
Loved the open house. The place really impressed me, but there were so many hopeful parents there for OOB; the odds look discouraging.
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Indeed, but it is all a lottery! |
Hi
I'm confused. I read on the Oyster website that if you live in the catchment area, you are able to get it and send your child. We're from out of town and thinking of relocating to DC. So, if you wouldn't mind explaining, what is OOB and how does the lottery work? Thanks Kelly |
Kelly,
From K-8, in-boundary students are automatically accepted. The lottery is only for Pre-K and students who live outside the boundary. |
OOB =Out of Boundry |
The odds are indeed discouraging - not even #1 on the waitlist gets into Oyster OOB. Fortunately there are other immersion and FLES programs in DCPS & DC charters. I strongly encourage you to apply to as many of them as you can find b/c the odds are not in your favor.
Good luck. |
Our neighbors were #1 (English-speaking) OOB for the lottery for pre-k and did not get a spot. We were way down on the waitlist both years we tried to get in. Our daughter goes to Bancroft now which is also a bilingual school and we've all been happy there. |
The Oyster odds are not good but the other bilingual programs are worth looking into. If you have your heart set on a school, you can always move in boundaries; plenty of people move for just that reason. |
Supposedly the only person who got their kid in despite OOB, no sibs, and the pre-k 4 lottery (odds are better for winning powerball three times in a row) is Deputy Mayor for Education Victor Reinoso. No idea if this is true or just sour grapes, but it does highlight the craziness of pre-k 4 not being universal (yet) in a city like ours. ITA with pp, there are a lot more language oriented programs, not all 50/50 bilingual like Oyster, but you have to kind of hunt for them. Any parents who can make alternate Oyster recs? |
DC Bilingual = Spanish immersion
Shepherd Elementary = French & Spanish immersion Washington Yu Ying = Mandarin immersion |
LAMB |
John Thompson has Chinese. It's not an immersion program, but it is still FLES (Foreign Language in Elementary School). Some students get in via OOB. It's still a lottery, but better odds than Oyster. Also, they're gearing up to do the International Baccalaureate PYP. |
FWIW - My DC did get into Oyster pre-k via OOB lottery, but that was before the merger with Adams and as a Spanish speaker. OOB lottery is probably harder since they merged with Adams, but in DC's class there were several other no-sibling OOB Spanish speakers and at least one English speaker that I can remember. |
Is LAMB still a good option? I heard that a lot of people have left since last year and went to Stokes. Does anyone know if there's any truth to that? |
I was unable to attend the Open House. I think it is interesting that I cannot find any information on line about how to enter the lottery process. Can anyone provide insight? |