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 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.
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Doesn't compute · 632 weeks ago
Yeshiva_Dad 69p · 632 weeks ago
guest · 632 weeks ago
This is a key difference between established and endowed schools and those which are racing after their budgets.
Doesn't compute · 632 weeks ago
Chaim · 632 weeks ago
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 · 632 weeks ago
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?
guest · 632 weeks ago
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.
Baruch · 632 weeks ago
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.
Anonymous · 632 weeks ago
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 · 632 weeks ago
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.
guest · 632 weeks ago
guest · 632 weeks ago
Avi · 632 weeks ago
guest · 632 weeks ago
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.
guest · 632 weeks ago
i call bluff · 632 weeks ago
Anon · 632 weeks ago
Avi · 632 weeks ago
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.
Avi · 632 weeks ago
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.
Anonymous · 632 weeks ago
"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 · 632 weeks ago
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.
Avi · 632 weeks ago
Avi · 632 weeks ago
Anonymous · 632 weeks ago
guest · 632 weeks ago
Happy HeAtid Parent · 632 weeks ago
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!
Anon · 632 weeks ago
I don't know if this is what Heatid is doing but this would seem to be a winning approach.
guest · 632 weeks ago
Avi Greengart · 631 weeks ago
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.
Hoof · 631 weeks ago
thatguy · 631 weeks ago
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?
Anonymous · 631 weeks ago
Egg · 631 weeks ago
Mark 50p · 631 weeks ago
So why complain? You, the community, are saving money overall!
Joe · 631 weeks ago
If I was a legacy school right now, I'd be very very scared.
Simcha · 631 weeks ago
guest · 631 weeks ago
Yeshiva_Dad 69p · 631 weeks ago
I wasn't there but the pictures show a pretty packed room. They said over 200 people attended.
guest · 631 weeks ago
guest · 631 weeks ago
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.
Alexis · 631 weeks ago
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.
Joe · 631 weeks ago
guest613 · 631 weeks ago
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.
Joe · 631 weeks ago
Anonymous · 630 weeks ago
guest · 630 weeks ago
For the children's sake, i hope all schools are doing very well.
Baruch · 630 weeks ago
Baruch · 630 weeks ago
Guest · 630 weeks ago
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.
guest · 630 weeks ago