Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Low Tuition from the Hudson to the Sound to the South Shore

The Jewish Week is covering the 'Axis' of low tuition Yeshiva Day Schools in the Tri-state area including He'atid, Westchester Torah Academy and Tiferet Academy.

In other news Tiferet had a successful open house (see pictures if you're on facebook) and WTA announced a Principal (details after the jump).

Maybe 'Chump' was right to declare "victory"?

[UPDATE: He'atid Open House video below]






WTA Announcements
Head of School

It is with great excitement that we announce we have selected Rabbi Rami Strosberg as Head of School!

We feel Rabbi Strosberg has the experience, talent and personality to build a warm, nurturing and exciting environment for our students, where every student will thrive and love to learn.

We look forward to seeing you at our Open House on Monday, November 26th @ 8pm where you can meet Rabbi Strosberg in person. Click here to RSVP for Open House.

Sincerely,
WTA Development Committee

Head of School
Rabbi Rami Strosberg

Rabbi Strosberg Teaching

Rabbi Rami Strosberg currently serves as Head of School at the Hebrew Academy of the Capital District (Albany), where he has been for the past 6 years. He received his Bacherlors in Psychology from Yeshiva University, Semicha at the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary and completed his Masters Degree in Jewish Education in at the Azrieli Graduate School of Jewish Education and Administration.

  

Before returning to his hometown to be a Principal in 2007 and being promoted to Head of School the following year, Rabbi Strosberg taught several classes and subjects at the Ramaz Lower and Middle Schools including Music, Halacha and Talmud. In addition to his career in education, Rabbi Strosberg has enjoyed many years performing with Shlock Rock and other musical groups.
  
Rami currently lives with his wife Debbie and their three sons Tani, Leor and Eliav in Albany, NY, and we look forward to welcoming them to our community.
  
The future of WTA is in good hands with Rabbi Strosberg as Head of School.

Comments (66)

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Doesn't compute's avatar

Doesn't compute · 632 weeks ago

The Jewish Week article indicates that He'atid is spending over $11,000 per child and yet is charging much less. I've seen others claim that this is because of "start up" costs - whatever these are. Isn't this just a shell game. The school is charging less than their costs and fundraising to cover the difference from big pockets outside the community and claiming they will hit break-even in 3 years?
So they make up the shortfall with donations. What's wrong with that? Doesn't every school do that?
No. The schools that do this successfully over the long term and whose academics aren't left to suffer due to uncertain "outside funding" from year to year have something called an endowment. The problem with being unable to cover the full operating cost with school tuition is that the school is left with the constant annual uncertainty and can't plan appropriately over the long term re its faculty, curriculum, etc...

This is a key difference between established and endowed schools and those which are racing after their budgets.
2 replies · active 632 weeks ago
Doesn't compute's avatar

Doesn't compute · 632 weeks ago

Subsidizing $2,000 per child is a massive amount of money to raise on a yearly basis. Is that what their funders have signed up for? I thought their new model was cheaper than the current models not just a slicker fundraising approach.
the article stated that the school plans to break even in year 3. that means the start up costs that cause the per student total to be $11k will drop down to the cost of tuition or less in year 3. last night at the open house, Gershon Distenfeld said that the fundraising is for two purposes - to pay for scholarships which is not baked into tuition and to train the teachers in this new model (and that is why the school will continue to fundraise).
You could argue that all these wealthy investors dont know how to read a budget and that all of you know all about the school and how their budget must be wrong - but these funders are shrewd business peopel who are not looking to throw away their money.
Wishful thinking's avatar

Wishful thinking · 632 weeks ago

As was stated in the article, their assumptions keep changing. It is a very, very dangerous assumption that somehow with "volume" they will hit break-even. I'm sure their investors mean well but that doesn't make them prophets. Look at how many internet companies failed due to the hype that wasn't backed up with reality. Smart investors threw a lot of good money after bad because they assumed they would hit break-even with more and more volume.

But even without all this - didn't He'atid claim they saved hundreds of thousands of dollars already. How do you save money by giving away an $11,000 education for $9,000?
If we are truly serious in the modern ortho community about educating our children in a manner that will allow them to be academically competitive with their (NON Jewish or NON Religious) peers, we are going to have to change our attitude as a community with regards to where we are placing our resources.

This means, in order to be able to really deliver a competitive quality education to our children - we need to place our money in a BIG POT. I think this requires Community wide changes across the board. It means all the money in each community goes into one bucket and this money goes towards ONE school. This one school hires top notch teachers with real standards and methods. Yes, we need to use technology and its cost saving methods. But you can't effectively teach THINKING skills and WRITING skills and such on a computer. It requires the thoughtful and attentive skills of a master teacher. Talk to your long standing top teachers at the yeshivot and try to distill what it is that they are transmitting in a classroom - it's not one or two or three easily quantifiable things, but rather a whole world of ideas and methods.... I just don't understand why the community will nickle and dime on tuition when they'll throw these enormous bar and bat mitzvah bashes and big kiddushes for simchas ??? Its just incomprehensible to me - I just don't get it.
Wishful Thinking - you are correct. none of them are prophets. but certainly none of the people on this blog predicting the financial woes of He'atid are prophets either - and they dont have any knowlegde of the business plan or the school model.
Any business plan changes as the business grows- nice to put a negative spin on it. It was clearly stated at the Open House that the school's financial state is following what was predicted - they are on track to break even in year 3.
and as to who saved money - i did - instead of going into debt paying much more for my child's education this year at another school - as did many of my fellow He'atid parents.
I understand the people who are signing up for He'atid to get a hand out of $2,000. Makes sense. If you read the JW article it is pretty clear how He'atid plans to lower this cost over time. They will ask teachers to take on more work (no assistants, doing administrators work), classes will be 30 plus children and there will be no supplemental education for any child who doesn't fit in the He'atid world - because "it obvious" that this is not needed given their magical model.

What I find astonishing is the lack of transparency. If you want to know more you have to sit down and review with the board members? When other schools are moving towards putting out more and more information about their financials, He'atid is covering up. And for the person who keeps talking about the sophisticated investors, I have one question for you - ever heard of Bernie Madoff?
Wishful thinking's avatar

Wishful thinking · 632 weeks ago

Baruch,

I'm happy that you saved money but the community didn't save anything. Money was taken out of the pocket of a wealthy philanthropist and put into your pocket. The education wasn't cheaper just subsidized.

I'm happy that in the first 2 months of their 3 year plan they are on track. That is reassuring.
bottom line is full paying parents are making aliyah, sending to he atid, and even public schools. not sure how legacies plan on staying afloat if full payers keep leaving. system is going to crash within few years.
seems like 11k for pre k-1 is actually more or equal to all the other schools. really dont see the savings.
this blog has hit a new low - allowing a poster to compare the people running He'atid to Bernie Madoff. disgusting i am curious how many of those people posting negatively against he'atid 1. have visited the school 2. have been to an open house 3. have reviewed the budget 4. are either board members or heavily invested in legacy schools 5. knows that he'atid did not take its budget from nowhere but based it in part on existing similar schools and 6. really have any idea of what is actually going on at He'atid
I was at open houses and parlor meetings. I donated. I was told that my donation is here to subsidize start up costs, but that the tuition in and of itself is self sustaining. I was lied to. Many feel they were lied to. So much is in perception and i have heard many feel they were lied to, INCLUDING HE'ATID parents.

Listen, in the end, as parents, we can debate on blogs all of the time, but the only really action we can take is where we continue to cut checks to for donations and where we elect to send our children to school. I think there may be an inefficient niche for all schools, but that does not mean YOU as a parent or donor have to fund them.
1 reply · active 632 weeks ago
in light of the current situation in israel i feel really sad that all my money is tied up in yeshiva tuition and i cant afford to give real tzedukah. i think its about time we took a long hard look at what we as a community are doing with our money and perhaps subsidizing upper middle class kids "scholarships" isnt the best use. perhaps we have to take another look at public school plus talmud torah.
i call bluff's avatar

i call bluff · 632 weeks ago

so the truth starts to come out about heatid, and i use the term truth lightly. they say it costs 11k to educate each kid, even though simple math shows it cost 15k per kid. nevertheless, any school who charges less per child than it needs per child is now relying on others to support their system. so how is that much different than the legacy schools who just make the parents pay as opposed to the community. and if it is costing them 11k to educate pre-school, they are in real trouble bc the legacies will all tell you that their costs for a pre-school kid is about 8k but the profit they make on younger grades off-sets the losses in the older grades. heatid will go the way of many dotcoms from early this century- a good idea on paper but a failure in the real world.
The Jewish Week article is very damning and highlights what many have been saying about Heatid for a while. Transparency is the best policy. They should publish their financials.
yeah to a bunch of anonymous fools on a blog. i am sure they would worry about all of you if they werent so worried about having enough space in their building next year for all the people who are signing up.
all of you who are focusing on the 11k didnt seem to read the article. The budget shows that in year 3 tuition pays for student costs. the 11k includes the start up costs needed in the first 2 years. how is that at all damning? Unless one of you can actually prove that he'atid will not break even in year 3 based on their financials it seems all these comments are pretty silly.
damning how? the article states that it costs 11k until year 3 when the school breaks even. So the school has two years worth of start up costs and then breaks even. Unless someone on this blog can PROVE that He'atids financials dont work I am not sure what the issue is. At best someone here should say we dont know - (although perhaps the people at hea'tid who actually have the budget and the projections might have a better idea than the people here)
And i am sure the people at He'atid would be very worried about this article if they weren't so worried about finding space for all the children who hope to come next year.
actually that's not exactly what the article says -

"Others wonder whether AJE and He’Atid’s budget projections are realistic — the school, currently spending over $11,000 per student, is supposed to break even financially in its third year — or if the model risks faltering as it expands (the target size is about 1,000 students in pre-K through eighth grade).

Not helping the matter is that He’Atid and AJE have refused to make public the details of the “model” they are using to project expenses, although they have revealed that cost savings will come from “efficiencies” like larger class sizes, fewer administrators and group purchasing."

Seems like the writer is reflecting that there are some questions about their model and lack of transparency as well. Not just a bunch of anonymous fools.
its all leverage's avatar

its all leverage · 632 weeks ago

To be clear, no school publishes its "model", they publish their prior year actual results. As such, let's wait for He'Atid to publish its actual results when the year is complete.

The differential between the $11k and a break-even of $9k is due to not fully leveraging some of its infrastructure. The building is not a maximum capacity and neither is the administration. I believe there are no plans to increase from the two administrative position they have, and will not be taking on more rent expense. As such, you have those costs now being divided over 116 kids, whereas next year it will go over more.
why be clear? it is much easier to pick a few random lines from an article and completely distort them on a blog.
annonymous - 4 hours ago - seems like while the writer only has questions about the model while the commentators on this blog seem all to eager to condemn the school saying the financial information given in the article (break even) cannot be true. seems like the rest of the article was totally positive about He'atid (need something in there to make the article seemed unbiased). seems like whatever worries you have about the financial model doesn't extend to parents who are actually sending there - could it be because they actually educated themselves about the school instead of randomly criticizing it on a blog - the article mentions one on one meetings about the budget - could it be that some of these parents did indeed meet one on one to satisfy themsleves that what the founders say is true?. seems like the article says 'others wonder' but doesn't itself disprove that He'atid will break even in year 3. seems like He'atid itself is mailing this article around and eiher has or will post it on their website - so the school itself does not have a worry /see the article as a negative. seems like not one person on this blog is able to PROVE that He'atid will not break even in year 3.
Why would parents getting a $2,000 hand out have any readon to question the school?
bottom line is parents cant afford legacies and he atid is filling a void.
1 reply · active 632 weeks ago
Happy HeAtid Parent's avatar

Happy HeAtid Parent · 632 weeks ago

I can't believe the stupidity of some of these comments. EVERY school has a cost per student greater than they charge for year 1. This is true of almost any business as well. Costs come down as a school grows and gets economies of scale. I've seen the budget. They are spending 11k per kid this year, 9k in year 3, and even less after that!

You idiots don't understand the first thing about a business plan. But you keep on bashing Heatid anonymously, you cowards. As someone who has kids in both a legacy school and HeAtid, I know full well how much BETTER Heatid is than the legacy school and I'm saving thousands of dollars!
If I was going to start a no frills low tuition school there are a few changes I'd make to current models. Most importantly I'd shove as many kids as possible in each class. 30 kids or more per class will have the single largest impact on economics. I'd wring as much work as possible out of teachers by having 1 teacher in these large classes and also assign teachers additional administrative responsibilities without paying out as much as the additional administrators. I'd eliminate any support out of the classroom. No supplemental support to children falling behind. No enrichment for advance students. Finally I'd want to get to scale as quickly as possible. To do this I'd promote the hell of the school and even provide subsidies to undercut competitor schools. A few years down the road the school will either be low cost or it won't matter because parents will be locked in.

I don't know if this is what Heatid is doing but this would seem to be a winning approach.
1 reply · active 632 weeks ago
we can debate the merits/ lack of forever but it is pointless. he atid is a brand new school its educational methods are unproven. legacies are unaffordable. the system is totally broken. every jewish child can not be expected to get a private school education subsidized by the community. the standards will just have to change.
Avi Greengart's avatar

Avi Greengart · 631 weeks ago

I also donated money to HeAtid. I was told that the school needed donations from prospective parents to prove to bigger donors that people really would invest in a new educational and financial model. Remember, some of the people behind HeAtid had proposed a lower cost school in the past (without HeAtid's mixed instructional, group, and computer-based learning, and without HeAtid's master teacher/admin roles), and there was not enough interest from prospective parents to get the idea off the ground.

Personally, I am not saving any money at HeAtid. I send my other kids to JFS in Staten Island, where the cost for Bergen County families is also $9000 (and that's after including door-to-door transportation). But I had to see if HeAtid could work. The situation in modern Orthodoxy is untenable: JFS is an anomaly, and efforts to create a low cost school here failed. Our Jewish Day Schools are far too expensive. That's not to say they're overpriced or bad schools -- in my experience, our local schools here in Bergen County are pretty great, and they provide good-to-great value for the tuition dollar, depending on the school. But it doesn't matter that something is a great value at $14,000 - $18,000 per child per year. It doesn't matter that the schools are good, and it doesn't matter how frugal they are (or aren't) - they're simply unaffordable even to many high income families.

So, what happened? I donated money to HeAtid in the first funding round, along with many others. It worked - bigger donors DID step up. The school got funded. Then it got an excellent principal. Then parents enrolled their kids (myself included - our youngest is in K at HeAtid) and... as promised, the school opened. Also as promised, the school is trying a new educational and administrative model. Also as promised, tuition including all fees is under $9000. I certainly hope that they will be able to keep their last promise - that the school's business model will be self-sufficient in a few years. But, seriously: that was one of the best donations to a school I've ever made.

Will HeAtid solve the problem? We'll have to see. Even if the educational model works for some, it might not work for every child. High school tuition costs are still a HUGE (huge, huge, huge) communal problem. And, yes, HeAtid will have to prove that it's business model works. But I have a hard time buying the negativity you're selling, Mr. Anonymous Guest posting over and over. HeAtid has delivered on everything it has promised so far. Frankly, that amazes - and encourages - me.
2 replies · active 631 weeks ago
Looks like they copied BPY....right down to the music
"Maybe 'Chump' was right to declare "victory"?"

Um...no.

First off, why is this an issue of "victory?" There should be no winners and losers -- the products are designed to be different. Who exactly wins when a new school comes up with a different approach or methodology? The people who want it can be happy and the people who don't, can be happy ignoring it. Why does someone have to win or lose?

Second, how can one declare victory when there is nothing to celebrate? Is the victory in that low cost schools are being planned? Or that a low cost school is in the middle of its first year? How should we quantify this victory? There are no graduates whose skills or knowledge we can judge. There are no test scores that we can use to show that the He'atid education measures to a certain standard. So what victory can anyone declare?
Well - at least Chump sending his kid to Heatid is a victory for the legacy schools.
A victory in the sense that there are now low-cost options around the tr-state area. Not saying anyone else is a loser/
These complaints are hilarious. So we have some parents paying $9k for school. If they were at legacy schools paying $9k, they would be taking $6+k from the community in tuition assistance money. Even if they are being subsidized by $2k at He'Atid, they're still taking $4+k less from the community in assistance!!!

So why complain? You, the community, are saving money overall!
I understand why 350 people turned out last year for the Heatid open house. Lots of curious people but how do people explain how Heatid had more than double as many people attend their open house than any other school?

If I was a legacy school right now, I'd be very very scared.
By what measure are you calling the Tiferet open house a success? I heard from more than one person there that it was a disaster and ironies of all ironies - the only good part was GD speaking.
A similar school in Maryland failed without even opening their doors. 11k renting a tiny building, if He'Atid is around in year 3, needs a new building, where is that money coming from? Will it be tuition is 9k, but costs, with "start-up" for new building be $14k per kid, but we cannot charge that to parents? Point is, all public school districts, with many more services and programs than He'Atid are spending more than this per child...never mind every yeshiva - attending this school is one's choice, but let's just accept that each attendee is receiving a hand-out.
Simcha,

I wasn't there but the pictures show a pretty packed room. They said over 200 people attended.
seems like mostly full paying parents sending to he atid. scholarships still happy taking $ and sending to legacies. i dont see how legacies can keep going with less full paying parents.
does heatid's model show break even at year 3 in their current building or in a new building?

what happens in a new building in year 4,5,6.

What happens to start up costs past year 3? They are fundraising for staff training, which they will need year after year as they hire new staff and start new grades. As they open new classes each of the next 8 years, there will also be start up costs.
Does anyone know where the $11k number in the article came from?
From the amount that He'Atid has said it fundraised, it sounded more like $15k per child. Which at this grade level, would actually mean its costs were much higher than the other schools. Which, given no enrichment, remediation or chumash teacher, would be interesting.
I posted this same question at the Jewish Week site last week, but no answer yet.
Alexis: Every new school has one-time start up costs. You are confusing those with an operating budget.
1 reply · active 631 weeks ago
"every new school that doesn't start as PK-8 all at once has ANNUAL re-occuring start up costs, not just one-time start up costs. "

Why are you confusing the issue with FACTS? Everyone knows that Heatid is the best model ever and all the other schools are on the verge of collapse. I hear that Heatid will soon solve our nation's fiscal crisis as well....after they come up their cure for cancer.
That's funny Guest613. I think the free market will decide. HeAtid has limited space and all the other schools are desperate for kids!
Not really a free market when the education is subsidized by our $2,000 per child. We will see what happens when they run out of the cash to pay for the subsidy and have to charge the real tuition.
if they run out of subsidies, the answer is obvious? Why would one attend a program in a building with no gym, auditorium, labs or other facilities compared to their peers [whether needed or not is another discussion], lose out on many academic INCLUDED programs, including resource rooms, assistants in every room, enrichment programs, etc...but pay same or higher tuition? Let's face it, there are many of us that, given the cost of things today, will make sacrifices to save money...this is no different...but if the subsidies ended or if they were forced to have a large jump in tuition when they enter a real school building, that will be the real test of the free market. I do know many parents with children at He'Atid, if 13k would your child be at He'Atid - answer - NO!!! Thus, 4 or 5k savings, yes, but at 1 or 2 k in savings, no.

For the children's sake, i hope all schools are doing very well.
Guest, Anonymous x7 (or however many of you are here) - I am confused. I keep hearing He'atid has a budget but wont show anyone. Yet you all seem to be writing as though you have seen it or have knowledge of it. Per you, their budget seems to be relying on subsidies and does not factor in a need for a building. Do you really think the founders of the school (who are obviously so cocky and misguided in their belief that He'atid would be successful) didn't think or factor in a need for the building? how do you know they haven't already fundraised and have the resourcs for the building?? Noam built a new building and didnt assess a new building fund - it was all given by private donors - so it is possible they could fundraise for the school and not increase tuition. At the open house it was stated publically that the school will break even in year 3 and that there will be no building fund and that tuition will only increase for inflation. feel free to argue - but at least the person speaking at the open house has knowlegde of the finances of the school.
btw- Guest, i know more he'atid parents than you do and the ones i know are happy with the school and would keep their kids there no matter what the tuition.
I just don't understand the animosity between parents... what is this about. We all make our choices based on the information and resources and specific issues relating to our child/children and that's all - why this beating of each other over where and why a parent chooses one school over another? This does not make for a kind and gentle community.

It also teaches our children to berate others for making choices different than our own. Certainly not what I want my children to pick up from their classmates and shul friends.
1 reply · active 630 weeks ago
kumbaya my friends. good shabbos.

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