Jewish high schools in New Jersey announced that they would not allow colleges to come and recruit students unless they had a safety plan in place in response to growing antisemitism, according to North Jersey.com, a local media outlet.
Universities across the U.S. have been hit with a wave of antisemitism following the terrorist attacks by Hamas against Israel on Oct. 7. The Torah Academy of Bergen County, an all-male school with 275 students, put out a statement on Oct. 27 explaining that they would now require colleges to present a safety plan for Jewish students on campus, according to the announcement.
“We feel strongly that we cannot continue to invite college representatives to speak to our students as they have in the past. Your son’s physical and emotional welfare is too important to us,” Rabbi Joshua Kahn, the head of the school, wrote. “Before college representatives can enter our building, they must bring a statement from their university leadership detailing their plans to protect and maintain the safety and security of our graduates on their campuses as Jews.”
Kahn called the current situation on college campuses “intolerable,” and that the high school was taking note of statements made by schools as well as colleges that have not commented on the rising hatred toward Jews, according to the announcement. He said that he applauds the efforts of those who have “written to university presidents to express their shock and disappointment for their dereliction of duty to ensure the safety of their Jewish students.”
CB Neugroschl, the head of Ma’ayanot Yeshiva High School for Girls, sent an email to parents on Nov. 3, explaining that they were taking a similar approach and noted that she hoped “our stance might encourage universities to address the severity of the current situation more appropriately,” according to North Jersey.com.
“How can we promote colleges and universities that are not actively and appropriately protecting our students and our values?” Neugroschl said in a statement.
Additionally, Rae Kushner Yeshiva High School is also considering the same requirements for colleges, saying that school officials had been “reevaluating its relationships with college admissions officers” in light of the rise of antisemitism on college campuses, according to North Jersey.com. Eliezer Rubin, head of Rae Kushner, said “We have watched with horror as students across the country have come under threat.”
The White House announced on Oct. 30 that it was coordinating efforts with the Department of Justice, Homeland Security and the Department of Education to fight antisemitism at universities and that the “grotesque sentiments and actions” of some students and faculty in recent weeks “shock the conscience and turn the stomach.”
The Torah Academy, Ma’ayanot Yeshiva High School and Rae Kushner Yeshiva High School did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
Kate Anderson on November 6, 2023
