UPDATED: Dear Lakewood Scoop, I am writing to this public forum as a parent of a 3 year old autistic child in the Tiny Tots general ed. inclusion program who requires extensive therapy and special ed. services. I am appalled by the actions of the frum board members who recently voted not to award a contract to Tiny Tots but rather to bring all the services in district – which in plain words means – sending these children to public school.
I wish on all of you that you should never know the challenges of raising a child with special needs. It is difficult and time consuming. Each milestone that a typical child easily reaches is an extreme accomplishment for a special needs child. It is only with a program like Tiny Tots that our child is gaining the knowledge and skills to be able to graduate and continue on to yeshiva. Tiny Tots has worked with us and held our hand through the year and whatever obstacles may have come up. They have worked tirelessly to make sure he reaches the goals set up for him. Sending such children to a failing public school is obviously not an option. Would you, Mr. Frum Board member, enroll your child in public school? I assume not – then don’t ask me to send mine! I don’t understand how frum people can do this to our most vulnerable children. How can you walk into shul and face your neighbors knowing that you are ruining my child’s chance of having a normal life. The early childhood years are the most formative years and the years that the foundation for his whole life is built. Do you really want this blood on your hands?
Think of our children and your own and really ask yourself – am I really out for the good of each child?
An Outraged Parent
The following is a response sent to TLS from BOE members Chesky Seitler, Yoni Silver, Carl Fink and Yitzchok Zlatkin.
The vote that you are referring to was in regards to a public pre school program that is currently ran by Catapult. The program has no Orthodox children and is based in trailers at some of the PS locations. While TT did bid on the contract, it was decided to bring it in house. The contract with TT that affects your child was renewed and currently remains in effect.
Now for the facts that actually led to your mis-understanding. The Board voted to open 4 new self contained classes and 69 new Inclusion slots in the new expanded public pre school. If all the parents choose to send their children to the new program, the District would save 1 million Dollars.
However, the District understands that many parents have certain sensitivities and will require those needs to be met. The Director has said that the District program will be set up in such a way that the children currently in other programs, will feel just as comfortable in the trailers program that they are setting up. In either case, these decisions are not made by the Board. All we do is create the option. The parent then has to decide if they choose the PS or TT. While the PS program will offer many more amenities and resources, some parents may choose not to go. However, if all the parents both Orthodox and Non orthodox, currently enrolled in Tiny Tots, choose to go to the new program, there will little difference in the set up of the program. Even the teachers will probably be the same. The only one who loses if that happens is the owners of TT. Everyone else, including the taxpayers, win.
HOWEVER, THIS WILL BE DECIDED BY THE PARENTS, NOT THE BOARD. If you are still nervous, you may want to sign your child up in the STARS program, which contrary to TT, is a non public program.
I am attaching an email that I received this morning from a similar TT parent like yourself as an example:
“I apologize to all of you if I may have sounded a bit harsh, Finding out a month before school starts that your child has no school or therapy next year can send any parent into a panic! I did call the BOE this morning to verify (which I should have done before I wrote it) and as per the conversation the caseworker stated that although it is in my best interest to advocate for my child….. …. we would be called in for a meeting if anything changes….If I was choshed your intentions then I give you all a bracha to have much bracha and hatzlacha in all you do and nachas from your kids!”
There has to be a happy medium between providing quality services and cutting taxes. Denying services to our most fragile children is not the eitza.
how could frum people vote to put frum kids in public school?????
what good are all the kochos we put in to raising good yidishe kinder when they spend their days with nonjewish teachers and children.
tiny tots runs an amazing program for these children and we must fight to keep them there!
I think the boe members should focus on all the wasteful spending like sending empty busses to Washington DC and overpayment of unused sick and vacation days for the BOE employees, they should not be taking away the education of our children that are legally entitled and in need of services.
I am also a parent of a special needs child who attends tiny tots. The program is phenomenal and I am absolutely devastated to hear that they took the program away from Tiny Tots.
To the BOE: Although you keep quoting “It will save taxes…” do you realize what you are doing with our children?
I have a child that has flourished only becuase of the help Tiny Tots gave him; now that will be taken away and I do not know what the future will hold.
PLEASE, PLEASE reinstate the contract and don’t try to fix somethign that is not broken.
I really hope that you should never have to deal with raising a special needs child and deal with the heartwrenching decision that comes along with it.
putting special needs kids in to six failing public schools.??? why dont they figure out how to educate the regular kids before the start up with the special ed children.
Parents this is what lkwd has been missing for years how about the asd kids in the system for the past 10 years (moderated) Parents keep up your work we need to get more and more services for these kids and yes developing tt is imp caus now its ok but it still needs more. And keep in mind that when ur child does go to yeshiva they will need support then as well. So board memmber till u have a child with asd listen to the parents who do, u can never know what its like till u have one of ur own, which u shouldn’t. But theses kids can not be pushed aside any more!! If the lkwd board and lkwd school system thinks there so good then figure out a way to get these kids money idea money has to be shared.
PLEASE DO NOT TAKE AWAY MY CHILD”S ONLY HOPE FOR A NORMAL FUTURE!!
Without Tiny Tots, my son has no chance to eventually get mainstreamed into a regular school and yeshiva environment.
tiny tots is doing such a fantastic job. my daughter is so happy and has gained so much this year.we are now hopeful that bezrah hashem in primary she will be able to attend a regular school and not schi as we had thought when we got her original diagnosis. we could have never imagined how much progress she would make in these last 2 years. the teachers and therapists were so dedicated – i owe them my life
This is an old argument. While everyone feels bad for someone going through raising a special needs child. Why am I obligated through my taxes to give you Tzedaka? If you can’t afford the therapy then make a fundraiser or collect. I have plenty of tzedakas that I already give to. I also have a child that needs therapy and self contained class but that is my problem and I will do whatever it takes to pay for it.
I think part of the problem is that these centers are run as For Profit so people feel why should I be paying taxes, so someone can make money. If these programs were run at cost only, I think people would have an easier time with it.
And where do you draw the line? SCHI? Maybe we should incorparate Tomchei Shabbos in the BOE budget because how can you educate a child that is hungry? Obviously there is a lot of waste that should be cut first before we cut these vital services.
What’s more important, taxes or 30 frum neshamos? Its that simple. In a day and age where we have so many organizations to rescue jewish kids from public school, it is incomprehensible that FRUM board members would cause this to happen. If this is what lower taxes means for me, I don’t want them! I’d rather pay double taxes and keep the most vulnerable of our society on a path to success. Do you think any yeshvah would even be interested in taking these kids after being in public school for afew years?? Were talking 30 yiddishe neshamos!
As parents of a 5.5 year old autistic child, we can empathize with those upset over losing tiny tots. Our son has flourished in a private Jewish school because of the love, care and understanding he gets. We are also frightened of what may happen if the state forces him in district next year.
to # 5
you are right, the only part of the public schools thats not failing is the preschool. why mess with with success.
I would love to see the books of tiny tots. I wonder how much the staff recieves compared to the owner of this business. Only then can I have an opinion on its worthiness.
to fed up:
tiny tots is an amazing place to work. we get paid a very nice salary and are treated with respect. i love my job and thats why i continue to work at tiny tots!
to # 9
This is not tzidokah . These children are legally entitled to these services the same your children are legally entitled to bussing. Non profit? The public school is non profit and they are all failing!!!
i feel bad for theses parents but the fact is they are special needs kids and in public school they can get the full service they need with the state paying a large part of the budget>>> are you aware that every kid that goes to schi cost the tax payer aprox 100k
i repeat 100k and it gets almost nothing to supplement the tax payers burden!!that is the amount a yeshiva boys or girls charges for about 20 kids for the 150 to 200 special kid needs in lakewood their spending budget is more than ALL THE FRUM SCHOOLS COMBINED!!
i feel bad for the special needs kids but we have to do something that the state pays for not just the lakewood tax payer and if sending to public school is the eitza we schould do it
to #16
the Tiny tots program is an indistrict program which means that its gets funded the same $ from the state as if the child went to public school. The cost of sending a child to Tiny Tots is cheaper for the district then if the district puts them into the public school. Every child that goes to TT and not to schi . the district and the tax payers save between 80-100 thousand
As per the BOE this morning, nothing has been voted on yet.
to #16
These children will not get better or more services in public school than they get at tiny tots. we’re not talking about schi here, we’re discussing kids that have speacial needs that have potential to be mainstreamed into yeshivos. do you rather these kids go to schi which will cost taxpayers more for years or rather them go to tiny tots and then the parents will pay private school tuition for the remainder of their childs education?
you say you “feel bad” but i wonder if you really have any understanding of what it is to raise a special needs child and how happy a parent is to see their child learning alef bais instead of whatever else they would be picking up in a public school setting.
If my taxes aren’t going to here it would go to s/t else – i don’t think there’s any intention of reducing taxes if this goes through.
Would you honestly be fine with this if it was nogeah your child??
I’m not commenting either way.I’m just remembering that years ago parents of special needs children would move to NY to have their children in frum programs.even today parents try to send their older special needs homes in NY.Only it isn’t so easy anymore as lately NYS is getting very strict about enforcing the law that does not pay for special need kids who weren’t residents of NYS for the past three years.I’m not suggesting anyhting anyone should do so today.
To our frum board members
The 69 slots you mention that are available in the inclusion program – which regular ed children will be together with the children in the inclusion program? regular ed children from the public school?
to respond to the board members.
you say we should send our kids to public school. will they be riding on the bus with “all” types of children? what about lunch and snack? who is going to make sure they will be eating kosher food?
Is there a way to let these BOE members know that we don’t want this, as we really don’t!
I too have a child that was recently diagnosed as autistic, and I have high hopes that my child will be mainstreamed soon. However, sending her into a foreign atmosphere in a failing district is not the way to solve her problems. It will only set her another year behind. Besides, how do they expect to set up a viable program in a few weeks, with quality teachers. Why don’t they try to start now, and possibly be ready in time for next year. That may work, but to expose our children without much research or planning is…
This boils down to one thing and one thing only. Do you want lower taxes (according to an estimate by a BOE member this translates into $70 for the average family,) or, successful children who can be mainstreamed into a regular yeshiva setting. Your taxes pay for public school ed. Tiny Tots IS public ed!! Our children get the same benifits in TT as the ppl who send to the clifton ave school with ONE major difference. TT is a success. So thank you TT for always being there and working with me and helping my child achieve his goals one by one. I do not know what I would have done without you. You literally gave me peace of mind in knowing my son can reach his full potential. Thank you!
lets show up tonight to tell them that we dont want this to happen, and with achdus we will win
to # 15
it is tzedaka, if it is at my expense. I agree. lets not get anything from board of ed and lets pay for it ourselves with our tax savings. The general population will come out way ahead ( I pay over $10,000 a year) and for the yechidim who need the services we will have parlor meeting for an orginazation that would run it with the klals interest in mind. its no different than the parlor meetings for tomchei shabbos, chai lifeline or bonei oilam. why do people expect things coming.
My daughter is finally speaking on the low level of a two yr old even though she is four. She has been in Tiny Tots for over a yr now. She is a child that came from recieving OT, PT, DI, & SPEECH 2X a week and bec. of budget cuts barely recieves SPEECH. This is a child who is covered in bruises from falling and she still doesnt receive OT. She is not recieving the full extent of the services needed. By taking away her one benefit- a frum school what are we gaining? Public school is also not cheap for our taxpayers! Please dont shut TinyTots down without leaving a logical alternative.
I want to know if any of the members have a child with therapy needs? Would they send their child to public school? I didnt think so.
A concerned mother.
as a parent of a special needs young adult i beg the community to not place their children in public school! there were no appropriate placement for my son while he was repeatedly thrown out of yesivish-based school.we tried many different programs until he begged me to stop sending him away. and i kept being told he was born at the wrong time. finally,at a loss [and worried about his ability to function] we placed him in lakewood high school.yes,he does get vocational training but with the “no child behind” program he’s sliding through his academics. plus,with so much of the population coming from poorly educated,non-english speaking homes,the bar for student expectations has been set very low. my son has also witnessed students bledding from wounds ss a result of gang-warfare. another classmate [almost 17] told him all about her pregnancy. i could go on.b’h my son has a solid sense of himself as a jew and even wears his yamulka in school. the main point parents have to be aware of the real environment in the public schools. and services?check before you assume they will be forthcoming.
You are choosing to send your child for public school services what makes you think that you can get private Scool services.
69 inclusion slots?? Who exactly will my child be offered to be included with?? Who are the regular kids in the program? some recent illegal immigrant that can’t speak English ???
ATT #30
What do you mean “…we choose to send our children for public school services…” ? Since when is SPEECH a public school service? Or any other therapy? I never CHOSE anything I am just doing what is best for my child(ren).
OUR GROISE TZADIKIM LBOE MEMBERS CUT OVER A MILLION DOLLARS FROM THE STARS PROGRAM
the board of ed truly was ripped off until now by being charged more per child than private tuition. the solution is not to throw out the baby with the bathwater but rather to bring down the cost to the boe to a fair level so the teachers can continue their amazing work with our kids who need it so badly.
You are sending your child to public school. It is currently administered by tiny tots the recommendation was to bring this service in house you are now making all sorts of demands about buses etc. That is your right as a parent to send to private school however as long as you are enrolling in public school you have no right to make demands.
Let Tiny Tots do something for the K’lal , Let them run at a very minimal profit and everyone will benefit. I’ts not always about squeezing every last dollar out of the system. Save some reward for yourself for the next world.
ATT. # 34:
I’m not maling any demands about bussing ect. I just want my child to have a jewish education. If my daughter was turning 3 instead of already being 4 maybe I wouldnt make the biggest deal-maybe. But she is 4 and this i a crucial year to learn Alef-Bais… She will only suffer more if she goes to a secular public school. Its hard enough to be dealing with a regular child when it comes to dealing with getting a child into primary/school. If she learns the hebrew curriculum on time maybe than she will have a real chance to be mainstreamed.
we love tiny tots!!!!