Yeshivas vs. city

Schools chancellor complains to state

City investigators still haven’t visited half a dozen Jewish ultra-Orthodox high schools in a threeyear-old probe of academic practices at the politically connected institutions, Education Department officials said Tuesday.

Schools Chancellor Richard Carranza called out the six yeshivas in a letter sent to state Education Department officials. The schools continue to boycott the investigation started when advocates identified 30 Jewish day schools that failed to provide basic academic lessons mandated by state law.

“At the moment, counsel for the schools appears to not be providing access to the schools prior to the [city Education Department] performing what he characterizes as ‘the basic obligation of sharing what [the city Education Department] believes the standards are before any inspection is conducted,’ ” Carranza’s letter states.

“To be clear, we have provided counsel with applicable law and regulations, but do not know of an obligation such as the one he describes,” he added.

A lawyer for the yeshivas who previously denied the schools barred city investigators did not respond to calls for comment about Carranza’s letter.

“This is another sign of the positive change in style we are witnessing under Chancellor Carranza,” said Naftuli Moster, executive director of Young Advocates for Fair Education. “With transparency there can be accountability.”

Moster, a yeshiva critic who organized the 2015 complaint that prompted the city’s investigation, said Carranza deserves credit for putting pressure on the schools.

State Education Department spokeswoman Emily DeSantis said state education officials will get back to Carranza soon with instructions on how to deal with the uncooperative schools.

“We plan to release our guidance in mid to late November,” said DeSantis.

“The purpose of updating the guidance remains the same — to ensure that all New York state students, whether they attend a public or nonpublic school, receive a quality education that prepares them for success in life."