11—Friewy, Oct. 27, 1972
THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
Who Owns the
United Hebrew Schools?
The Association of Hebrew Teachers of
Metropolitan Detroit appeals to the Jewish com-
munity to assert itself as the sole owner of the
United Hebrew Schools and remove nepotism, per-
sonal power interests, and needless administrators
from taking_ advantage of hard earned public
funds.
The United Hebrew Schools is the proud and
precious possession of the community. It is the
community spirit that built it and it is the com-
munity that supports it. No one has the right to
use the United Hebrew Schools as an avenue for
personal power. No one has a right to create here-
tofore unneeded administrative positions for
friends, and to staff the school with families of
those friends.
Widespread nepotism, abuse of the dignity of
teachers, rude pursuit of personal power, the
building of an unneeded staggering administrative
pyramid, are, we believe, now the practices In the
United Hebrew Schools.
As a smokescreen for nepotism and personal
power pursuits, a manufactured issue of standards
and administrative rights has been created. The
primary purpose of these manufactured issues is
to harass, humiliate and intimidate competent and
independent teachers. These artificial issues are,
we believe, designed to create an instrument to
remove competent and independent teachers and
replace them with families of administrators whose
competence leaves much to be desired.
Let the community become aware of the true
conditions existing here! Let there be an acquaint-
ance with the truth: that there is no accountability
of administrators of the schools to the community,
with the result that a dictatorship has been estab-
lished disgracing our status as a kehilla that other-
wise has reason to be proud of a sense of responsi-
bility to the Jewish people. Let there be a prompt
abandonment of such procedures and a return to
honorable relationships! It is the only hope of
assuring self-respect that will lead to greater
respect of our children for the educational system
that operates in their behalf.
The fact is that teachers who had positive
evaluations were let go while those with poor
evaluations were kept, given tenure and given
preference in selecting the teaching location and
time of teaching.
The fact is that teachers with excellent back-
grounds and commitments to Jewish education
had hours denied them while nepotism rules.
We therefore ask, is the United Hebrew
Schools the private property of the superintendent
and his friends?
These and numerous other problems con-
cerning the commitment, competency and effi-
ciency of several administrators, the mistreatment
of the teaching staff, are issues that require im-
mediate action by the Jewish community.
We are convinced that those who so far re-
fused even to listen to us would never permit
in their private business such an unneeded ad-
ministrative pyramid that destroys the morale of
employees. Do public institutions deserve similar
scrutiny and involvement?
Should there be no accountability or control
method of administrators in Jewish education
whether they are needed, fit, efficient, commit-
ted, or in fact even doing anything?
A glaring illustration of the absence of any
control system of administrators' performance and
activities in the United Hebrew Schools is best
illustrated by a statement recently made by the
superintendent of the United Hebrew Schools.
His immediate predecessor who was superintend-
ent of the United Hebrew Schools for 20 years or
more was—the present superintendent stated—
perpetuating incompetency.
We ask the members of the board of the
United Hebrew Schools: Which superintendent,
the present one or his predecessor, gave you the
correct information? Clearly, one of them was
misleading you.
HAVING EXHAUSTED THE NORMAL ES-
TABLISHED CHANNELS WE NOW ASK THE
JEWISH COMMUNITY TO PUT AN END TO
A SET OF PRACTICES THAT:
We appeal to the Jewish community to bring
about the establishment of a special committee
that would give the teachers a fair chance to be
heard, an opportunity to prove to these communal
leaders what we believe to be the real motives
and actual functions of several administrators.
We believe that:
A. Creates administrative positions that are
completely unwarranted and even harmful to the
spirit of the United Hebrew Schools and thus to
the welfare of Jewish education. We are not fa-
miliar with any school of this size anywhere in
the country that has such a huge administrative
pyramid as the United Hebrew Schools has now
created in Detroit.
B. Removes teaching hours as well as teach-
ing positions from highly competent and commit.
ted teachers to make these hours and positions
available for the relatives of the domineers. Inci-
dentally, who will evaluate the competence of
these FAMILY TEACHERS? Their husbands, their
husbands' friends, or those whose positions largely
depend upon the good will of the FAMILY
TEACHERS' relatives and friends!
A. The demand for carte blanche manage.
ment rights is a subterfuge for:
1. Creating unneeded administrative posi-
tions.
2. Harassing, intimidating and humiliating
teachers.
3. Making the United Hebrew Schools an ad-
ministrators' family school irrespective of their
poor evaluations and from a Jewish point of view
disgusting language and behavior by some of
these family teachers.
B. The records of administrators who were
elevated to higher positions by the superintendent
were poor in our opinion and their commitment
to elementary accepted principles of Judaism
based on their actions is very much to be ques-
tioned.
C. Conditions have been created whereby it
is almost impossible to teach. The morale of the
teaching staff is at the lowest level in its history.
D. Personal power interests determine the
needs of the school.
We appeal to be given the opportunity to
prove to the community that the United Hebrew
Schools has the most qualified and committed
teaching staff available anywhere in the country.
We appeal to be given the opportunity to
prove that the educational accomplishments of
the United Hebrew Schools are unmatched any-
where in the country, thanks largely to this highly
dedicated and qualified teaching staff.
We appeal to you to hear us and discover that
all these accomplishments are now endangered by
new power hungry administrators who seem to
think that the United Hebrew Schools is their
private enterprise and they can do with impunity
whatever they please.
We are convinced that after hearing the
facts you will discover that the educationally
irresponsible talk of turning the pyramid around
by proclaiming the so-called Midrasha as the cen-
ter of interest is simply irresponsible, misleading
talk. There is hardly any Midrasha to speak of
now. We may call it a poorly attended adult insti-
tute but hardly a Midrasha.
The heart, soul and justifiable pride of the
Jewish community is and was the elementary and
high school department of the United Hebrew
Schools. For the first time in many years we now
see the beginning of an increased enrollment in
the elementary department of the United Hebrew
Schools.
Have we reached a point whereby the super-
intendent's statement that there will be no arbitra-
tion becomes the command of the Jewish com-
munity?
Why is the present superintendent so afraid
of a thorough study and arbitration? Does he feel
that his acts and established position cannot stand
the test of real public involvement?
WE ARE READY TO .tCCEPT IN AD.
VANCE THE CONSEQUENCES AND RECO:VI.
NIENDATIONS OF SUCH A COM ■ HTTEE. WE
BELIEVE WE HAVE NOTHING TO FEAR.
Have we reached a point whereby the com-
munity will permit the administration of the
United Hebrew Schools to convey threats to active
teachers of the United Hebrew Schools for the
association's daring to publish this statement?
In the name of justice, what kind of dictator-
ship does this community tolerate? Do you really
want to still the voice of criticism? Are we teach-
ers to become Charlie McCarthies in the hands
of an Edgar Bergen?
E URGE Vol . . . WE BEG OF YOU: LW
FORSAKE JEWISH EDUCATION. ACT
PROMI9i,5 AND JEWISH EDUCATION WILL
ETERNALLY BE GRATEFUL TO YOU
NOT
We make these assertions with heavy hearts. Our entire lives have been and are dedicated to spreading of Jewish knowledge. We
are trained to teach and to live for that purpose. All we ask of our community is the respect due our profession and our dedication to the
labors for the advancement of Jewish education.
The issues are not monetary but Involve the very core of high educational principles and the dignity of teachers.
We must, therefore, in this form of an appeal to the community to stem a tide of domination, demand—with regret at being forced
to use the word demand—that an arbitration committee be selected to resolve the issues with finality. Unless such a committee is appointed
to deal with us. we shall be compelled to strike to interrupt our teaching until a solution is found. We were compelled, at a meeting of our
teachers held on Tuesday evening, Oct. 24, by overwhelming action, to set a deadline for such action for November 5.
Association of Hebrew Teachers of Metropolitqn Detroit
11,1a,
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