While the cost of Jewish day school across the U.S. now often exceeds $20,000 per year, annual tuition for access to all courses on Room613’s main schedule is $1,800.
Though it was primarily intended for – and is primarily used by – homeschooled children, anyone can enroll in Room613 classes. Resnick offers supplementary programs for students who attend Jewish day schools.
“My classes have students joining from all over the country, and even some from other countries,” he said. “Most of my students are homeschoolers, but I also have students who come home from public school and catch my last class of the day.”
Resnick has also branched out his efforts to meet the needs of specialized groups of students such as early childhood, teen girls, and adults. For adults, Resnick created Mercaz Machshava Tova (The Center for Jewish Positive Thinking), where he writes about self-improvement and spiritual growth and offers online classes. Membership is free.
As Room613 grows, Resnick continues to pursue his other passions and interests. He has been a musician for nearly four decades and taught guitar in the Boston area for years. He is also currently studying for a degree in holistic health. Yet Room613 remains his primary focus. The program, he suggested, offers opportunities and benefits that other forms of education do not.
“I still remember fondly an image over the [Room613 virtual classroom] webcam from several years ago,” Resnick recalled. “A mom walking through her house and stopping to kiss her son on the head while he was in class. It was a touching moment that she probably doesn’t even remember. This kind of thing obviously cannot be done in a traditional school. Parents are always welcome to sit in on my classes.”
Summing up, he said that in his view, “Room613 combines the best of all worlds. Kids are in a safe environment [with] no bullying, no cliques, yet they are engaging in an extremely high quality, challenging Judaic studies program that is tailored to their needs. I think this is how Jewish education should be.”
(JNS)
