ADL report: Families find little support on Jew-hatred at K-12 independent schools
“These independent schools are failing to support Jewish families,” said Jonathan Greenblatt, the nonprofit’s CEO.
(JNS) Antisemitic incidents at primary and secondary educational institutions, both public and non-public, decreased by about 26%, from 1,162 in 2023 to 860 in 2024, according to Anti-Defamation League data. But the nonprofit still found in a report that it released on Wednesday that Jew-hatred remains a challenge for Jewish families at independent K-12 institutions.
“These independent schools are failing to support Jewish families,” stated Jonathan Greenblatt, the CEO and national director of the Anti-Defamation League.
“By tolerating — or in some cases, propagating — antisemitism in their classrooms, too many independent schools in cities across the country are sending a message that Jewish students are not welcome,” he continued. “It’s wrong. It’s hateful, and it must stop.”
The report focused exclusively on non-public schools, which face different oversight and have varying degrees of freedom to develop their own curricula compared to public schools. The ADL said it will launch a program to help parents hold independent schools accountable.
“School administrators and faculty have a duty to ensure safe, inclusive environments for all,” stated Shira Goodman, the nonprofit’s vice president of advocacy and head of its center to combat antisemitism in education. “ADL will fully invest in bolstering the families, who are demanding that their schools meet this obligation.”
JNS sought comment from the ADL about what percentage of Jew-hatred incidents it tracks at K-12 schools corresponds to public schools and to independent schools.
“What we’re seeing in independent schools is deeply troubling—parents are telling us that their children face antisemitism, only to be met with silence or inadequate responses from administrators,” Goodman told JNS.
“Add to that the growing exclusion of Jewish identity from diversity, equity and inclusion efforts and many parents are now making the painful decision to leave the schools they once trusted,” she told JNS.
The study included focus groups and a survey of parents of Jewish children in independent schools in metropolitan areas, including Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco and Washington.
Since Oct. 7, 45.3% of the parents surveyed said their children had seen or experienced some sort of Jew-hatred, and 31.7% said their kids had seen, experienced or witnessed problematic content about Jews or Israel in the classroom.
Parents said school administrators downplayed their concerns and seemed to indicate they were alone in expressing those views, which was not the case.
More than one-fifth (21.3%) of parents, whose kids experienced antisemitic incidents or problematic curricula, never reported their concerns to administrators or teachers at the school, according to the survey.
“Failure to address antisemitism can have profound consequences on the educational journey and personal, intellectual and social development of Jewish students during their formative years,” the report states.
Some parents transferred their children to other schools after complaints about antisemitic incidents were not addressed.
“Parents described a growing fear that, while legally permitted to enroll in independent schools, Jewish families are being excluded in practice— made to feel like outsiders within institutions they are paying to attend,” the report states.
The ADL recommends that schools define Jew-hatred clearly and teach students, teachers and community members about the Holocaust and contemporary antisemitism.
It also calls on them to enforce policies regarding antisemitic incidents, prevent teachers from using antisemitic or anti-Zionist materials, speak out against Jew-hatred and welcome Jewish students, including by teaching about their beliefs and traditions.
“Without meaningful change, independent schools risk becoming spaces where Jewish students are technically included but culturally and socially marginalized, eventually leading to their quiet disappearance from these communities,” per the report. PJC
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