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Applications down 21% on myschooldc
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Anonymous
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Not sure this has been covered, but the press release last week shows a 21% decline yoy in applications. I think this is just the tip of the iceberg. DCPS enrollment looks like it has plummeted and will continue to do so. And the city has only itself to blame.
https://www.myschooldc.org/sites/default/files/dc/sites/myschooldc/page/attachments/Final_PRESS%20RELEASE%20SY21-22%20Lottery%20Results.pdf |
Anonymous
I think the city wants this. Much cheaper to operate a city that is a playground for the single and childless than provide services for families. |
Anonymous
They are certainly acting like it. |
Anonymous
This datapoint could also be evidence that familiies are hesitant to change from a known quantity (i.e., current care/school). Evidence of your iceberg will be the reenrollment numbers. This data is not limited to DCPS but also to the participating charter schools. |
Anonymous
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I'm not sure why the assumption that applications will continue to go down. This year was an anomaly because of the mostly-virtual school year and unknown 2021-22 plans. Lots of more affluent parents of 3-4 year olds decided to keeo their kids in full time daycare, at private preschools or with nanny rather than go for public PK. And some other parents switched kids to parochial or other private schools.
Beyond that, again for parents of the youngest students especially, some families moved out of the city to all kids of different places where they have extended family and/or where schools were more open and they've decided to stay there (a trend among childless people who can work remotely and want a lower cost of living too). |
Anonymous
Attracting single, childless college graduates has been the District's strategy since Anthony Williams. And is the strategy employed by most major American cities - and for good reason. That said, universal, but nor compulsory, PK3/PK4 is about as family friendly you can get; all DCPL-owned libraries have been rebuilt/in planning, schools and parks rebuilt. I feel much more "supported" by the District (parent of 2) than my friends will kids in the suburbs and other area. |
Anonymous
Those affluent parents would be lottering in for next year (which is what this data reflects- how people are looking at next year) if they planned to attend. And yes, you are exactly right- people fled the city to place where schools were and plan to be OPEN. If you have a kid in 5th or above, there is little confidence in the fact that they will be in school full time next year, despite the mayor's declarations. The schools themselves are not convinced. I believe the decline will snowball because I think once parents lose confidence in a system, it spreads. And in the DC area, there are so many choices - privates, MD, VA, etc., that parents can leave fairly easily. |
Anonymous
How old are your kids though? Once you are through PK, priorities change. |
Anonymous
This is silly. DC is at the extreme high-end of dollars per pupil. They are one of the few cities in the country offering full-day, free PK3. You may not agree with the approach, but it's pretty hard to question the commitment. |
Anonymous
+1. Other than free PK, which can be hard for many people to use, how do you feel that you are better supported by DC than you would be in the suburbs? I'm not necessarily saying the suburbs are better, but on what else do you think DC is better and not just equal? |
Anonymous
You don’t need to use the lottery or MSDC if you plan on attending your neighborhood school. I’m not saying their hasn’t been a decline, but I’m sure there’s plenty of parents deciding between private and public, or who skipped MSDC entirely because they’ll just be enrolling instead. |
Anonymous
Actually it's not. If they were committed, they would...you know...allow kids to attend school, like they do in most of the rest of the country. |
Anonymous
As a parent of older kids, I didn't feel it is hugely different from the burbs (and possibly better given the charter options) until this year. But, like many others, I have lost faith in the city's ability to educate my kids and frankly, it interest in doing so. Add to that the work from home world, and we are bailing to the burbs. |
Anonymous
One is past PK; the other is not. I guess my question to you is what do you believe is missing? |
Anonymous
Pk3/PK4 is not universal in DC in the sense that anyone who wants it can get it. I think we have a great ECE program here, but I would not call it universal. |