Court Supports Private Schools To Decide Student Body

One of the touchy subjects in haredi schooling in recent years has been the balance between the schools inability to reject some students from joining the school due to issues of discrimination and equality, and between the need for such schools to protect their own style and atmosphere with  their own criteria for acceptance.

We have seen a number of cases, most recently in Emmanuel and Bet Shemesh, of haredi schools that set criteria, and the courts rejected their right to do so saying the criteria was specifically to exclude certain people and therefore was discrimination.

In Elad there was recently a case of a private haredi school run by Shas that rejected the application of a 6 year old child. The mother sued, claiming the child was rejected due to discrimination against single-parent families.

In court, the school showed that claim to not be true, showing that they have 30 other kids in the school that are form single-parent families. Rather, they claimed, the reason for the rejection is that they are a haredi school and the mother is masorati, traditional, and does not dress appropriately for the style of the school. She has even come to the school dressed in that style. That being the case, it would be inappropriate to have this child in the school. The rejection was based on the fact that the child and school were not appropriate for each other.

In this instance the court supported the school. The court was satisfied that it was anot anti-single-parent discrimination, and the court said the school has the righ to determine certain criteria for acceptance, taking into account the fact that the school needs to maintain a certain level of lifestyle, atmosphere and style.

The school is a private school and the lifestyle of the student at home is a major component of the haredi education.  To force the school to accept such a child, whose family life is not in accordance with that, is to take away the whole purpose of the existence of the haredi schools.

The judge admitted that at times applying such criteria will be in cointrast to the values of equality and anti-discrimination, but the criteria must be determined to be appropriate for the school and community the school serves, and a balance must be found between these two rights -equality and the right of the school to determine its appropriate criteria. (source: Kikar)

I think this is a balanced approach. However it sounds like it is a very grey area of when this can be applied. When will the value of equality win out and when will the right of the school to make the determination win out?