The New York State Board of Regents has approved an application for a Hebrew Language Academy Charter School for New York City's Sheepshead Bay section of Brooklyn that would teach the Hebrew language along with aspects of Jewish culture.

By law, the school must be open to all applicants and be devoid of religious content. According to the Forward, the Jewish American weekly published in New York, philanthropist Michael Steinhardt, a former hedge fund manager who has championed a number of high-profile Jewish causes, funded the application. His daughter, Sara Berman, a former editor at the newspaper, was the lead applicant.

"The goal is academic excellence and kids fluent in Hebrew," Sara Berman has been quoted as saying. The goal is not to teach Jewish students per se, she said, or to shore up Jewish identity - at least directly. Nor does the school aim to convey the ideals or values of either Zionism or Judaism.

"This is a public school in America," explained Berman. "I really believe in the benefits of everyone learning a second language, and of everyone learning Hebrew."

She said that the proposed school looks to use language and the culture that comes with it in an interesting way. To look at the world in a different lens.

Hebrew charter schools have become a hot item in the world of Jewish identity and education, and the Regent's approval is seen as giving a boost to a movement that would have a national center back Hebrew charter school efforts across the country.

"This vote today affirms our belief that learning modern Hebrew, like many of the other vibrant languages and cultures being taught in New York's public schools, can help prepare students of all backgrounds to succeed in today's world," Berman said in a statement released after the school was approved.

Steinhardt has spoken publicly about using a national network of Hebrew charter schools to instill Jewish identity without the private expense of Jewish day schools.

Steinhardt has made significant progress in that direction, the paper reported, and the Brooklyn school, scheduled to open in the fall of 2009, may be only the first step. The Forward reported that it has learned that a Steinhardt-led group of philanthropists is putting together plans to create a national support center to assist local groups that want to put together applications for Hebrew charter schools in their own communities.

The group, called Areivim, consists of 15 multi-millionaires (out of a projected total of 20) who have each pledged $5 million to support the mission of promoting Jewish education and identity. Steinhardt is cochair, along with Detroit philanthropist William Davidson.

Some sources speculate that although plans had not yet been finalized, it was expected that the center would offer grants and technical expertise to the local groups.

The prospect of a new Hebrew language charter school in New York City, home to the nation's largest concentrations of Jews and national media outlets, combined with the prospect of a support system for new schools, represent a major leap for the Hebrew charter school movement. But some Hebrew charter school boosters are taking a wait-and-see approach.