Money Matters

by Batya Rosenblum

The failing economy is a reality that has drastically changed the life of the average Jewish-American teenager. Judaism is a lifestyle that manifests itself in a multitude of novelties — kosher food, private education and a myriad of ritual objects such as lulav, shofar, succah and menorah — all with a price tag. In an American household the first luxuries to go are novelties. In a society of $1 menus and limited indulgence, observant Jews are constrained by a lifestyle which becomes pricier by the day.

There is one thing that a person needs to survive: food. Keeping kosher in America is blessedly easy, more painless than our grandparents had it in the 1920s and 1930s in foreign countries with limited variety in

their diet. Almost anything we could ever want comes in kosher form, even bacon bits. But not without a price.

Jews have limited corners to cut when it comes to economical ways of producing food. One of the largest kosher meat suppliers in America was shut down for allegedly cutting corners by hiring illegal immigrants and creating poor working conditions. Conversely, the cost of meat has sky rocketed.
Recently, my mother was shopping at a local supermarket where she came across an abandoned cart. Sitting on top was a non-kosher prime-rib roast and she was stopped in her tracks – the price! It was only $5 per pound as opposed to the $14 per pound we pay for kosher meat. With money tight for many families, one thing that has been affected is our eating habits. No more meat during the week, only on Shabbat, and even then poultry has begun to replace red meat since its cost is drastically lower.
Not only has the meat industry been affected, but the dairy one has been as well. As cheese becomes more expensive, pizza rises in price too. The cost of a kosher slice of pizza in my neighborhood is about $2.50. Now my family makes pizza from scratch. All of the ingredients together cost about $8 per pie as opposed to the $15 and more it would cost in the store. Plus, my house smells like fresh pizza every Thursday night.

The financial crisis of the economy has also trickled down to affect a fundamental of Jewish life, education. A day school education is a luxury that many of our parents were never privileged to have. When I was in grade school, it was a given that a Jewish child would attend a private school since there were several such institutions within close proximity of the community. However, with tuitions ranging from $10,000 to $25,000 per year, starting with kindergarten, a family with three children could easily be spending $40,000 or more on a year of education.

When the economy was good, families felt more comfortable stretching their wallets or even borrowing to meet these commitments. But as uncertainty grows and the cost of college and graduate schools increases, private school has become what it was when our parents went to school: a luxury, one that is no longer within everyone’s budget.

After high school many Jewish teenagers spend a year learning in Israel. This is a common luxury that is becoming unaffordable, as it costs approximately $20,000 for the year. “I really wanted to go to this art seminary in Israel which I got into after a tedious admissions process,” said Shelley Adelson, a senior at Bruriah High School for Girls in Elizabeth, New Jersey. “However, due to my family’s financial situation there is a very good possibly that I will not be able to attend this prestigious school.”

Many families that once envisioned their children attending Yeshiva University now emphasize state schools and community colleges. During the month of April as my classmates received college acceptance letters, the halls of school echoed with the woes of teens who had not received enough financial aid to attend their school of choice. “Because of the financial situation I wasn’t able to receive as much financial aid and scholarship as I would have liked which may have been possible in calmer economic waters,” said Naamah Plotzker, a senior at Bruriah, who plans to attend Stern College for Women at Yeshiva University.

These were thoughts that weighed heavily on me as I sent out my college applications. I didn’t apply to many schools, such as NYU, because if accepted I would’ve been hindered by its hefty price tag of $37,372 and that is without room and board in New York city, according to U.S. News & World Report.
In the fall I will be a freshman at Rutgers University. I am fortunate to live in New Jersey and have access to a phenomenal in-state school, one with good academics and an active Jewish life on campus.
With the approaching summer months and vacation plans, finances once again come into acute focus. My mother suggested a cost-effective road trip to Massachusetts, an opportunity my siblings and I immediately jumped upon. A close friend of mine took such a trip with a few members of her family over winter break.

“As opposed to a trip where one would travel by plane and see point A, point B and two lovely airports, with a road trip you get to experience what it takes to get from point A to point B,” said Tikva Jacob, a Bruriah senior. There are cost-effective ways of having fun such as chilling with friends in someone’s basement rather than going out to the movies.

Living through this economic crisis, I have become keenly aware of the financial realities of the world. Although times may seem tough, I am certainly better off understanding these issues now before I venture off into the world myself. This is an opportunity to reevaluate priorities. What would you spend your money on?

Batya Rosenblum is a senior at Bruriah High School in Elizabeth, N.J.

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