Jerry Seinfeld has slammed his children’s school for offering a day off to students who are “distressed” by the 2024 US presidential election.
The Ethical Culture Fieldston School – a school in New York City for students between pre-K and 12th grade – sent an email to the community leading up to the election, as reported by theNew York Times.
In one section of the message, the principal of the upper school, Stacey Bobo, said that ninth through 12th graders who “feel too emotionally distressed” due to the election will be excused from class on Wednesday, November 6. Or, instead of taking off the day after the election, high schoolers can be excused from classes when the election results are announced.
Speaking to the publication, Seinfeld – whose sons attended the school – hit back at the institution for offering students a day off because of election stress. He alleged that it was these types of decisions made by the school that encouraged him to transfer his youngest son to a different private school in the eighth grade.
“This is why the kids hated it,” he said. “What kind of lives have these people led that makes them think that this is the right way to handle young people? To encourage them to buckle. This is the lesson they are providing, for ungodly sums of money.”
The Seinfeld alum and his wife, Jessica Seinfeld, are the parents of sons Julian, 21, and Shepherd, 20, as well as 23-year-old daughter Sascha.
The Ethical Culture Fieldston School is an elite private school based in the Bronx, New York. According to its website, the tuition cost for all students in all grades during the 2024-2025 year is $65,540. There are also additional fees for Fieldston’s middle and upper school sections, including costs for books and supplies for courses. However, students’ yearbooks, lunches, and accident insurance are included in the tuition.
In the recent email to Fieldston School’s community, Bobo also “acknowledges that this may be a high-stakes and emotional time,” as the upcoming election will see Vice President Kamala Harris go head-to-head with Donald Trump.
“No matter the election outcome, [the school] will create space to provide students with the support they may need,” she wrote in the email.
High school students won’t have any homework assigned to them on Election Day, according to the email. There also won’t be any student assessment taking place on Wednesday, November 6.
Despite Seinfeld’s disapproval over Fieldston’s handling of the election, other parents in the community have applauded the institution’s plan.
“I think it’s absolutely the right decision,” John Couchman, who has one daughter in the 10th grade and another in the 12th grade at Fieldston, said. “These students are very astute. I think their rights are on the line, whether it’s on election night or in five years, and they know it.”
The Independent has contacted a representative for Ethical Culture Fieldston School for comment.
