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Last update - 10:16 24/08/2007
U.S. school stops Hebrew classes for promoting Judaism
By The Associated Press
Tags: Broward Schools, Ben Gamla 

The first Hebrew language charter school in the United States was ordered to temporarily suspend Hebrew classes on Wednesday, while officials determine whether teachers are advocating the Jewish faith.

Broward Schools Superintendent James Notter sent a letter to officials at the Ben Gamla Charter School in Hollywood, Florida, on Wednesday advising them to halt Hebrew classes until the school board could further examine the curriculum.

"If it comes up in the course of conversation, that is one thing but if it comes to promoting religion or proselytizing, we don't want it to happen," said Keith Bromery, a spokesman for the Broward schools.
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While charter schools are generally publicly funded, they differ from regular public schools in that they are autonomous and not bound by some of the rules governing other schools. In addition, they are expected to far surpass regular public schools in terms of quality of education.

Ben Gamla is in its first week of operation as the U.S.'s first Hebrew-language charter school, but school founder Peter Deutsch, a former Democratic congressman, said he told teachers Thursday to halt the classes. He said he shared Notter's aim to ensure religion does not enter a publicly-funded school.

"His goal and my goal are really exactly the same," Deutsch said.

The ban on Hebrew will extend at least until September 11, when the board next meets. Until then, time that would have been spent on language instruction will be used teaching Israeli geography and Jewish history and culture.

A similar debate has echoed in New York over the establishment of the city's first Arabic-themed public school. Critics of the Khalil Gibran International Academy have argued that it will promote extremism and is akin to a madrassa or Islamic religious school. Supporters deny those allegations, maintaining that opposition to the school is based on anti-Arab bias. The school is scheduled to begin operations next month.

Deutsch said he believes the Florida school has every right to continue Hebrew classes, but decided to stop them to ease concerns. Both he and school board member Eleanor Sobel, in whose district Ben Gamla is located, have described their efforts as bending over backwards for one another.

Ben Gamla presented its curriculum to the board for a third time Tuesday, but Sobel said it still had religious overtones.

"We're going into the fourth round now and maybe that's what it takes to get it right," she said.

Ben Gamla, which has about 400 students in kindergarten through eighth grades, has generated controversy since it was proposed. Students follow state curriculum, but also were to take a Hebrew language course, and one of their core subjects - math or physical education, for example - was to be taught bilingually as well.

School officials ran into tough opposition at Broward County School Board meetings when proposing Hebrew textbooks that included passages criticized as being too religious. Even the Anti-Defamation League and the Jewish Federation of Broward County have expressed church-state separation issues.

Ben Gamla hopes to expand further in South Florida and to open schools in New York and Los Angeles. It takes its name from a Jewish high priest, serves kosher food, and its director is a rabbi. Without Hebrew classes, though, Deutsch said its most central component is missing.

"It is kind of crazy - the only Hebrew-English charter school in America doesn't teach Hebrew," he said.


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  1.   This is dumb... 03:01  |  Yair ben Avraham 24/08/07
  2.   Welcome.. 03:11  |  Joseph 24/08/07
  3.   Arabs should do the same... 03:22  |  man 24/08/07
  4.   English only should be taught in Public Schools 03:53  |  Morris Freidman III 24/08/07
  5.   Good on the U.S. 03:57  |  Brad 24/08/07
  6.   missionaries! 04:00  |  Mark Katzman 24/08/07
  7.   Strange reasoning, if correctly reported 05:02  |  Gordon 24/08/07
  8.   Morris Friedman III, 05:06  |  juliana 24/08/07
  9.   #4 Morris 05:08  |  Joseph 24/08/07
  10.   To Morris 05:43  |  Gordon 24/08/07
  11.   Brad 05:47  |  Preferential? 24/08/07
  12.   This is nuts! 05:53  |  David ben Avraham 24/08/07
  13.   Mark Katzman 06:19  |  Maki 24/08/07
  14.   Morris Friedman 06:40  |  David 24/08/07
  15.   David ben Avraham: If It Weren`t For "Bible-thumping" Florida 07:00  |  Yosemite 24/08/07
  16.   Hyper-active adults.... 07:28  |  Webster 24/08/07
  17.   katzman 08:39  |  steven yaros 24/08/07
  18.   Ignorant Goyim 08:52  |  Tom 24/08/07
  19.   SHould public schools be in languages other than English? 09:42  |  MC 24/08/07
  20.   Trying to have your cake and eat it too 10:31  |  Colin Wright 24/08/07
  21.   God at "work" 10:36  |  Choni Davidowitz 24/08/07
  22.   well when jewish = judaism, what do you expect? 10:40  |  matt 24/08/07
  23.   What`s wrong with this? 10:46  |  Andy 24/08/07
  24.   Haaretz another inflammatory headline! 11:00  |  Margie in Tel Aviv 24/08/07
  25.   I studied Hebrew as a foreign language 11:30  |  Yonatan 24/08/07
  26.   U.S. school stops Hebrew classes for promoting Judaism 11:55  |  Gerald Zang 24/08/07
  27.   What is a jew? 12:01  |  Guido 24/08/07
  28.   # 20 God at "work" 12:07  |  Gerald Zang 24/08/07
  29.   Meanwhile, they say it`s Islamaphobic 12:43  |  David Teich 24/08/07
  30.   A short question and response to Margie and Guido 13:10  |  Nik Miller 24/08/07
  31.   Nick Miller 13:32  |  Guido 24/08/07
  32.   Is something missing from this piece? 13:43  |  Nechama 24/08/07
  33.   to Guido 13:46  |  Goldenberg 24/08/07
  34.   to Miller and Guido 13:52  |  Goldenberg 24/08/07
  35.   They don`t want the flack 13:53  |  Lynn 24/08/07
  36.   The US still allow Arabic schools teaching Islamism... 13:56  |  Nannette 24/08/07
  37.   # 26 Gerald Zang 14:02  |  Lynn 24/08/07
  38.   religion 14:33  |  Rab Burns 24/08/07
  39.   Hebrew= tribal language 14:42  |  American 24/08/07
  40.   # 21 Choni Davidowitz 14:44  |  Lynn 24/08/07
  41.   Nik Miller 14:49  |  Walid 24/08/07
  42.   David Teich # 29 14:53  |  Lynn 24/08/07
  43.   # 30 Nik Miller 14:56  |  Lynn 24/08/07
  44.   Guido # 27 I will tell you what I know about a JEW 15:13  |  The Equalizer 24/08/07
  45.   This school sounds too kosher to be kosher 15:23  |  Natallie Durson 24/08/07
  46.   Goldenberg 15:24  |  Nik Miller 24/08/07
  47.   Goldenberg 15:27  |  Nik Miller 24/08/07
  48.   The problem is the textbook. The school is fine. 15:27  |  Joe 24/08/07
  49.   What Goes Around Comes Around 15:31  |  Tony Anthony 24/08/07
  50.   Gerald Zang, #26, Israelis don`t get it! 15:39  |  Ben 24/08/07
  51.   Nick Miller, Goldenberg, the Equalizer... 15:46  |  Guido 24/08/07
  52.   hebrew teaching 15:49  |  scanadu 24/08/07
  53.   "American" exposing ignorance 15:53  |  Israelit 24/08/07
  54.   Nannette 16:15  |  American 2 24/08/07
  55.   #20 - Gee Colin 16:21  |  JES 24/08/07
  56.   #45 - My, my Natallie. Funny finding you here. 16:27  |  JES 24/08/07
  57.   I cannot understand 16:40  |  KUTW 24/08/07
  58.   #18 Tom 16:53  |  Space 24/08/07
  59.   29. David Teich 17:05  |  KUTW 24/08/07
  60.   # 53, Israelite 17:15  |  American 24/08/07
  61.   Lynn 17:21  |  Mark of Lewiston 24/08/07
  62.   If You Want to Teach Judaism, Get Rid of Your ACLU 17:22  |  Andy 24/08/07
  63.   #48 Joe, sumed it up well 17:28  |  Ben Bekhor 24/08/07
  64.   private vs public 17:30  |  margaret 24/08/07
  65.   Broward County School Board 17:31  |  Joshua 24/08/07
  66.   `American` 17:31  |  Israelit 24/08/07
  67.   Mark in Lewiston 17:34  |  Margie in Tel Aviv 24/08/07
  68.   Contact the School Board 17:35  |  Joshua 24/08/07
  69.   #61 Andy 17:40  |  Ben Bekhor 24/08/07
  70.   Mark of Lewiston 17:46  |  Lynn 24/08/07
  71.   39. American 17:46  |  KUTW 24/08/07
  72.   #5 17:47  |  Joyce 24/08/07