How does a family pick a public school and use the DC school lottery?

How does a family pick a public school and use the DC school lottery? Train-the-Trainer Session for Early Childhood Providers SY2019-20 Lottery

Training components Session framework and goals Module 1: Overview of My School DC Module 2: How to help families choose schools Module 3: How to apply Module 4: Post-lottery and mid-year applications Frequently Asked Questions Contact information

Session framework and goals

Session framework My School DC – the District’s common lottery for DCPS and public charter schools – has simplified and centralized what used to be an inconsistent application process for families and schools. Families now have a clear timeline through which to learn about, apply to, and enroll at public schools. Similarly, centers have a clear timeline through which to support the families they serve in their transition to a public school.

Training objective and goals In two hours you will comfortably navigate the public school application process by: – Knowing who needs to submit a My School DC application and when – Understanding how the lottery works, including results and next steps – Familiarizing yourself with online tools designed to help families navigate schools – Familiarizing yourself with key resources available to support families and center staff

Module 1: Overview of My School DC

Before My School DC Before My School DC, families had to navigate a maze of dozens of applications, deadlines, and sets of rules to access schools, find a best fit, and take advantage of options.

Before My School DC Challenges for Families Challenges for Schools Many applications and many lotteries Enrollment delays, families not aware of open seats Some families with many offers and some families with none Roster shuffling, even after school starts as students come off waitlists Confusing process that was especially discouraging to vulnerable families Schools with empty seats without a system-wide matching process

What is My School DC? My School DC is the common application and lottery for all DCPS schools and the majority of public charter schools that serve PK3 – grade 12. Non-participating charters in SY2019-20: Latin American Montessori Bilingual PCS (PK3 – grade 5) Kingsman Academy PCS (grades 9-12) Maya Angelou PCS – High School (grades 9-12) St. Coletta’s PCS The application is a single, online-only application. Families can apply to up to twelve (12) schools, with a hotline to support. 202-888-6336

Components to My School DC My School DC is a random lottery; not first come, first served. Ranking matters! Students can apply to up to 12 schools in the order they like most (1st choice, 2nd choice, 3rd choice, etc.). Algorithm is designed to match applicants to their top choice if there is room. Students can only be matched to one school, and it is possible to not receive a match in the lottery. Students are only waitlisted at schools they ranked above their match, signifying they like them more.

Who needs to use My School DC? Application is required for: Any participating public charter school (PK3-12) PK3 or PK4 program at any DCPS school (even if it’s a student’s inboundary school) Any out-of-boundary or citywide DCPS school (PK3-12) Any DCPS selective high school and program (grades 9-12) Application is NOT required for: Student’s in-boundary DCPS school (grades K-12) Student’s DCPS feeder school Student’s current school as a reenrollment Tip: Use the School Finder to identify a family’s DCPS in-boundary and feeder schools.

Key terms DC Public Schools (DCPS): the local, traditional public school system of Washington, DC. Every K–12 student who lives in DC has at least one right-to-attend DCPS school — a school where he or she can enroll at any time without submitting a My School DC application. A right-to-attend school is determined by a family’s address and the feeder pattern of the student’s current school. DCPS in-boundary school: a school a student has a right to attend in K-12 based on where the student lives. The school district has attendance zones (boundary lines), and each student is assigned to an in-boundary school based on those lines. Students submit a My School DC lottery application to attend their in-boundary PK3 or PK4 program. DCPS feeder school: a right-to-attend school that is based on a student’s current school. This assignment only happens during the years a student moves from elementary to middle school, or from middle school to high school. DCPS out-of-boundary school: any DCPS school that is not the student’s right-to-attend school. Students must submit a My School DC lottery application to attend. DCPS citywide school: a school that does not have a boundary and therefore cannot be claimed as an in-boundary school. Students must submit a My School DC lottery application to attend. Public charter schools (PCS): public schools are independent from DCPS. The DC Public Charter School Board (DC PCSB) provides oversight, but does not manage, any public charter school. Charter schools are free to DC residents and are citywide schools (they have no boundaries). Students seeking to attend a participating public charter school must complete a My School DC application.

Who needs to use My School DC? COMMON MYTH: “I don’t need to apply to a school for my child if he or she has a sibling already attending.” FALSE. New students must submit an application to attend school, even siblings. This is a lottery; there’s no guarantee.

Lottery preferences Each school offers preferences to students in the lottery. Students that qualify for a preference at a particular school are offered space at that school before students who don’t have a preference, or receive a higher waitlist placement than students without a preference. There are 5 different types of preferences: Sibling (both sectors) – note that the definition of sibling may vary by school Geographic (in-boundary and proximity) (DCPS only) Transfer (charter only) Children of Staff (charter only) Special education (charter only) View a list of lottery preferences and their definitions here: https:// www.myschooldc.org/faq/key-terms#preference

Youth and families in transition Students who are currently homeless do not have to prove DC residency. If families have questions about their particular situation, please email [email protected] or contact the school's liaison for students who are homeless. Guardians should use their most stable address on the My School DC application. If they have a case worker, we encourage families to list the case worker as an additional contact on the application. DCPS schools and in-boundary (IB) preference: Students who are homeless have a right to attend their in-boundary and feeder schools, which are based on the child’s most stable address. A child’s most stable address is determined by the guardian. For PK3/PK4 enrollment, families with homeless status must apply through the My School DC lottery and will receive IB preference at the DCPS school within the guardian’s boundary. In K-12, if a homeless student wants to attend a DCPS school outside the boundary of the family’s most stable address or a charter school, a My School DC lottery application must be submitted. Helpful link: https://www.myschooldc.org/faq/faqs#home

My School DC Timeline: SY19-20 Dec. 8, 2018: Dec. 10, 2018: Feb. 1, 2019: Feb. 2, 2019: Mar. 1, 2019: Mar. 2, 2019: Mar. 29, 2019: May 1, 2019: EdFEST – the annual public school fair Lottery application opens Application deadline (grades 9-12) Post-lottery application (grades 9-12) Application deadline (PK3 – grade 8) Post-lottery application (all grades) Lottery results are released Common enrollment deadline for matched students

March 29: Lottery results Families can access their results by: – Logging into their My School DC family account – Email (if they have an email associated with their account) – Mail (within 3-5 business days; must indicate on application) – Calling the My School DC Hotline (if they forget their login information or if they need assistance understanding their results): 202-888-6336

Sample PK3 Application Results Rank School Preferences Lottery Result 1 Brent Elementary In-boundary Waitlisted #6 2 KIPP DC – Grow Academy PCS Waitlisted #2 3 Van Ness Elementary School Waitlisted #58 4 Appletree PCS - Lincoln Park Matched (Enrollment pending) 5 Maury Elementary School Not Waitlisted 6 Center City PCS – Capitol Hill Not Waitlisted Note: Enrolling your child at their matched school will NOT remove them off waitlists.

Waitlists Applicants are only waitlisted at schools they ranked higher than the school they are matched with. If an applicant is not matched to a school, they are waitlisted at all their options. Example: Applicant applies to 4 schools and is matched with their 3rd choice. Applicant is then automatically waitlisted at their 1st and 2nd choices, but not their 4th. Exception: If an applicant’s sibling is matched at a school the applicant ranked lower than his/her match, they are automatically waitlisted at that school. The waitlisted sibling will receive a “sibling offered” preference on the waitlist. If the sibling who was offered a space at the school does not enroll, the “sibling offered” preference will be removed for all siblings that applied to that same school. This may result in the siblings losing their match, or moving down on the waitlist at that school. Waitlists remain active throughout the duration of a school year and begin anew the following school year. An offer from a waitlist is not guaranteed.

Waitlists My School DC centrally manages waitlists. This means that: – My School DC gives waitlist data to schools who must call students off in the order in which they are listed. – Families can access their current waitlist positions by logging into their My School DC account; they do not have to call the school to obtain. Historical waitlist data by school: http://www.myschooldc.org/resources/data

May 1: Enrollment deadline for matched families If a student is matched to a school: Their legal guardian enrolls the student in person, at the school by May 1, 2019 or they may lose their space. (Remember: Enrolling at your matched school does not remove you off waitlists.) – – – Proof of DC residency My School DC Seat Acceptance Form Additional school requirements, including up-to-date Universal Health Certificate and Oral Health Assessment If a student is not matched to a school: They’ll remain on waitlists. They can check their position on waitlists real-time in their My School DC account. (Visit: http://www.myschooldc.org/enroll/waitlist-management) They can add schools to their application and will be placed at the bottom of those schools’ waitlists below lottery applicants. They can enroll directly at their in-boundary school for grades K-12. If a PK3 or PK4 student, they can explore additional options such as community-based PK. Helpful link: http://www.myschooldc.org/enroll/how-enroll-your-child

My School DC in a nutshell Video: https://youtu.be/sx7-o-ff9y4

Module 2: How to help families choose schools

Public Pre-Kindergarten (PK) The District provides free pre-Kindergarten (PK) education services in its public and public charter schools for residents who meet the PK age cut-offs. To be eligible for any school year: – Students must be 3 by September 30 th to apply to PK3 – Students must be 4 by September 30 th to apply to PK4 Families must use the My School DC application to apply to PK programs offered by schools that participate in My School DC, including: – Public charter schools; and – DCPS PK3 and PK4 programs, including the program/s in families’ in-boundary schools. Helpful link: https://www.myschooldc.org/apply/applying-to-PK

DCPS Early Action PK Early Action PK programs (DCPS ONLY) 17 total schools. View updated list here: https:// www.myschooldc.org/apply/applying-to-PK Guaranteed seat if each of these three conditions are met: 1. Student is in-bounds to one of the 17 schools; 2. Student applies by March 1 deadline; 3. Student is not matched to a more preferred option

Community-based PK The District also offers free high-quality PK for residents through community-based organizations (CBOs). Community-based PK programs are not part of the lottery; families must apply to them separately. To learn more: https:// www.myschooldc.org/find-schools/school-options-ou tside-my-school-dc

Kindergarten (K) To be eligible for Kindergarten in any school year, students must be 5 years of age by Sept. 30th. Students that reside in DC have a DCPS elementary school(s) they have a right to attend without submitting a lottery application. This school is a child’s in-boundary school. You can locate a child’s in-boundary school by using the School Finder: www.find.myschooldc.org Note: If a family seeks to apply to public school options (DCPS or charter) outside of their child’s in-boundary school for Kindergarten, they need to submit a lottery application by Mar. 1.

School Finder Use the School Finder to search by address, grade, and program type and find public schools near you, including your DCPS in-boundary school: www.find.myschooldc.org TIP: Families should always know what their in-boundary schools are and visit them to whatever extent possible as students are guaranteed a right to attend their in-boundary schools for K-12, and receive an in-boundary preference for PK3 and PK4.

DC School Report Card Provides parents with robust, comparable information about all public schools in the District, both DCPS and charter Creates a common evaluation framework and language, the School Transparency and Reporting (STAR) Framework Clear information will help families applying to new schools determine the best fit school for their children Will allow the education sector to make better policy and resource choices Visit https://dcschoolreportcard.org/ to view schools’ report cards.

Historical seat and waitlist data MySchoolDC.org Resources Data Page link: https://www.myschooldc.org/resources/data Historical data: https://public.tableau.com/profile/aaron2446#!/ vizhome/MSDCSeatsandWaitlistOfferData/MSDCPublicDisplay

Historical seat and waitlist data Use this data for informational purposes and to show families historic demand for PK3, PK4, and K at a school. However, families should still rank schools on their application in the order they want most. Remember: Families are only waitlisted at schools they rank above where they’re matched. Typically, the trend is that schools offer less seats as the grades get higher.

Additional resources EdFEST – the annual public school fair MySchoolDC.org – online school profile directory Open houses and My School DC community events: https://www.myschooldc.org/calendar Sample questions to ask school staff at open houses, created by our parent advisors: www.myschooldc.org/resources/resources-families-and-schools Phone assistance in any language at 202-888-6336, M-F, 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. In-person assistance at Briya PCS (Ward 4) and THEARC (Ward 8) during the application season

Learning activity 1. True or False: If a family has a child currently enrolled in a public school, that child’s sibling is guaranteed a spot at that same school. 2. Yes, No, or Maybe: The school closest to where I live is my child’s inboundary school. 3. Exercise: A family lives at 300 Missouri Ave NW and has a rising PK3 student. They want to apply to a public PK3 program and need before and after care. Step 1: Identify the family’s in-boundary PK3 options. Is the student guaranteed a seat at their in-boundary school(s)? Step 2: What schools offer before and after care that are within 1 mile of where they live? Are these schools the same as the child’s in-boundary options?

Module 3: How to apply

My School DC lottery application Step 1: Create a family account: https://apply.myschooldc.dc.gov/login.aspx Step 2: Enter basic information for child and guardian – Student’s name, date of birth, current school/grade, student ID (existing DCPS or charter students only) – Sibling information (name, current grade, current school) – Legal guardian’s name, address, phone number, email (optional), preferred language Step 3: Select schools; families can apply to up to 12 Step 4: Families rank schools in the order they like most Step 5: Review information for accuracy and submit Remember: Families can update their applications up until the date of the application deadline. Helpful link: https://www.myschooldc.org/how-apply/what-you-need-to-apply

Application Support My School DC Hotline (202) 888-6336 [email protected] M – F, 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. Multilingual support available Field offices Complete applications over the phone Login lookup Results lookup Midyear application Ward 4 – Briya PCS 3912 Georgia Ave NW Wednesdays (Dec. 12 – Feb. 27) 3 – 6PM 1-on-1 Phone Consultations Ward 8 – AppleTree PCS – Parklands @THEARC 1801 Mississippi Ave SE Tuesdays (Dec. 11 – Feb. 26) 3 – 6PM Walk-ins welcome! Multilingual support available at each office. 30-min appointments with hotline staff Available Fridays in February Book online at https:// www.myschooldc.org/bookapt

Module 4: Post-lottery and mid-year applications

Post-lottery application (upcoming SY) If a family: Misses the lottery application deadlines; Does not receive a match in the lottery; or Identifies additional schools they would like to apply to they can apply post-lottery through MySchoolDC.org. The post-lottery application is available through October 6. Important: The post-lottery application is “first come, first served.” Applicants are added to the bottom of WLs below lottery applicants except if they have a lottery preference. The post-lottery application opens on Feb. 2 for grades 9-12 and Mar. 2 for all grades. Important: The best chance at getting into a school of choice is by applying in the lottery. Helpful link: https://www.myschooldc.org/faq/faqs#post-lotto

Mid-year application (current SY) Families who: Move into the District mid-year; or Seek a transfer from their current school to another public school can apply through My School DC by calling the hotline. The mid-year application is available October 6 through March 22 for SY1819. Important: Students must use the My School DC mid-year application for midyear placement, unless they seek to attend their K-12 DCPS in-boundary school at which they can directly enroll. Helpful link: https:// www.myschooldc.org/midyear

Timeline in action 2018 Jun Jul Aug Sept 2019 Oct SY18-19 Post-lottery application Students may un-enroll in schools as they are offered spots from waitlists Schools that have not met their enrollment target continue to recruit Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May SY18-19 Mid-year application SY19-20 lottery application Schools provide SY19-20 profile data Students enroll for SY19-20 SY19-20 Post lottery application Count day EdFEST Feb 1: Deadline (gr 9-12) Mar 1: Deadline (gr PK3-8) Mar 29: Results release May 1: Enrollment deadline for matched students

Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions How many schools can I apply to? UP TO 12 – You should only apply to schools that you would send your child to. – If you are even considering a school, add it to your lottery application instead of waiting. – If you have more than 12 you like, think about your family priorities when deciding which to include. Why does ranking matter? – The computer program we use to run the lottery is programmed to match students with the school they prefer most when there is room. – If the lottery is able to match you at one of your school selections, you are waitlisted only at schools above where you are matched; the ones below are removed. Remember: Enrolling at your matched school does not remove you off waitlists. What happens if I don’t get matched at any school? – – – – You are waitlisted at all schools. You can add more schools to your application once results are released. If attending grades K-12, you can always enroll directly at your DCPS in-boundary school. For PK3 and PK4, you can explore community-based PK options. For a complete list, click here: https:// www.myschooldc.org/find-schools/school-options-outside-my-school-dc

Helpful checklist for families Sign up for My School DC email and text alerts: https://www.myschooldc.org/sign-alerts Beginning Dec. 10, create your My School DC family account on MySchoolDC.org. Make a note of your login information in a safe place. Remember: All siblings must be registered under the same account. Start here: https://apply.myschooldc.dc.gov/login.aspx Identify what is important to you and your child in a school; write these priorities and any questions you may have of schools down. Use the School Finder to generate a list of schools based on your priorities, and locate your inboundary schools: http://find.myschooldc.org/ Check out each schools’ My School DC profile, DC School Report Card, and visit their websites. Go to EdFEST, visit schools, and use your networks! Based on your research, put your list in the order you like most (1 st choice, 2nd choice, 3rd choice). Remember: You can modify your My School DC application up until the day of the deadline.

Contact My School DC Hotline (202) 888-6336 [email protected] Monday – Fridays, 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. MySchoolDC.org