As the 2020-2021 school year begins, with its unique challenges and uncertainties, the Rabbinical Council of America, the leading membership organization of Orthodox rabbis, appreciates how vital it is for all schools, including our day schools and yeshivot, to open responsibly and safely. Educators and lay leaders have been working with medical experts to craft policies and guidelines which will enable classes to meet in person, when possible, as well as to meet virtually in effective ways. We support and applaud these efforts to keep students and teachers safe, while maximizing opportunities for learning and religious growth.

While schools are creating appropriate individual frameworks which will enable them to open, they will only be successful if the entire community, especially students and their families, diligently observes the necessary health precautions including careful social distancing, mask wearing and frequent hand washing.

Rabbi Daniel Korobkin, president of the RCA, said, “We must remember that individual behaviors and choices impact the safe opening of schools. The Torah warns us, ‘Do not stand on the blood of your friend.’ Thus, in order to ensure the successful opening of schools, we urgently call upon each member of the community to maintain safe social distancing in public, especially when planning or attending smachot and other social gatherings.”

Rabbi Binyamin Blau, vice president of the RCA, said, “Only by working collectively will our children be able to receive the quality Jewish education that they both deserve and desire.”