Question for DC Public School parents--please read it may affect you

[Anonymous]

I was just reading the information that came with the "letter of intent form"
from Chancellor Rhee's office that everybody should be getting. It is dated Jan
21.


Way at the bottom in small letters it says:

"If you lived in-boundary for Brent (in in my case)
at the time of enrollment but now live out-of-boundary, you may either enroll at
your new in-boundary school or apply to stay at Brent through the DCPS
Out-of-Boundary Lottery.

HUH? I was under the impression that once you were enrolled in a school, you
have a right to stay there and move through its feeder pattern even if you move
out of boundary??? This little footnote seems to suggest that if you move
houses, out of your school's boundary area, you lose the right to attend that
school.

While I can understand not wanting people to rent a condo near Oyster, for
example, and then move out once your child is enrolled, this seems like a MAJOR
dis-incentive to enroll at your in-boundary school. You'd be better of trying
through the out-of-boundary lottery at the get go so you can at least stay there
if you move.

Can someone tell me if this is a change this year, or if it has always been this
way, or if schools just never really checked each year if their in-boundary
families had moved?

Thoughts?

[Anonymous]

It's always been that way and is that way EVERYWHERE.

Stop being so defensive. It's the rules. It's the rules in MontCo, in Fairfax - literally everywhere

[Anonymous]

Please - this is not Fairfax county and the poster is not being defensive.

This is very odd - usual practice has been once you are in, you are in. What is your new in boundary school?

[Anonymous]

No this was not the case when we moved out of boundaries for my daughters DCPS elementary school. You do need to find out what is going on.

[Anonymous]

You can thank Rhee for the change in OOB policy. She has been changing boundaries and feeder patterns. Too bad the Post doesn't notice.

[Anonymous]

Kids should stay in the school they start in if they have been there a certain amount of time (one year? two years?). Just makes sense in every way.

[Anonymous]

Here is a response from DCPS, interpret at will:

Students who enroll as in-boundary students and remain in-boundary may, of course, remain at the school for all of its available grades. We have established by policy the same guarantee for students who are admitted as out-of-boundary students through the formal out-of-boundary lottery or through another approved route. The rule in question addresses students who enroll as in-boundary students, and who subsequently move out-of-boundary. The DC Municipal Regulations (DCMR) specifically allow the principal to authorize the student to continue at the school through the end of the school year. In addition, as per DCMR, these students can be required at the end of the school year to transfer to their new in-boundary school. If this is the case, they may apply to stay at their current school as an out-of-boundary student. The person charged with enforcing this rule is the school principal.



While we understand why some parents might be frustrated by this rule, we also understand the reasoning behind it. Say for example that a parent rents an apartment in a particular school’s boundary for the month of August so that he can enroll his child at that school. (This may seem outlandish, but we have actually seen this situation before.) Then, once the student is enrolled, the parent stops renting the apartment, all the while having been living at his actual place of residence outside the school boundary. Essentially, this parent has circumvented the available, legitimate avenues for parents to secure an out-of-boundary transfer (ex. the Out of Boundary Lottery), and has placed other parents seeking to secure an out-of-boundary transfer to this school at an unfair disadvantage.



Thus, we included the language at the bottom of the letter in order to protect principals’ right to enforce this regulation where applicable.



Here are the relevant excerpts from DC Municipal Regulations:



2105.2 A student whose place of residence within the District of Columbia changes from one attendance zone to a different attendance zone shall be transferred to the school serving the attendance zone where the student’s new place of residence is located. This requirement is subject to the exceptions set forth in §§ 2105.5 and 2105.7.



2105.3 Transfers due to change of address shall be effected by the principal of the school from which the student is being transferred.

…

2105.5 To provide for continuity of instruction, especially in the case of high school seniors scheduled to graduate the following June, the principal may authorize the continued attendance of the student at the school currently being attended for the remainder of the term or school year.

…

2105.7 The provisions of § 2106 [which governs the out-of-boundary lottery] may be applied to a student whose change of place of residence would require a transfer under this section. A student who meets the requirements of § 2106 for out-of-zone attendance may be allowed to remain at the school currently being attended notwithstanding his or her change of address.

[Anonymous]

Awesome! So the Fenty will be playing the lottery this year for 5th grade spots at Lafayette?

[Anonymous]

hmmm
I don't know if it applies, as their address hasn't changed...

[Anonymous]

find the other fine print that says the chancellor has the right to authorize admission for kids in OOB schools, that's how Fenty got into Lafayette

[Anonymous]

I have been in DCPS for almost 10 years and this has always been the case. It is up to the principal. Ask nicely.

[Anonymous]

What 20:11 said. You move, you're out of boundary. OOB are in for the duration once they're in. Principals have been known to let this slide (in-boundary moving OOB), I'm not sure if that's true under Fenty/Rhee. Call your principal and good luck!

[Anonymous]

Agreed that this has always been the rule. I looked this up and read through the rules last year when I was trying to figure out how this worked. There seems to be a perception out there, however, that the rule has never been enforced.

Also, for the reasons identified in the 17:41 post, it makes perfect sense.

[Anonymous]

I am the original poster and I agree fully that the rule makes sense. I just object to the murky and confused nature of communication around it. For example, I have been told explicitly "once a student, always a student even if you move out of boundary" by other parents and PTA officials. Not true. I just want everyone to be AWARE of the rule and the possible exceptions to it so there are no surprises.

[Anonymous]

This rule is perfectly reasonable and makes perfectly good sense. It is the same rule that is applied all over the country - the only difference is that in most places there is no such thing as an OOB to start with, you just have to go to the school where you are inbounds in most places. There is nothing sinister about this and nothing particularly confusing about the way it was communicated in the letter OP referenced.