If we didn't participate in lottery...

[Anonymous]

we're moving to DC around January. Since we didn't participate in the school lottery, are we limited to our neighborhood school?

[Anonymous]

What grade / what school? For PK grades, you might not even be able to join your neighborhood school.

[Anonymous]

Your neighborhood school (if it has space and offers the grade you want) and anywhere else that has space. Tell us grade and neighborhood school and we can be more helpful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Your neighborhood school (if it has space and offers the grade you want) and anywhere else that has space. Tell us grade and neighborhood school and we can be more helpful.

No. If it's kindergarten or above, you are guaranteed a place in your neighborhood school regardless of whether it has "space."

Also, if your child is in PK, the school might be able to find space for you even if officially it didn't go through the waiting list at the beginning of the year -- I know that happened with at least one child in my neighborhood school when her family moved to the neighborhood in the spring.

[Anonymous]

Child is in Pre-K

[Anonymous]

You may not get a slot anywhere, then, as pre-k is not guaranteed except in limited schools.

[Anonymous]

OP, do you know your address yet? What I think you will have to do is make a list of all the schools to which you can feasibly commute, and then call each and ask if they have PK spots.

[Anonymous]

don't just call. go to myschooldc.org and do a post-lotto application. http://www.myschooldc.org/faq/faqs/#post-lotto. The sooner you do it the higher on the waitlist you'll be.

Most schools have very long waitlists for PK now and are unlikely to take kids who do a post-lotto application. You should definitely apply to whatever your in-bounds school is as you get a priority there (but there are schools where most in-bounds kids get waitlisted for PK, and schools mostly in Ward 3 that don't offer PK for 3 year olds). In general, the schools that tend to have space available this late in the year are east of the Anacostia River (Wards 7 and 8), have low test scores (only kids in grades 3-5 are tested, so that may or may not be a concern for you in PK), and are far from metro stations. One charter which is likely to have space is Sela, which is a bilingual Hebrew (non-religious) school near the Ft. Totten metro. Schools that only have PK, or a few grades above that but not PK-5, tend to go through their waitlists faster. Those include Van Ness (DCPS) and Bridges and Appletree (charters).

[Anonymous]

I'd be very surprised if Bridges hoes through its WL this year. It has barely moved and unless there is crazy movement we aren't holding our breath.

You can also look at the availability by grade for each school. It will show you open spots.

[Anonymous]

I would look at Amidon too.

[Anonymous]

Just re-read this and realized you're not moving here until January (2016, I presume). You won't be able to do a post-lotto application because you won't be able to enroll your kid by the deadline (unless you live close by and are willing to pay non-resident tuition...and you will be at the very bottom of the waitlist).

If you apply in January, it will be especially hard to get a seat at that point, since schools will have filled their classes, teachers won't want to bring in someone new, and charters don't get any extra money for taking a kid mid-year. You don't have any right to attend PK, in your neighborhood school or elsewhere.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would look at Amidon too.

you can look but they have over 20 kids on the waitlist.

[Anonymous]

But a charter will not get paid for a new student in January so there is little incentive for them to open a spot for you - even if there is space.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Just re-read this and realized you're not moving here until January (2016, I presume). You won't be able to do a post-lotto application because you won't be able to enroll your kid by the deadline (unless you live close by and are willing to pay non-resident tuition...and you will be at the very bottom of the waitlist).

If you apply in January, it will be especially hard to get a seat at that point, since schools will have filled their classes, teachers won't want to bring in someone new, and charters don't get any extra money for taking a kid mid-year. You don't have any right to attend PK, in your neighborhood school or elsewhere.

As if they have a say in this type of a decision.

[Anonymous]

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