In an effort to raise awareness for the need to provide yeshiva students with a proper secular education, a Brooklyn based organization is spreading its message in a very public forum - a billboard placed on the Prospect Expressway.
The billboard, which proclaims the obligation of parents to provide their sons with a trade, bears the words “It’s your mitzvah. It’s the law,” referencing the Department of Education requirement for private schools to supply students with an education that is “substantially equivalent” to that offered by the public schools. Located on the Prospect Expressway near 4th Avenue, the billboard was paid for by YAFFED, Young Advocates For Fair Education.
“From the age of fourteen, many yeshiva students are cut off completely from any form of secular education,” Naftuli Moster, founded of YAFFED, told VIN News. “Regardless of how you want to teach it, English, science, math, geography and physical education are all things that need to be taught.”
Moster, a 27 year old Brooklyn resident who attended the local Belzer high school, found himself woefully unprepared when he enrolled in college.
“I had no idea what I was doing,” recalled Moster who eventually went to Touro University’s Machon L’Parnassa and just graduated from college with a degree in Psychology. Moster hopes to pursue a masters degree in social work and dreams of becoming a psychologist and serving both members and former members of the chasidic community. He admits that he never envisioned himself as the founder of an organization.
“Imagine if thirty years ago someone had stood up and taken a stand on this issue,” said Moster. “People like me wouldn’t be facing this struggle and hopefully thirty years from now the problem of young men being completely unprepared to
support their families will no longer exist.”
YAFFED’s goal for now is to raise awareness among community leaders rabbanim and parents.
“Many of our rabbis are living a pretty comfortable life, being provided for by their chasidim,” explained Moster. “It is hard for them to put themselves in the shoes of someone who needs to provide for a large family. We want people to speak up, to demand better education from their leaders. We want our young men to have a bright future.”
Moster acknowledged that many in the chasidic community may be concerned that they may face retribution if they ask for yeshivos to provide a secular education.
“We need to get our leaders together and perhaps devise a curriculum that could be acceptable to all parties,” said Moster. “While some of the yeshivos may be reluctant at first, if they see that large groups of parents are ready to transfer their sons to another yeshiva that is willing to provide a secular education, they may decide to reconsider.”
Moster hopes that the billboard, which was timed to be in place during a period when many people are traveling in and out of Brooklyn and will be in place until July 4th, will attract attention and become a topic of conversation. The cost of the billboard was sponsored by an private donor and Moster hopes that more individuals will come forward to finance similar signage in the Williamsburg area.
“Products and candidates are sold on billboards, why not an idea like this?” queried Moster. “There is no doubt that this gets to people. Our message is straight out of the Gemara and so many people fail to realize that giving our children a strong education is something that we should be doing.”
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