Not only in Bnei Brak:
ultra-orthodox seminaries all over the country make it difficult for girls who seek to receive permission to graduate legally.
Mysterious debts emerge when girls seek permission to study, severe reprimands arise, and the diploma is delayed until the beginning of the academic semester.
Thus, they miss the deadline and will not be able to become full-fledged students at the strictly ultra-Orthodox college they chose.
Last Monday, we published claims by women who studied at ultra-orthodox seminaries in Bnei Brak who claimed that when they requested - years after completing all their academic obligations with honors and paying tens of thousands of shekels - a certificate proving that they had indeed attended the seminary required for the further studies they had chosen, they were met with a refusal.
Although these are married women, mothers of children, who went to study in strictly segregated ultra-Orthodox colleges, with an educational envelope, rabbinic and sacred lessons.
Through Hatchim until receiving the certificate (photo for illustration only),
After the publication of the article, we were flooded with dozens of comments from ultra-Orthodox women from all over the country who claimed that they too had gone through obstacles on the way to the long-awaited approval of their studies, when their only sin was that they went to study a respectable and well-paying profession at a strictly ultra-Orthodox college.
Mysterious debts crop up
Chai Arnfeld, a social entrepreneur who promotes and makes academic education accessible to ultra-Orthodox women, says that "the ultra-orthodox institutions for teaching training, which are recognized by the Ministry of Education and not by the Ministry of Education, delay the delivery of documents indicating that a student has completed the 'Senior Certificate' - a basic admission requirement to complete academic studies.
This is so that those female graduates will miss the beginning of the academic year, and will be forced to study an equivalent degree in a seminary."
Ehrenfeld says that "some of them did not take the risk - and missed the start of their studies. Some forged certificates, some took a study permit from mines and changed their names. Some had to lie that the document was not for the purpose of studies, but the requirement of supervision at the workplace."
Khoi Ehrenfeld: "Sometimes when the student requests a study permit to enroll in academic studies, suddenly 'deficiencies' appear in assignments, assignments, grades, tests. They have no way to verify the facts. The power lies with the institution and the secretary."
Ehrenfeld mentions another issue that came up quite a bit in the conversation with the track graduates.
"Sometimes when the student requests a study permit to enroll in academic studies, suddenly 'deficiencies' appear in assignments, assignments, grades, tests. They have no way to verify the facts. The power lies with the institution and the secretary."
Tobi, who studied at the "Ali Beer" seminar in Jerusalem, shares what she went through.
"They caused problems for me personally and started inventing study obligations for me, which until the moment of applying for the study permit, they didn't bother to inform me about them. They demanded that I pay 100 shekels for each job, and until I didn't pay almost 800 shekels and I cried in the office because they pestered me back and forth many times , only then, after they took out my soul, did I receive the certificate."
Did you get a receipt for the payment?
"no way".
Yael and Michal, who studied at the Feuerstein Seminary in Beit Shemesh, were also required to pay about four hundred shekels for the printing of the document.
"They heard that I was going to study nursing in Laniado, through Rupin College, a strictly ultra-Orthodox track, and they simply demanded money from me," claims Yael.
"They claimed I had a debt. Until I asked for the document, they never called me with the demand for payment. The 'debt' popped up out of nowhere. They also don't say what the debt is for. I arrived at the seminar and they kept me waiting for hours, back and forth. Until I knocked on I didn't get the table."
Yael also says that she did not receive an invoice for the payment she made.
Her friend, Michal, says that she too received a demand to pay 300 shekels that appeared as a mysterious and unexplained debt.
As a student who paid for her higher studies herself, she was, according to her, "without a penny on her soul".
Michal: "I cried to the deputy that I didn't have money, I begged. When I saw that there was no one to talk to, I just forged the school permit from my friend."
Rahli's mother, who studied at the "Kahana" seminary in Bnei Brak, says that her house was bombed when she went to study medical equipment engineering at the ultra-Orthodox "Mabahar" college in Bnei Brak.
"When she enrolled, she didn't bring the scores of the outdoor tests to the college, so they demanded it from her in preparation for receiving the certificate. Without the grades from the seminar, she could not have received an engineer's degree. Only after they took our breath away for several months and demanded NIS 250 for printing the paper , without giving us an invoice - do us a favor and release the scores."
They completed their duties but did not receive the certificate (for illustration), photo: Tzachi Miriam
"My wife studied computer science at the 'Daughters of Elisheva' seminar in Jerusalem, and then completed her degree at the ultra-Orthodox branch of the Tal Institute," shares my father.
"In order to receive the degree, she needed a document from the seminary. But then they rejected her again and again and invented that she lacked attendance days in Judaism. They demanded that she take booklets and fill them out. When for each workbook printed at the seminary, they demanded NIS 150! Needless to say, we did not receive In exchange for an invoice".
Sermons and reprimands
Avi describes another recurring motif that came up with all the interviewees.
He says that when his wife finally came to pick up the certificate, she was reprimanded by the secretary, and until she broke down in tears the accusations hurled at her did not stop.
Hodia, 34, studied her senior studies at the 'Derchi Rachel' seminar in Jerusalem.
When she asked the seminary for a document required to receive the certificate she studied in the separate ultra-orthodox track at Ono College, she describes receiving humiliating reprimands from the secretary.
According to her, this is a slap in the face that she shouldn't be proud of the fact that she went to study in a place that "the opinion of the seminary is not favorable to him".
Hodia, who was already a mother of children at the time, was not alarmed and answered her that she had gone to learn about youth at risk.
"Who will take care of the ultra-orthodox youth if not professionals from within the sector?" she answered.
Ruth, 23 years old, who also studied at the 'Ali Beer' seminar in Jerusalem, hid from the management the fact that she was not continuing to 13-14 and acted as if she would continue studying at the seminar - so that they would not be angry with her.
When she came to the moment of truth when she wanted to enroll in the ultra-orthodox Ofek College, she was required to bring a graduation certificate from the seminary.
The seminar required Emma, an American woman who barely speaks Hebrew, to come for a reprimand.
The mother sat there for almost 3 hours and received reprimands from the principal and the principal for how she was 'destroying her daughter's soul'.
It was only after that that the seminary was willing to release Ruth's certificate.
The Feuerstein seminar refused to comment.
The Ministry of Education responded:
"The supervision in the ultra-orthodox district made it clear to the management of the seminary that it must provide the required study permit unconditionally. A graduate who did not receive it can contact the ultra-orthodox district administration in the office that will issue her the permit. In addition, the district director will meet with the seminary union in the coming days and provide the instructions and clarifications on the matter ".
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