A historic event took place last week as the Forum of Menahalim of Talmudei Torah convened for the very first time in Yerushalayim in Pele Yoetz Center, the premier organization for chinuch and mental health issues in the charedi sector. The forum was attended by menahalim of leading Talmudei Torah in Yerushalayim who assembled to discuss the pressing chinuch issues facing contemporary charedi society.
The forum was led by Hagaon Harav Dovid Levy shlit”a, Nasi of Pele Yoetz and menahalim of over a dozen Talmudei Torah in Yerushalayim. Rabbi Eliyahu Schindler shlit”a, founder and patron of Pele Yoetz’s flagship program Al Pi Darko, attended on Zoom and addressed the forum from his home in New York.
The driving force behind this initiative is Rabbi Avraham Vitman who has been the devoted director of Al Pi Darko since its inception. In the past few years, this project has sparked an educational revolution by implementing an early identification and intervention program in Talmudei Torah. The project identifies and diagnoses learning challenges in young children and trains tutors to help them overcome their challenges and nip problems in the bud before they spiral into greater academic and social difficulties.
The founding of Igud Menahalei Talmud Torah (Association of Talmud Torah Administrators), another brainchild of Rabbi Vitman, offers administrators and menahalim who devote their lives to the chinuch needs of our generation a special platform to raise and discuss vital educational issues and resolve serious educational dilemmas with daas Torah.
Rabbi Vitman’s invitation with an enthusiastic response by many menahalim and administrators in Yerushalayim who expressed interest in participating in the round-table discussion that would become the very first forum of Igud Menahalim.
The event opened with a collective tefillah that brachah and hatzlachah should escort all of the Igud’s activities, and that its members will merit fulfilling all of their aspirations and goals to benefit individuals and the public. The Igud is expected to address important questions in the realm of chinuch, draw conclusions and, powered by the guidance of daas Torah, implement vital resolutions that will impact the future and character of charedichinuch and society.
Rabbi Avraham Vitman opened the forum with introductory remarks regarding the need to found the Igud. He emphasized the significance of this platform which offers menahalim from a range of schools the chance to raise important issues, discuss them, and together reach the conclusions necessary to pave a unified path in chinuch that offers viable solutions to the community and helps all talmidim advance and succeed.
Rabbi Menachem Sheinberger, executive director of Pele Yoetz, officially announced the founding of the Igud with the brachah of “Shehechiynu v’kiyimanu v’higianu lazman hazeh!” to a round of applause from the attendants.
Pele Yoetz Nasi Hagaon Harav Dovid Levy shlit”a was then invited to address the forum. Rabbi Levy focused on the complexity and tightrope walk of preserving the desired tone of charedi chinuch and the vital importance of maintaining its purity especially in these times. He highlighted that as the world’s center of kedushah, the Torah that emerges from Yerushalayim will radiate to the rest of the world.
His address was followed by a round-table discussion mediated by Hagaon Harav Shalom Ganz shlit”a, menahel of Talmud Torah Karlin-Stolin, regarding advancing children with learning difficulties, mainstreaming them into regular classrooms, and the tools required for this task.
Rabbi Meir Eichler shlit”a, menahel of Talmud Torah Slonim, highlighted the importance of mainstreaming struggling students, despite the obvious challenges involved. He emphasized that the opportunity to learn and thrive in a regular framework with peers molds the future of a child within normative society in a way that impacts him for the rest of his life.
Menahel of Talmud Torah Toldos Aharon Rabbi Chaim Moshe Feldman shlit”a focused on the importance of exploiting all available resources in chinuch and turning to chinuch associations for help and support. He specifically praised Pele Yoetz for its efforts to support talmidim struggling in any realm of life. Rabbi Nosson Kaufman, also of Talmud Torah Toldos Aharon, stressed that the early identification and diagnosis of a child’s precise learning difficulty is the key to helping him find solutions and overcoming learning challenges before the academic and social gap widen beyond repair.
Rabbi Yisrael Glick shlit”a, menahel of Talmud Torah Chasam Sofer-Erlau, addressed the forum next. He called attention to the importance of absorbing certified therapists and professionals into the Talmud Torah’s faculty and recruiting the parents’ participation in any special education or remedial program.
Rabbi Leibish Kahana shlit”a, menahel of Talmud Torah Dushinsky, stressed the unparalleled import of setting clear, unequivocal criteria and benchmarks that enable a Rebbi or teacher to identify learning difficulties. This, he added, can prevent many children from falling through the cracks.
Menahel of Talmud Torah Satmar Rabbi Yoel Feierstein shlit”a expressed the significance of a qualified mentor in a child’s life, and particularly a child who struggles academically, emotionally or socially. He vividly described the mentor’s potential to help mold the child’s character, strengthen him academically and spiritually, and lead him upon the proper path. Rabbi Chaim Wallis shlit”a, also of Talmud Torah Satmar, emphasized the value of the triangle of cooperation, open discussion and collaboration between the tutor/mentor, Talmud Torah faculty, and parents, as key to a child’s success.
Menahel of Talmud Torah Maor Chaim Rabbi Shalom Donat shlit”a revisited the issue of mainstreaming children with learning disabilities into the regular classroom. He emphasized that with qualified professionals escorting the process, the children can succeed beyond imagination.
Menahel of Talmud Torah Machnovka-Belz Rabbi Elkana Fried shlit”a called attention to the professional team engaged by Pele Yoetz Center, praising their devotion and willingness to respond to any question in chinuch, and their tremendous contributions to mosdos Torah.
The discussion then veered to the topic of attention disorders and dealing with parents who refuse to cooperate with the Talmud Torah’s requests to help their child face his learning challenges. Rabbi Avraham Vitman stressed that it is the faculty’s responsibility to do whatever it takes to foster parental cooperation, and Rabbi Dovid Levy added that if the faculty does everything in its ability to facilitate the process, then Hakadosh Baruch Hu will do His part and send His brachah.
All eyes then turned to the large screen in the room, as Rabbi Eliyahu Schindler shlit”a, founder and patron of Pele Yoetz Center’s flagship program Al Pi Darko, addressed the members of the forum via Zoom. Rabbi Schindler raised the very delicate issue of teens who struggle academically. He explained that, in recent years, the educational system, particularly in the USA, has become exceedingly gentle and accommodating of struggling students, and he posited if, perhaps, the time has come to change direction.
Hagaon Harav Dovid Levy shlit”a elaborated on the question, culling from the statements of many Gedolei Torah shlit”a and ultimately repeating their conclusion that this is the proper reaction in contemporary times.
At this point, Hagoan Harav Meir Acker shlit”a, Chairman of Baneinu, raised the painful topic of schools and Rebbeim dealing with the tragic cases of single-parent homes, be it orphaned children, children with sick parents, children from divorced homes, or children of parents struggling with mental disorders or spiritual decline.
The discussion offered a chance for each one of Yerushalayim’s esteemed menahalim to offer his thoughts and share his viewpoint with his colleagues, who all listened in interest and absorbed from each other’s wisdom. Without a doubt, these are the men who are molding the field of chinuch and paving the direction of the future of the Torah.
Rabbi Nesanel Tefilinsky shlit”a, a member of the Pele Yoetz Board of Directors, summed up the event, highlighting key issues discussed throughout the course of the evening. The forum concluded with closing remarks by Rabbi Avraham Vitman who reviewed several important points and insights gained throughout the course of an inspirational, enjoyable and illuminating evening. He repeated the goals of the Igud and underscored its importance, both to the menahalim themselves and to all who partner in this significant initiative that will surely leave an indelible mark on contemporary chinuch.
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