Do you have to be a DC resident to apply for the lottery?

[Anonymous]

Specifically interested in the Yu Ying school. I have been getting conflicting information.

[Anonymous]

Really?

[Anonymous]

Yes. You do. Otherwise it's cheating and you can and will get thrown out.

[Anonymous]

Oh boy. Everyone on here will tell you no and be super snarky about it, but the real answer seems to be yes.

See this thread:

http://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/322420.page#3881816

[Anonymous]

Immediate PP again - and of course, you will need to move to DC to ENROLL or you are breaking the law. Answering specifically the question about do you need to be a resident to APPLY.

[Anonymous]

LOL - immediate PP again - meant to say, everyone on here will tell you YES you have to be a resident to apply and be super snarky about it, but the real answer seems to be NO, you do not have to be a resident to apply!

[Anonymous]

But if you're not a resident, you have to use your actual address - which puts you at the absolute back of the line in the categories of priority. And if you put a fake address, yes, that's cheating.

[Anonymous]

To clarify, no, you do not need to be a resident to apply for the lottery. You can be a non-resident and apply as a non-resident and if there are any spaces left after all the residents have been admitted, they will be offered to you for a fee. However, since there will also be a waiting list 400 years long filled with residents, there will not be any spaces left for non-residents.

The only way to get in as a non-resident would be to lie in the lottery application and use a DC address, which would be cheating and, if discovered, would get your child kicked out of school. Obviously if you have purchased or rented a primary residence in DC and just have not moved into it yet (due to being from out of state and waiting until the end of the year, for example, or due to a closing date being next month), you might call the school and ask them about your specific situation.

[Anonymous]

Call the school. A friend was in this situation 2 years ago. They were told - apply using your real address. You will be put in the lottery. If you "win" you need to show evidence of DC residency by the date that you need to prove residency.

If you can not do that, you are put at the end of the list and can pay Out of District tuitio if you get in.

[Anonymous]

Not exactly an answer to OP's question, since YY is not participating in the common lottery, but here is what the My School DC common lottery website says:

"What if I am not a DC resident now, but I am moving to DC?

"On the application, you have the option of applying without a DC address. If you use this option, you will not receive in-boundary or proximity preferences.

"If you are matched with a school through the lottery, you must accept your space by May 1. Accepting your space requires submitting required enrollment forms and proving DC residency."

So, under the common lottery, you could apply to a charter school or to an OOB DCPS from out of state, but you would have to prove DC residency prior to accepting the slot, which you have to do by May 1st.

OP, I would call YY and ask specifically what their policy is. Please report back once you do.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Call the school. A friend was in this situation 2 years ago. They were told - apply using your real address. You will be put in the lottery. If you "win" you need to show evidence of DC residency by the date that you need to prove residency.

If you can not do that, you are put at the end of the list and can pay Out of District tuitio if you get in.

This.

[Anonymous]

So if you apply to a charter with an out of state address, are you put in the pool along with the DC residents, or are you at the bottom? The FAQ linked above seems to imply that you are in the pool along with DC residents, you will just not receive in-boundary or proximity preferences (which are DCPS only).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So if you apply to a charter with an out of state address, are you put in the pool along with the DC residents, or are you at the bottom? The FAQ linked above seems to imply that you are in the pool along with DC residents, you will just not receive in-boundary or proximity preferences (which are DCPS only).

I read it as that you are put in a pool with DC residents, but then you have to prove your residency. Presumably, if you can't, you're put at the end of the line, after all DC residents are offered slots. I wonder whether there will be a box to ask whether you are going to move to DC if you are not currently living there to distinguish between the two. If this applies to you, you could get in contact with the common lottery people for more info--the website has a phone # and email contact info.

[Anonymous]

OP here. We plan to move in the near future. If we got into YY (long shot I know), we would move to DC. If we did not get in, we will most likely move to N Arlington.

DH and I both work in DC. Could we use our work address for just the lotto and move if we get in? We would never trek our kids to DC from VA if we did get in. I just want to enter the lotto and if we win, we would plan accordingly.

[Anonymous]

OP again. I did not even think to enter until I met a mom who insisted that VA residents could apply. She would be willing to drive her child to DC if her son gained entrance.