Today, Agudath Israel of America’s Government Affairs Division announced it’s holding an essay contest on the subject of school choice. The first place winner at the high school level will receive one free year of tuition at his or her yeshiva or day school. The first place winner on the elementary school level will receive a camp scholarship.
Recently, Agudath Israel launched a national campaign to educate its members and the public at large about the benefits of school choice. The more its members know about school choice and the organization’s work on the issue, the more effective Agudath Israel is as an organization that informs the national debate on the issue and promotes common-sense education policies that will benefit Orthodox Jewish communities.
This essay contest allows yeshiva and day school students in elementary school (grades 4th-8th) and high school the opportunity to explain why they support school choice. With the words of the children in the Orthodox Jewish community Agudath Israel can share with the public and community leaders why school choice is so critically important.
Eligible students must reside either in Chicago, home to Agudah Midwest’s Regional office, the sponsor of this contest, or in Ohio, Wisconsin, Texas and New Jersey where school choice legislation and programs are directly impacting Orthodox Jewish communities.
The topic of the essay should be “Why I Support School Choice.” Essays should be focused specifically on a student’s personal reasons for supporting school vouchers or scholarship tax credit programs. The deadline for entries is August 1st for elementary school students and August 15th for high school students. The prizes are detailed below.
Essays will be judged by a distinguished panel of educators and askonim, including Rabbi Nisson Wolpin, Editor of the Jewish Observer, Rabbi Yakov Horowitz, founder of Project YES, Mrs. Cyril Brudny, Principal of Yeshiva Shaarei Tzion Girls Division, Piscataway, NJ, and Mrs. Rouhama Garelick, Director of the Walder Education Pavilion of Torah U’Mesorah.
Agudath Israel will announce the winners on September 6, 2009. The winners’ names and their schools will be published on the Internet at www.theyeshivaworld.com, in the Yated and Hamodia newspapers.
Essays should be typed and not exceed 700 words. Students are encouraged to utilize resources from national organizations, such as Alliance for School Choice – (202) 280-1990 – or the Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice – (317) 681-0745 – to explain why school choice is important, but, again, essays should focus on personal views and experiences, too.
Please contact Agudath Israel at (440) 278- 4244 if you have any questions or to receive an official entry form.
Prizes:
High School Grand Prize Winner: One year of tuition at an Orthodox school*
Second place winner will receive $1,000 savings bond.
Third place winner will receive $500 savings bond.
Elementary School Grades 4-8 Grand Prize Winner: Camp Scholarship**
Second place winner will receive $1,000 savings bond.
Third place winner will receive $500 savings bond.
*value up to $15,000
**value up to $2,000
(YWN Desk – NYC)
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One Response
School vouchers work well as long as one of three primary criteria are met:
1] A very strong Conservative religious population in the state. (Ohio, and very likely Texas will succeed as well).
2] An extremely poor public education system. (i.e. Cincinnati, Cleveland, Milwaukee)
3] A wealthy state with budget excess.
If one or more of these criteria is not STRONGLY in place in the affected state, lobbying dollars are better spent on more worthwhile causes.