question should be - why even with all the schools getting donations and subsidies is He'atid able to do it for so much less.

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guest4 · 649 weeks ago

heatid doesn't even have one full budget year to accurately forecast expenses. The other schools have years of experience and know their rough expenses.

I don't have that question. Heatid can do it for "so much less" because they raised over 1.2 million dollars to divide over 100 kids and they are in a small rental facility. Its not rocket science & its comparing apple to oranges.

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Sora · 649 weeks ago

guest 4 - it should be proportional no? the other schools have been around so much longer and have so many more people. they should be able to raise money to subsidize their tuitions to the same extent no?
he'atid has a budget. you are assuming it isn't accurate. i assume it is accurate.

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thatguy · 649 weeks ago

Sora -- not taking sides here but just pointing out from experience that donors who give over the first few years, and give generously, tend to burn out after 5 or 6 years of repeated requests. Schools that have been around longer have had to generate revenue/donor streams beyond the ones prompted by start-up excitement. I sense that as costs go up and schools expand, and freshness wears off (how many times can I get a classroom named after me) it becomes difficult to keep donations at the same proportional level.

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JS (hello) · 649 weeks ago

"they are in a tiny, small, rental property, with limited to NO facilities [auditorium, library, gyms, etc.]."

Isn't that intelligent? I don't understand the criticism. They're renting a building with "limited" facilities to keep costs down. I would think that would be a source of praise, not critique. I would hope that if and when they do seek out their own building they choose a modest one that doesn't come with a huge mortgage and large annual expenses for maintenance.

As a brief example, why a school needs a library is beyond me. Why not make use of the public libraries? Why does every publicly available service need to be duplicated?

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guest · 649 weeks ago

NJ Core requirements for most grades has mandatory gym, health and other services. Now, parochial schools could ignore many of these, and if He'Atid chooses to say, to save cost, we will have a building with no formal gym, no formal auditorium / lunch area, but make a decision, does your child really need that?

Even withOUT those added services / rooms, in 4-5 years, a larger facility is needed for many grades - that building will cost REAL money...hope they have more money coming in at that point, or 200 or 300 kids will need to split not just a drop in donations, but a large cost for building...those are facts, not arguments. Raise another 3-5 million or it has to come from tuition.

Right now, it is fixed tuition, but spend spend spend, blended coach, educational consultants, etc...we will raise money to cover it all...well, no one is selling their building without a CERTIFIED BANK CHECK or WIRE of real money.

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JS (hello) · 649 weeks ago

Guest,

They could just decide (prudently, imo) that they are limiting the size of the school and not taking more students - that doing so would increase costs unnecessarily. What's wrong with being a smaller school with less perks that's cheap?

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Miami Al · 649 weeks ago

I have fond memories of my elementary school library. Racing to get popular books in the fiction section, rows of books that were available for reports, learning how to use a card catalog section.

My children love going to the nearby public library where they look at children's books, check out new books to read, etc.

Do my children need to use the library at their school, vs going to the public library across the street from my house?

They request to go to the library near our house to look at books. They've never mentioned (or checked out for home) a book from the school library.

I think it might just be a relic of another era. I mean, I went to the school library to use the encyclopedia in elementary school, paper encyclopedias are relics of the past, they'd use one on their iPod Touch or iPad, right?

In terms of a gym, in elementary school, we had PE outdoors (granted, in South Florida you can do this all year), basketball courts (outdoors, etc), I never used a formal gym until middle school.

Why not use a small rented building for elementary school? Why does K-4/5 that don't need these facilities need to be on an expensive campus that has them?

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Guest101 · 649 weeks ago

HeAtid DOES have gym (DUBEZONE), music, and art. I don't know why people think otherwise. It's a real school, with real teachers, and very happy families. Yes, we had chagim, and yes we had breaks, but it's a very normally run school. The computers aide the teachers collect data about the kids so that the teachers can work with them in small groups. Truth is, we DID think the computers would excite our child, but what he loves most is the one-one-one he gets from his Morah; the computers DONT teach the kids. Do books teach kids? NO, teachers do and the materials supplement. I get an email EVERY night from my son's teacher and can't believe the caring, warmth, and dedication/hard work that I've seen since day one from the staff.

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End Welfare · 649 weeks ago

Guest 101,

Heatid is like every other legacy school ---- just half the cost. This is what drives those getting ripped-off so crazy and makes them come here and bash Heatid. They need to justify that they are getting hosed.

1 reply · active 649 weeks ago

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Guest101 · 649 weeks ago

AMEN!

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guest · 648 weeks ago

You cut off the part of the letter that has re-registration due in the next week-ish. School hasn't even had 2 full consecutive weeks yet and they want your deposits.

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guest · 648 weeks ago

100% they want deposits. Actually, that is not a bash He'Atid item...most schools increase registration / application fees after 12/1 and 1/15, etc...as they need to plan for following year, etc...plus, they want you to commit, and not carefully analyze will this be a happy spot for you and your children. While the due dates may fluctuate, all schools perhaps should give a few more weeks for parents to analyze the situation. I think it says a lot, when I asked 7 Heatid families this weekend, if SACS wins their appeal, where is their child next week. 2 were not sure, 1 said Heatid and 4 said SACS, if they get in. A large part of the parent body is making decisions almost exclusively driven by finances. That is a bit nerve racking IMO. I think it may be the right school for many, but I hope people are not choosing where to send children - TPS, SACS if it opens, HeAtid or any other program solely based on finances.

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End Welfare · 648 weeks ago

"You cut off the part of the letter that has re-registration due in the next week-ish. School hasn't even had 2 full consecutive weeks yet and they want your deposits."

I can't stop laughing at the nonsense being posted. "Registration" at He'Atid is actually just a down payment on your tuition and counts dollar for dollar against the total cost of tuition.

AT every single legacy school, registration is just an add-on JUNK FEE on top of the rip-off tuition.

1 reply · active 648 weeks ago

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guest · 648 weeks ago

Heard from a number of parents that they can't believe how soon they want the money. Without even a few full weeks of school they have nothing to base their decision on.

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Yeshiva_Dad 69p · 648 weeks ago

It actually says by November 15th - not next week-ish. And that is for existing parents to guarantee a spot. Doesn't mean you can't register afterwards along with all the other parents who don't have kids in the school.

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Guest · 648 weeks ago

Every other Bergen County school also wants you to register in October/November. At least He'Atid tells you the tuition upfront instead of having you register, but tuition is not revealed until the Spring.

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Yeshiva_Dad 69p · 648 weeks ago

The only way too maximize efficiency of the teaching staff is to have full classes. And the only way to ensure full classes is to have large deposits so people don't double-register & cancel on you at the last minute.

Personally I'd much rather pay a larger amount early then have to pay a larger tuition overall.

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End Welfare · 648 weeks ago

"At least He'Atid tells you the tuition upfront instead of having you register, but tuition is not revealed until the Spring Report"

Exactly! One of my biggest criticisms of the legacy schools is that they make you pay a junk registration fee without telling you what the product is going to cost. I'm sure doing so is legal but it sure as hell isn't the proper way to do things. Let me ask you all a question: How many of you would by a slice of pizza at EJ's if Mr. EJ's told you that he will only tell you the final cost of the slice after paid a non-refundable junk fee? Nobody would. You wouldn't buy anything from EJs unless you knew what the price of the pizza was beforehand. Why we as a community let the legacy schools get away with this type of crap for so long is beyond me. Thank goodness Heatid is on the scene and is upfront about the total tuition cost from day one and has NO JUNK FEES!

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Happy to be saving · 648 weeks ago

I can't believe how ridiculous this discussion is. At any other school, your $850 non-refundable registration fee is on top of a yet-to-be-known tuition which is guaranteed to be $12-$14K. Kids in preK at any other school have only had two consecutive weeks and those parents are being asked for money to hold spots also! This is the nature of the registration process here in BC. Why shouldn't He'atid expect the same kind of commitment?? At least they are publishing their tuition! If you're unsure, then wait and hope there is room for your child. And the person who interviewed 7 He'atid families and only one felt certain they would stay if SACS opened up - I don't believe it for a second. I think you are outright lying.

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End Welfare · 648 weeks ago

As if SACS is opening anyways.......

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guest · 648 weeks ago

End Welfare: "Ummmmm. I think the "suckers" in the room are those who continue to get ripped-off by the legacy schools."

This is actually pretty funny, but not in the way you meant it. One can imagine End Welfare standing out side a Lexus dealership screaming at the customers: "Suckers!" I paid only 10k for my crappy car!

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End Welfare · 648 weeks ago

"This is actually pretty funny, but not in the way you meant it. One can imagine End Welfare standing out side a Lexus dealership screaming at the customers: "Suckers!" I paid only 10k for my crappy car!"

Only to find out that both cars end up in the same shape down the road at the same destination (i.e., TABC/Mayanot/Frisch)! Only difference is that the guy who bought the "Lexus" has no money for retirement and high-blood pressure from paying for his "Lexus".

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Dan Fried · 647 weeks ago

By not putting your names on these message responses you invalidate yourselves. Why hide? I was really excited about the creation of a new day school model. I still am. He'Atid started on the basis of a thought that you cannot change an existing institution. In the beginning I agreed. Now that I am involved with institutions in the Teaneck area I believe you can change institutions. You can raise the level of education using technology. It remains to be seen if we can drive down the cost of tuition and I think we can! I just returned from an education conference in New Orleans. Most private schools with high tuition are heading toward true bended learning models and increasing class sizes. They hire companies such as Education Elements ( http://educationelements.com) who facilitate a new classroom model. Each class has one master teacher who is paid a higher salary but has a class size of between 25 and 40 children. Can it be done here? We shall see. Thanks to He'Atid everyone is looking for new education models. You have opened our eyes!

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