Judge Strikes Down New York's New Education Rules Enforcing Higher School Standards For Yeshivas
ALBANY, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) - A judge in Albany strikes down a plan to try to reform education at yeshivas and other religious schools.
New York State's education department announced new guidelines in November, but a pro-yeshiva group filed a lawsuit challenging the new plan.
The new guidelines were designed to make sure yeshivas are giving their students a proper education, something that some advocates claim they never got.
"I knew very basic English, very little math, that was it. I could string together a broken sentence in English," Naftali Moster of Young Advocates for Fair Education said.
Advocates say tens of thousands of students have been shortchanged, but the yeshivas and other private and parochial schools sued to block New York's new state standards.
MORE: 3 Years After Start Of Probe, 15 Of 30 Yeshivas Found To Have Not Let Investigators In
On Thursday, a State Supreme Court judge sided with the private schools, ruling "the court finds that the new guidelines are 'rules' that were not implemented in compliance with the state administrative procedure act and are hereby nullified."
"The court said you can't just announce these guidelines, you have to go through a public comment period and put them out publicly and then you can adopt them. Susan Lerner of Common Cause said.
A statement from the Parents for Educational and Religious Liberty in Schools says:
"We join with the more than 1,000 private schools that challenged the new guidelines in applauding the state supreme court's decision declaring the new state education department guidelines null and void.
This stops in its tracks SED's effort to radically transform the relationship between the state and its private schools."
Susan Lerner of Common Cause supports the school reforms and said the yeshivas should voluntarily comply with the new standards.
"What's unfortunate is that while the appropriate procedures are being followed, the schools that have absolutely demonstrated their disdain for the law and appropriate educational standards will continue to deny their students an adequate education," Lerner lamented.
Lerner added the state should now go ahead with a new and more complete rule-making procedure based on the court ruling. Essentially try again.
A spokeswoman for the education department said the department is reviewing the decision "and will determine the appropriate next steps."
Susan Lerner says the state should now go ahead with a new more complete rule-making procedure based on the court ruling. Essentially try again.
A spokeswoman for the education department said the department is reviewing the decision "and will determine the appropriate next steps."