A year ago, few of us could have imagined a $1 billion donation, but within the space of five months we have now seen two — and both designated for the same purpose. Ruth Gottesman donated $1 billion to cover medical school tuition for students at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, and Michael Bloomberg donated $1 billion to cover the same for students at Johns Hopkins Medical School. It is no surprise that both donors are Jewish. These incredible gifts are reflective of values that run deep through our community: the value of education and the value of leaving this world a better place. 

What if the next billion-dollar gift went to Jewish day school tuition?   

Elementary school students in a classroom at Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School in Rockville, Md. Courtesy/Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School

A year ago, few of us could also have imagined the wave of unbridled antisemitism that has hit since Oct. 7 and its effects on every aspect of our lives, especially education. We believe the best way to fight antisemitism is with Jewish pride and Jewish joy. We need to raise a generation of strong, proud, knowledgeable, literate and unapologetic Jews, and there is no better way to do this than Jewish day school.

But antisemitism should not be the only reason that families enroll in Jewish day schools. All Jewish families, from every denomination and at every level of observance, should understand that they can find a community and educational home at Jewish day schools. 

We know that Jewish day school produces Jewish leaders. Data shows that a third of the leaders of Jewish communal institutions are day school alumni, and the proportion who are alumni or parents of day school students rises dramatically among younger leaders. In recent months, it has been Jewish day school alumni who have taken the lead in the fight against antisemitism and anti-Zionism on college campuses. There are numerous examples, but one of the most powerful examples was the authors of the now-viral In Our Name letter from Columbia University students, all day school graduates. Professor Eitan Hersh sees day school alumni taking on this leadership “because they feel a sense of obligation to the Jewish community and they have a strong identity.” 

At Prizmah: Center for Jewish Day Schools, we are seeing an uptick in enrollment in North America. In the Jewish Federations of North America’s recent survey, 39% of Jewish parents indicated they may reevaluate or reconsider school enrollment or summer programs for their children, and 38% of parents with kids in a secular private school reported considering making the move to Jewish day schools. During the COVID-19 pandemic, we saw a similar uptick in enrollment, which many believed would be a one-year phenomenon. To our happy surprise, a Prizmah study found that those parents were thrilled by their experience, and 75% chose to stay even after the pandemic eased. 

Our schools are warm, child-centered and values-based. Our schools are both academically rigorous and nurturing. Our schools produce alumni who go on to the finest colleges and universities. Our schools are not just educational institutions, but welcoming and supportive communities. 

But our schools are also expensive — sometimes prohibitively so.

Just last week we met a woman whose children have faced antisemitism from both fellow students and teachers in their public schools. We suggested she look into one of our local Jewish day schools. She sighed and said she wished she could, but there was no way they could make the finances work. 

Even though day schools will work with families to address financial needs, many parents are hesitant to even apply. In announcing her gift to Einstein, Ruth Gottesman said, “This will open it up for many other students whose economic status is such that they wouldn’t even think about going to medical school.” We need to invest in excellent Jewish day schools and ensure they are accessible, even for those families whose economic status is such that they don’t even think about going to Jewish day school.

There are currently funds available through initiatives that aim to help offset the cost of Jewish day school at a community-wide level, including those of Greater Metrowest New Jersey, Montreal, Toronto, Chicago, Seattle and Atlanta. Many individual schools have also created independent affordability programs to address the economic demands of a day school education. Data from these initiatives show that more families choose Jewish day schools when the barrier of affordability is addressed.

Both Ruth Gottesman and Michael Bloomberg have mentioned that their gifts are investments in creating the best future doctors possible. As a community, what are we willing to invest to create the best Jewish future possible? To have a Jewish community strong in knowledge, firm in beliefs, proud of heritage, joyful in traditions and community and competent in the modern world, all guided by values instilled by an excellent Jewish education — we can think of no better return.

Lisa Popik Coll is the current board chair of Prizmah: Center for Jewish Day Schools. She has a master’s degree in public policy from Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government and is a past board member of Gann Academy in Boston, Mass. 

Gail Norry is the current vice chair of Prizmah: Center for Jewish Day Schools. She founded and co-chaired OROT, a special needs initiative in Philadelphia’s Jewish day schools, and is the immediate past co-chair of the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia.