New York City Mayor Eric Adams called for public schools in the five boroughs to learn from the success of some of their non-public counterparts.
Adams said at the annual 2023 Teach NYS dinner on May 10 that “instead of us focusing on how we can duplicate the success of improving our children, we attack the yeshivahs that are providing a quality education that is embracing our children.” Teach NYS is partnered with the Orthodox Union.
The mayor also noted that yeshivahs “have turned around the question mark of ‘how are our children.’ You are making an exclamation point that’s saying, ‘Our children are fine.’ ”
Referencing the recent criticisms and investigations into New York’s Jewish schools, Adams said that “people are asking questions … about what is happening in our yeshivahs across the city and state, while at the same time, 65% of black and brown children never reach proficiency in the public-school system, but we’re asking, ‘What are you doing in your schools?’ ”
He urged: “Let’s reach across our ethnic, cultural and religious philosophies … and appreciate the religious philosophies that are part of the educational opportunity.”