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A parent was told by the yeshiva they applied to that they do not allow therapy in the yeshiva. They said that if the child was to go to this yeshiva, the parents must schedule the therapy for after yeshiva hours.
Is a yeshiva allowed to discriminate like that?!
It’s not discrimination. It’s a reasonable request. Assuming the yeshiva doesn’t run six days a week from 7AM – 9PM, the parents *should* schedule the therapy for a time outside of the yeshiva hours (where possible).
The Wolf
this is a very reasonable request. on the same note, any appointment should try to be scheduled for after school hours or during a break.
i am sorry to inform u people that doctor offices are not open all day.
and therapist work during the day they have families or things to take care of. so is it better that the kid should not receive therapy?
Are you talking about OT, PT or behavioral? More info is needed. Then again, the solution could be as simple as choosing another yeshiva.
Does the yeshiva have a policy forbidding other sorts of non-emergency medical care during business hours? This is no different.
There are also legal issues if the yeshiva is in the United States. Many emotional conditions are covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act. Schools and workplaces are required to make accommodations for students and employees. If the restrictions are unreasonable or pose an undue hardship on the boy the yeshiva may be exposed to legal troubles.
i am sorry to inform u people that doctor offices are not open all day.
That’s why I added “where possible.” If a child has a need of a specific therapist and the ONLY time available is during yeshiva hours, then perhaps an accomodation needs to be made. But that’s not the situation as the OP presented it.
The Wolf
I work in a Yeshiva where we have therapist coming in and working with those children who need it (SP, OT, PT, Counseling). The students are taken out of class to get their mandated services.
Now, sometimes, a teacher will ask a therapist to take a student at a different time due to an important lesson being taught or a test being given.
However, there a some students that miss many days of school for doctor appointments. We understand that kids need to see a doctor once in a while. A child is not feeling well, we recommend that he go to his doctor.
But what about that child who misses one day a week, two days a week for doctor appointments? It is very hard on a Rebbe and teacher to teach a full lesson when you have students who need to catch up every other day!
da- yes it is very hard for a teacher when students are always missing and certain things can be prevented. but, as a teacher it is crucial to be accomodating for all the students who need special services. they feel bad enough having to go for therapy or appointments and it just makes it worse when the teachers give them a hard time.
if it is really difficult, then it is best to speak with the parent and see if anything can be done but if not, there are things which are more important than school work.
i remember coming back to school after having been sick for a few months and still very weak and out of things and all of the teachers kept trying to give me all the work to make up not realizing what an effort it was just for me to sit through the day and i ended up having a relapse because i over did it.
on the other hand, i am a teacher now and i do see the other side and obviously know how hard i and other teachers work. but, i will never make a student feel guilty for being legitimately sick or if he has a once a week appointment. i will work with them and sometimes let assignemnts which are not crucial go.
when a parent has many kids with different specific needs it is very difficult for them to schedule them all out of school. their are many factors including (1) the dr.’s schedule, (2) the parent’s schedule, etc.
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speaktruth: You speak the truth! We try not to give our students a hard time when they are out. But if it is a daily occurrence, it is very hard. Figuring out a system to allow the students to get their required medical care, therapy AND class!
That’s why the Law specifies “reasonable accommodations”. Missing several days of school a week isn’t reasonable. Occasional appointments are. A yeshiva which has a blanket prohibition against all mental health therapy is being unreasonable.
Like most of the posters, I will say that this is a tough call without more information about the specifics of the case. If the child needs so much therapy that his schedule will be significantly disrupted several days a week, he probably belongs in a special program that can truly work with him and accommodate his needs. If it’s a matter of once a week, I think the yeshiva should figure out a way to make it work.
As an aside, a yeshiva needs to remember that they are dealing with Jewish neshamos, which can be r’l wounded or lost because of bad decisions. I know of a family that is somewhat observant and was on the fence about whether or not to send their kids to yeshiva. They seriously considered a local yeshiva that seemed right for the kids and the family and it was all set up until the school informed them that they absolutely could not accommodate the PT schedule of one of the children (who is in a wheelchair). The parents tried to negotiate, move things around, make it work, etc, but the school didn’t even want to talk, they just said no. Did the family send their other 2 kids to this yeshiva while finding another placement for the wheelchair-bound one? NO! The experience was enough to scare them away from yeshiva forever. The kids went to public school and are now not even marginally observant. They have no interest in Judaism and their chances of marrying Jewish are depressingly slim. I don’t think the yeshiva is entirely to blame, but I’m sure they would at least rethink their decision if they could see this family now.
Special Ed services which can be given in the realm of the Yeshiva day in the Yeshiva building is usually accommodated and no exceptions need to be made. However, if a child is going for counseling with a social worker or psychologist the best thing is to not add additional stress to the child by causing the child to miss classes, have a need to get notes, find out the homework and catch up. Having a child fall behind will only complicate the situation.
Therapists usually have evening appointments as well as Sunday appointments. So the first thing to do is to ask the Therapist for available hours and see if they can maneuver another client who is not so time oriented to another appointment so your child can have an after school appointment. If that cannot be done, speak to the therapist to decide whether a different school or a different therapist is the right way to go. Believe me, there are a lot more therapists out there than there are yeshivos that a parent can pick for their child. I would not go to the guidance counselor in the yeshiva to help with this situation because they are paid by the Yeshiva and cannot possibly be as non-biased as necessary.
My high school let me see someone during school hours. There is no excuse to accommodate depending on the time of day. The student can daven shacharis at home and then have that time free the one morning a week…
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