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A couple days ago it was announced to the Baltimore community that as a way to help (in a small way that’ll hopefully grow) EVERY parent will receive a rebate on their tuition at the end of the year putting money back in the pockets of parents.
Below is excerpt from the more detailed long article:
“While lowering tuition rates without jeopardizing our schools’ ability to pay its faculty and other expenses is a challenging goal, philanthropic sources working with our schools have devised a program to specifically target the burden of tuition. The foundation of the program is the creation of a central funding source benefitting all of our community’s schools (and thereby all of our community’s families), donations to which do not impact these donors’ other direct support to individual schools. With an anticipated rollout this summer, the program will rebate to each tuition paying family a portion of the per-student tuition paid over the 2023-24 academic year. This rebate will be sent by each school directly to its parents, and will serve as a direct relief to parents, commensurate with a family’s tuition payments.”” The Parent Tuition Rebate Program works as follows:
● As of July 1, 2024, Baltimore parents who have already fulfilled their tuition obligations for the current (2023-24) academic year will receive a rebate corresponding to 3.5% of their total tuition payments (not including dormitory, food program, special education or other fees). It is anticipated that the rebate checks to parents will be mailed in August.
● Parents who have not yet completed their tuition payments by July 1 will benefit by having the tuition rebate credited toward their final payment(s). Rebate funds in excess of balances will be sent directly to parents in August.”
“Nobody involved in the planning or coordination of this rebate has any illusion that a 3.5% tuition rebate solves the “tuition crisis” which is present in every major U.S. Jewish community. However, it is hoped that the rebate will be a small offset of the burden and free up expendable cash for some families, while allowing other families to make a tax-deductible donation for future rebate programs.”Yasher Koach! This is a great initiative – essentially a voucher system for Jewish schools, with money following students. If this is successful, hopefully, the subsidy will incrase. I heard Seattle also has a subsidy system. And, of course, some red states have state vouchers already.
Are there criteria governing which yeshivos in Baltimore are eligible for the student “vouchers”? The OP says it includes “all of our community schools” but does that include an MO/Day School school such as Beth Tefiliah?
To me this sounds like a tax-deduction workaround.
Is this connected to the Baltimore scholarship initiative where you need to fill out a detailed form of your finances?
I love that idea too. My only crtique is that I think that form leaves out alot. You can’t look at “gross income” in the same way the govt would. You need to look at “net income”. If someone is for example a rebbe and they get free tuition for their boys (or vice versa a teacher in girls school) , plus parsonage and they then receive HUD, WIC, SNAP, Medicad, earned income credits etc. Meanwhile a struggling accountant earning double the rebbe salary on a gross level doesn’t receive those benefits , the accountant is mathematically poorer. To be clear, this is only intended to provide a mathematical view of affordability and not to get into discussions of rebbe salary.Chaim,
I am not sure tuition vouchers should be based on income at all. You want the middle/upper class working community to afford the schools also. I know a number of families who would choose a Jewish school if it were more affordable (and they do when granted a scholarship).American precedent is social security: FDR on purpose started it as a universal program rather than just for poor to keep it popular.
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