School taking drastic measures

amother

↑ Green ↓

Yesterday at 8:43 pm

If I can't afford food, there's Tomchei Shabbos.
If I can't afford clothes, there are organizations, hand-me-downs, thrift stores.
If I can't afford rent, I can choose to downsize. Squeeze my family into a 2 bedroom apartment.
There is no "Tomchei Tuition". There's no option to choose the cheaper no frills school that doesn't send home dozens of photocopies and expensive projects and newsletters and prizes.
This is the tuition. That's it.

amother

↑ Ecru

Yesterday at 8:49 pm

amother Skyblue wrote:

Off topic but I've always been curious. How? I'm a sahm, pay full tuition so it's not on anyone else's cheshbon but I often wonder how do other women do it. So many appointments, days off from school, kid home sick... And you said you have high need kids...

Different another, but here's my answer: when you have to, you do it. BH my husband helps with appointments and sick days. It's not all on either one, since we both work full time.

↑ kosherkween ↓

Yesterday at 8:55 pm

amother Green wrote:

First of all, not all schools are priced the same. Second, even if they were, so what, that exempts u from paying? Yes its a bug chunk of your income, true its huge monthly burden. But its still a bill that's a priority. Why is it not on the same priority level as rent or mortgage?

amother

↑ Razzmatazz ↓

Yesterday at 8:58 pm

kosherkween wrote:

Because the average family can only afford one mortgage. Being that schools is a 2nd mortgage nowadays, it's unaffordable for the majority.

Are you perhaps suggesting that people should be homeless, in an effort to prioritize tuition over shelter? Hmm. Maybe thats a double win. People will be homeless. They can now afford to pay tuition and the housing prices will drop. Two for the price of one. I mean, shelter is not a crucial life necessity anyways. Isn't that your train of thought?

amother

↑ Green ↓

Yesterday at 8:59 pm

kosherkween wrote:

Who says it's not?

I kill myself to pay whatever I agree to pay within the time frame that they say.

My resentment is that the school and administrators actually expect me to pay 60% of my GROSS income to tuition and if I don't, then I'm not prioritizing tuition.

They actually don't care if I don't have a penny left for bread and milk, for antibiotics, for underwear.

I prioritize tuition. But it has to be understood that it can't be the ONLY priority.

And you're taking this very personally. Who are you in this conversation?

amother

Dustypink

Yesterday at 9:01 pm

kosherkween wrote:

In many locations it’s not possible to price shop for schools, you only find out the tuition rate once accepted. And you say thanks for getting accepted into a school.

↑ kosherkween ↓

Yesterday at 9:01 pm

amother Tulip wrote:

Is this question real? Don't you know that there is no organization that pays for tuition? No Tomchei Tuition.

And yes, of course neighbors should help out a neighbor who.is struggling. Where else should their maaser money go? Who else should they help instead?

My question wasn't if neighbor should help out, rather are they required, as in obligation, a responsible party in your rent? Not helping u out out of the goodness of their heart with extra maaser money.

If you don't think you are responsible for ure neighbors broken oven, why do u feel it's the school admins achrayus to pay for your kids education?

And if you do, that's just communism and u don't know what ure saying.

↑ kosherkween ↓

Yesterday at 9:04 pm

amother Green wrote:

What if rent is 60% of ure income, should your landlord understand and give u a discount? If not, how is tuition different?

In all the responses, noone has yet to answer the question of how tuition is different than other real bills, big or small

amother

↑ Green ↓

Yesterday at 9:05 pm

kosherkween wrote:

Jewish Education is a requirement within a city.

If I find out that my neighbor can't afford the mikva fee, then yes, we as a neighborhood are required to pay for her, let her go for free, etc.

Mikva is a requirement. A shul is a requirement. Jewish Education for every child is a community requirement.

amother

↑ Maple ↓

Yesterday at 9:07 pm

kosherkween wrote:

זה לזה communists כל ישראל

amother

↑ Razzmatazz ↓

Yesterday at 9:09 pm

kosherkween wrote:

I have. You are choosing to ignore it. Can you answer these two questions:

1 - if a person has to choose between rent and tuition, which one takes priority.

2 - do you understand the significance of survival needs versus life needs?

amother

↑ Tulip ↓

Yesterday at 9:10 pm

kosherkween wrote:

I'm curious what your income is and what your tuition bill is?

It seems to me that kosherkween is exhibit A of people who have never struggled and simply don't understand, don't want to understand, and never will understand. They have never had two hundred dollars in their bank account and had to decide between paying their electric bill or buying food. They have never faced the reality of simply being unable to afford things.

Rather than say all the things that I would like to say and are running through my head right now, instead I give you a brocha, kosherkween, that you should never understand. And I'll leave it at that.

↑ kosherkween ↓

Yesterday at 9:26 pm

amother Green wrote:

All nice and well. In theory. Reality is that schools are not communal property like mikvah and shul because it's not being funded that way.

amother

↑ Maple ↓

Yesterday at 9:29 pm

kosherkween wrote:

All nice and well. In theory. Reality is that schools are not communal property like mikvah and shul because it's not being funded that way.

Schools very happily take donation money and whatever government funding they can get. In return, they don't feel any obligation to serve the community, and they want to be worshipped and considered not just a partner in chinuch but an authority over the parent body.

amother

↑ Zinnia ↓

Yesterday at 9:33 pm

kosherkween wrote:

All nice and well. In theory. Reality is that schools are not communal property like mikvah and shul because it's not being funded that way.

So let all those parents homeschool their children. The schools will close because no one can afford to pay them anyway. All these teachers and secretaries will lose their jobs, besides they are not getting paid anyway. They can stay home and home school their own children. Since by your understanding, jewish schools are "non-communal" Then we don't need them. better yet, send them to public school, so the parents can stiill work, to make money to at least make sure they have roof over their heads. You seem to think most people are making money they can afford, housing, food, AND tuition. with their lower paying jobs/ verse higher cost of inflation of today.

↑ kosherkween ↓

Yesterday at 9:36 pm

amother Tulip wrote:

I am not at all on high end of earners. We both work very hard to make ends meet and live paycheck to paycheck.

Dh is admin of mosad, making 70k a year (gross) working his a** off calling parent after parents and getting nowhere. Meanwhile our credit cards (and some of my fathers) are maxed out for school expenses that just had to get paid somehow somewhere. Guess what cc interest on 100k+? I'll give u a hint. 100 percent more than what I can afford.

So yes, to posters who wanted to know why it's personal for me, it's because ppl like all of you who are clueless and naive and assume some rich donor always steps in and covers ure gaps. Shocker, they don't. And my husband's white hair is on your conscience.

The audacity, to assume I don't know hardship because Im saying hard truths

amother

↑ Tulip ↓

Yesterday at 9:38 pm

kosherkween wrote:

All nice and well. In theory. Reality is that schools are not communal property like mikvah and shul because it's not being funded that way.

They're being funded in EXACTLY the same way as mikva and shul are funded, which is partial donations and partial fees from people who use them. The only difference is in cost - schools are exponentially more costly than shuls and mikvaos.

But while we're on the subject... I would really like to know why building big and beautiful shuls are a priority over yeshivas and girl schools? In a five block radius of my home, they have built at least four EXPENSIVE shuls in the last few years. Why do we need such fancy shuls when our children are being crammed into classrooms like sardines in a can? Where are our priorities?

amother

↑ Maple ↓

Yesterday at 9:42 pm

kosherkween wrote:

I am not at all on high end of earners. We both work very hard to make ends meet and live paycheck to paycheck.

Then it was wrong of people to give you the benefit of the doubt and assume ignorance over achzarios.