With the Jewish community now the target of nearly two-thirds of religiously motivated hate crimes in the U.S., security has become an urgent need. According to Teach Coalition’s research department (Office of Jewish Education Policy and Research), security spending in yeshivas and Jewish day schools jumped 47% following October 7th.
To address this, we launched Project Protect, a nationwide initiative that advocates for federal, state and local security funds, then counsels yeshivas, Jewish day schools and other vulnerable institutions on putting them to use. In all, Project Protect helped procure $710.8 million in federal, state and local security funding in the 2023-24 fiscal year — the highest amount ever for our community
In addition, Teach Coalition’s Government Maximization (GovMax) team helped dozens of schools and organizations apply for $11.75 million in state grants during the 2023-24 fiscal year. This enabled schools to raise the bar for protecting their students and staff.
After October 7th, parents were very anxious: ‘Should I send my kids to school? Are they safer at home?’ Once we were able to take visible and concrete steps to increase security, that anxiety receded significantly.”
Sam F.* was failing at least two subjects when he enrolled in a government-funded STEM elective at his New Jersey yeshiva. The program, which brings public school teachers into yeshivas and Jewish day schools, opened his world, fostering a passion for the sciences he never knew he had. What’s more, his success in the class spilled into other academic areas as well. By year’s end, his grade average had risen from D to B.
Sam isn’t the only one to gain from this exposure to STEM coursework. Across New York and New Jersey, Orthodox students are engaging for the first time or more deeply with STEM thanks to record funding for such programming
“Many of our sixth graders have developed a new passion,” said Jason David, director of technology and curriculum design innovator at Yavneh Academy in Paramus, N.J. “STEM has sparked their curiosity, increasing participation in other STEM initiatives and improvements in overall academic performance.”
Teach Coalition helped secure $75.5 million for STEM programs in New York in the FY25 budget. And in New Jersey, over 100 public school teachers are now bringing their STEM expertise to 40 non-public schools across the state, including 22 Teach member schools, thanks to a game-changing program fully paid for by the state of New Jersey.
Such programs show legislators our communal desire for STEM to be a critical part of education.
Many of our sixth graders have developed a new passion: STEM has sparked their curiosity, leading to increased participation in other STEM initiatives and improvements in overall academic performance.”
Our vote is our voice, and this year it was more critical than ever that Jewish voices be heard. And so they were.
When Pennsylvania’s primary fell on the first day of Passover, Teach PA activists launched a grassroots effort led by Teach Coalition’s voting campaign (PA Unites) to ensure that Jewish voters could participate. As a result, Jewish voters requested mail-in ballots at a rate nearly three times higher than that of the general population. Despite numerous obstacles, 81% returned ballots, compared with 77.5% in the state’s broader population.
At the same time, Jews in New York’s Westchester County needed to mobilize around a key primary in June. Spurred by Westchester Unites, the community saw remarkable results: An unprecedented 60% of eligible Jewish voters turned out at the polls, participation that was two and a half times that of the general population. The 15,508 Jewish voters played a critical role in a race ultimately decided by just 12,816 votes.
Since then, Teach Coalition’s successful mobilization of Jewish voters in Westchester has become a blueprint for ensuring that Jewish voices are heard in local political races throughout the nation. Ahead of the 2024 general election, Teach Coalition launched similar efforts, including opening numerous voter centers in Long Island, Florida, California, adding a new center in Pennsylvania and launching efforts in Nevada to ensure every eligible Jewish voter made their voice heard in November.
It’s important for our friends and neighbors to understand that voter turnout is noticed by candidates and lawmakers. Demonstrating our voting capacity helps us earn a seat at the table when it comes to policy decisions.”
