4 Brooklyn yeshivas file federal complaint against New York State
Luke Tress is The Times of Israel's New York correspondent.

Four yeshivas in Brooklyn allege discrimination by New York State in a complaint filed with the US Department of Education.
Bobover Yeshiva Bnei Zion, Oholei Torah, United Talmudical Academy, and Yeshiva & Mesivta Arugas Habosem file the complaint against the New York State Education Department and New York City Department of Education, alleging “targeted and discriminatory treatment.”
The complaint says New York authorities refuse to credit Jewish studies curriculum; mandate a government-approved reading list; interfere with faculty hiring; do not accommodate yeshivas’ “gender profile” in classrooms; and prohibit yeshivas from teaching in a foreign language. New York yeshivas teach in languages including Yiddish, Hebrew and Aramaic.
“Taken together, these discriminatory practices would strip the Yeshivas of their essential Jewish character,” says the complaint, which was shared with The Times of Israel. “Only the federal government can ensure that the Yeshivas can pursue their missions free from interference.”
The complaint asks the civil rights office to investigate the New York agencies for “discriminatory practices,” citing federal anti-discrimination laws that protect “religious observers against unequal treatment.” The complaint also cites federal laws that give parents the right to direct their children’s education, and argue the schools are covered by federal Title VI civil protections.
Education at New York yeshivas became a hot-button issue in 2022 when The New York Times ran a series of investigations into the massive education system, saying the schools accepted public funding but did not provide required teaching in secular subjects. At the same time, New York State passed a new law regulating secular studies in non-public schools.
The debate has largely receded from public view, but curriculum reviews mandated by the 2022 law need to be completed by the end of the 2024-2025 school year.
Critics of the yeshiva system say the schools fail to provide adequate instruction in secular subjects, including English and math, leaving graduates unprepared to enter the workforce or mainstream society.
The yeshivas’ advocates argue that schools are a cornerstone of successful communities, that students are well educated and in class longer than public school students, and that government meddling is an infringement on religious protections.
The four yeshivas in the complaint represent different Haredi communities, including the Bobover, Chabad and Satmar movements.