Passaic versus Staten Island versus Elizabeth

amother

Sun, Apr 28 2013, 10:05 pm

My understanding is that Passaic is a little more yeshivaish whereas Staten Island and Elizabeth are mixed, but as someone interested in being a part of the Agudaths in SI or the Elmora side of Elizabeth I'm curious how people who have lived in these places (recently, preferably) would compare them.

How would you compare JEC, RJJ, and YKP? Academics? Yiddishkeit? Administration? Tuition (assistance, breaks?) I guess I am really curious about everything. My children are in Chofetz Chaim and Lev BY if that makes it easier for anyone to compare.

I really like a lot about Passaic, but the high property taxes worry me and honestly tuition worries me everywhere. Our girls' school is reasonably priced, but they don't give breaks, and we are renters looking to own somewhere more affordable all around.

I don't mind at all that Staten Island's RJJ or Elizabeth's JEC are made up of all different kinds of families and I like the idea of my kids belonging to a community where everyone doesn't dress the same. I just want to feel comfortable with my kids eating and playing at their classmates houses and I prefer a more right wing yeshiva administration.

amother

Sun, May 05 2013, 10:27 pm

Chiming in from si here:

My kids are in Rjj. They both have about 20 kids in their classes. In both classes I would say, 90 percent of the parents cover their hair. Most families are jpf. There are some yeshivish kids in their classes most families have tv Internet etc. not makpid on cy, but accommodating if that's necessary.
The academics seem to be on par for a yeshiva boys continue to regular yeshivas a few go to darchei in far rockaway. They recently started a branch of chofetz Chaim here where a lot of the boys are continuing for highschool.
Tuition is about 9k for elementary with various multi child discounts etc

There are a bunch of houses which have popped up recently. Checkout sibor.com for housing options

I don't know if u are the same poster who posted previously ,but I have to caution you that the agudah here is not really a "young" shul. Most of the younger crowd davens at rabbi Pollocks shul

I don't know anything about the other communities to compare it to. Hope this helps a bit

amother

Mon, May 06 2013, 6:56 am

amother wrote:

I am in Elmora in Elizabeth . It is a warm and accepting community. Lots of nice people so you can find friends here. I like the JEC school , but my kids are out of school , so I can't really say how it is now.

Thank you imamother. May I ask what schools your kids went to after JEC? How did/do you like them? Elizabeth does sound very nice. I was trying to get a comparison between JEC and RJJ.

amother wrote:

Wow 90 percent is higher than I thought, not that I actually care about hair and pants on my neighbors, it's just hard to find other ways to get an idea of what a parent body is like. 9k-10k for elementry is typical of other schools, but I guess the question always is if breaks are available for people in our income range and that is hard to know without applying.

Would you know how to compare RJJ to any other schools? I don't know what I am looking for exactly, but I really like my kids' schools now. The girls are pretty creative, accepting of different learning types, have a good mix of English and Hebrew, etc. The boys school is more traditional I suppose, but I find the teachers to be really happy with their jobs, and they have a reputation for graduating boys who can learn at the best yeshivas and have the academic skills to keep up with high schools where a percentage pursue professional degrees. Losing my schools I think is the hardest part about leaving, but affording a house that fits us, giving my kids more space to play outside, and improving dh's commute are hard to ignore. Also the girls school doesn't give breaks except for a small sibling discount so depending on how many girls we have I might have to leave there anyway.

How young is young? I've been told I'd probably find the most friends at R' Pollocks shul. My husband tends to appreciate a yeshivaish, shma on time, no talking, not too much singing, fast - but each word enunciated, type davening so I don't know what minyan has that. He is just a fan of R' Weiss and would probably start there for that reason. I don't know if I am that worried about making friends, I mean what can you do anywhere, but invite your kids' friends over, invite your neighbors for lunch, and see whom you click with? Do you find that Staten Island women mostly spend time with their seminary or high school friends and aren't looking to make new friends? One concern I had was that dh and I don't have family close by so when we have IY'H an emergency or a baby we have to ask friends for help and I usually find I feel better if we can return the favor. Sometimes it seems like most people in SI have their parents or in laws in SI as well to help with their children, make yom tov, etc.

amother wrote:

I would look into the neighborhood which has more playmates for your children and people who you can befriend. While I am not from Staten Island I have heard that the community is not big at all.

I don't think of the eruv as that big, but 20 kids per class, two classes per grade, and the kosher food available makes me feel like SI is still a big enough community. I don't know about Elizabeth, because students are from other communities too and Passaic has like three schools.
Are people really able to pick a neighborhood where each of their kids has playmates their exact age and the house meets the family's needs? I guess the advantage with SI is that after a certain age, the whole eruv is walkable enough for kids to play with any classmate in the area. The Elizabeth and Passaic eruvim are huge, but can one really find the neighborhood with kindergarten girls and pre1a boys and toddler girls? It seems to specific to be realistic.

fromnj

Mon, May 06 2013, 7:15 pm

amother wrote:

I didn't comment before because I don't know enough about RJJ/JFS or any of the Passaic schools. I also posted on this topic in another thread (I'm too tired to say the same things!)

As for scholarships at The JEC: There are scholarships. If you are a member of a JEC shul (Elmora, Elmora Hills, North Avenue) you automatically get half off of preschool (this stops in pre1a which we call primer). There used to be a $5k rebate the year you buy a house. I'm not sure if that is still in effect for the whole community, or just for the Elmora side (I rent). You can definitely choose a neighborhood based on the ages and genders of your kids, especially if they are younger. My DS, who is in 3rd, has 5 boys in the neighborhood. Two boys live in Elmora (they're twins), and a few are in West Orange, Springfield, Short Hills (one each I believe). My DD is in primer. There are 32 kids split into 2 classes. 2 are from Springfield, 2 from West Orange, and 2 from Elmora (one of those is leaving at the end of the year). The rest are from Hillside. She has girls from her class at each corner of our street and one across the street. The Hillside community definitely skews younger. Of the 32 kids, my DD is one of 6 who doesn't have a younger sibling. My daughter never has a shortage of playdates on Shabbos.

Money is tight in Elizabeth/Hillside. Most families have two working parents. But the school is good about "in kind" contributions. People work at the school to make up the difference between their scholarship award and their ability to pay.

I wouldn't say the elementary school is modern, but I also would not call it yeshivish. My DS had a rebbe for the first time this year and loves it. Some in the community want a rebbe younger. Some want it older.

The administration is very firm. It is a family run business, established by Rav Pinchas Teitz and passed on to his son, Rav Elazar Mayer, who is dean. His son is the associate dean. That results in some rigidity and is sometimes slow on innovation, but it is very stable.

PM me if you have any other questions!

amother

Mon, May 06 2013, 7:24 pm

3 of my children went to jec hi schools and one wasn't a fit for bruriah so she traveled to another high school which was better for her .

amother wrote:

Thank you imamother. May I ask what schools your kids went to after JEC? How did/do you like them? Elizabeth does sound very nice. I was trying to get a comparison between JEC and RJJ.

amother wrote:

I would look into the neighborhood which has more playmates for your children and people who you can befriend. While I am not from Staten Island I have heard that the community is not big at all.

amother

Mon, May 06 2013, 7:24 pm

3 of my children went to jec hi schools and one wasn't a fit for bruriah so she traveled to another high school which was better for her .

amother wrote:

Thank you imamother. May I ask what schools your kids went to after JEC? How did/do you like them? Elizabeth does sound very nice. I was trying to get a comparison between JEC and RJJ.

amother wrote:

I would look into the neighborhood which has more playmates for your children and people who you can befriend. While I am not from Staten Island I have heard that the community is not big at all.

amother

Mon, May 06 2013, 7:24 pm

3 of my children went to jec hi schools and one wasn't a fit for bruriah so she traveled to another high school which was better for her .

amother wrote:

Thank you imamother. May I ask what schools your kids went to after JEC? How did/do you like them? Elizabeth does sound very nice. I was trying to get a comparison between JEC and RJJ.

amother wrote:

I would look into the neighborhood which has more playmates for your children and people who you can befriend. While I am not from Staten Island I have heard that the community is not big at all.

amother

Mon, May 06 2013, 7:24 pm

3 of my children went to jec hi schools and one wasn't a fit for bruriah so she traveled to another high school which was better for her .

amother wrote:

Thank you imamother. May I ask what schools your kids went to after JEC? How did/do you like them? Elizabeth does sound very nice. I was trying to get a comparison between JEC and RJJ.

amother wrote:

I would look into the neighborhood which has more playmates for your children and people who you can befriend. While I am not from Staten Island I have heard that the community is not big at all.

amother

Mon, May 06 2013, 7:24 pm

3 of my children went to jec hi schools and one wasn't a fit for bruriah so she traveled to another high school which was better for her .

amother wrote:

Thank you imamother. May I ask what schools your kids went to after JEC? How did/do you like them? Elizabeth does sound very nice. I was trying to get a comparison between JEC and RJJ.

amother wrote:

I would look into the neighborhood which has more playmates for your children and people who you can befriend. While I am not from Staten Island I have heard that the community is not big at all.

amother

Mon, May 06 2013, 7:24 pm

3 of my children went to jec hi schools and one wasn't a fit for bruriah so she traveled to another high school which was better for her .

amother wrote:

Thank you imamother. May I ask what schools your kids went to after JEC? How did/do you like them? Elizabeth does sound very nice. I was trying to get a comparison between JEC and RJJ.

amother wrote:

I would look into the neighborhood which has more playmates for your children and people who you can befriend. While I am not from Staten Island I have heard that the community is not big at all.

amother

Mon, May 06 2013, 7:24 pm

3 of my children went to jec hi schools and one wasn't a fit for bruriah so she traveled to another high school which was better for her .

amother wrote:

Thank you imamother. May I ask what schools your kids went to after JEC? How did/do you like them? Elizabeth does sound very nice. I was trying to get a comparison between JEC and RJJ.

amother wrote:

I would look into the neighborhood which has more playmates for your children and people who you can befriend. While I am not from Staten Island I have heard that the community is not big at all.

amother

Mon, May 06 2013, 7:24 pm

3 of my children went to jec hi schools and one wasn't a fit for bruriah so she traveled to another high school which was better for her .

amother wrote:

Thank you imamother. May I ask what schools your kids went to after JEC? How did/do you like them? Elizabeth does sound very nice. I was trying to get a comparison between JEC and RJJ.

amother wrote:

I would look into the neighborhood which has more playmates for your children and people who you can befriend. While I am not from Staten Island I have heard that the community is not big at all.