• News

$ 15 Million

Class Project

STEWART AIN
Special to The Jewish News

T

•

•

hey're spreading the wealth
for continuity.
An ambitious project to
create and expand Jewish
day schools across America has
received commitments of $15 million
— $1.5 million from each of 10 phil-
anthropists — over the next five years.
The project, called the Partnership
for Excellence in Jewish Education, is
the brainchild of philanthropist
Michael Steinhardt of New York.
Although he said he was not yet ready
to discuss the endeavor, which is due
to be announced in the coming weeks,
others familiar with it already are
praising its objective of serving as a
financial impetus to communities to
establish new day schools. It will also
encourage existing elementary day
schools to add a junior high.
Besides Steinhardt, the philan-
thropists are said to include Charles
and Edgar Bronfman, Mort Mandel,
Leslie Wexner and Charles .
Schusterman.
"It has a laudable goal and I sup-
port it," said Nathan Laufer, president
of the Wexner Heritage Foundation in
Manhattan, who emphasized the
importance of a day school education
in assuring a positive Jewish identity.
Rabbi Joshua Elkin, administrator
of the Solomon Schechter Day School
in Boston, will become the full-time
director of the Project. Rabbi Elkin
could not be reached for comment.
"He's a respeci ed school administra-
tor who will be looking all over the
country for model schools and excit-
ing projects to emulate," said a Jewish
leader.
The initiative, which has been orga-
nizing for the last year, will ask com-
munities or groups to apply for grants
of up to $500,000 each that will act as
seed money to start a Jewish day
school. Communities themselves will
decide the ideology of the school, be it
Orthodox, Conservative, Reform or
nonch.nominational.
The value of a Jewish day school
education has been documented by
studies that have found adolescent
years "critical in Jewish identity forma-
tion," Laufer pointed out. "To give a
child a Jewish day school education
only until the age of 10 or 11 is sin,
an egregious error."
"Such schools are crucial for the
strengthening of the American Jewish
community," he added.

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