Reply to "Choice out"

Forum Index » Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS)

Reply to ""Choice out""

Subject:

Emoticons





More smilies

Text Color: Font: Close Marks

[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I am so confused by these Choice options.

[b]Is there a place on the Arlington website that explains all the options?[/b]

It sounds like there are times when a family can choose (i.e. through a lottery) to not attend a neighborhood school and go to another school.  However, you can not lottery into any school in APS.  Just the ones that are open to the lottery.  These open to the lottery schools can be made up of all lottery kids?  Or part lottery and part zoned neighborhood?

There are also schools that you have to test into?  Like TJ High School.  Are there any elementary or middle schools that you can "test" into?

I need a place where this is all broken down.

I would also like to know the odds of being able to lottery into any of the lottery schools.  Is that recorded somewhere?[/quote]

Doubt it's all in one place, so I'll help. No idea about the chances of getting in to any program. I think it varies by year. I doubt this is information that APS collects/analyzes. They don't publicize the number of applicants or length of waitlists either.

There had been a hodgepodge of policies that resulted in some schools being 100% lottery and others being hybrids, where there was a neighborhood zone but then also a lottery component (certain kids, based on where they lived, were guaranteed spots and then anyone outside that area could enter a lottery). But given the severe overcrowding, these policies were not working and, as you noted, are just confusing. Anyway, the SB updated the admissions policies across the board in June, to be effective come fall 2018. Going forward, every child has a zoned neighborhood elementary school. Then there are the "option" elementary schools, and they are all now 100% lottery: Montessori, ATS, and Campbell (EL). The only wrinkle is that since there were TWO existing immersion schools, the county is divided into E/W zones, and if you're in the E zone you'd apply to Key and if you're in the W zone you'd apply to Claremont. I think if one school fills and the other one does not, the waitlist will be transferred so you'd have an equal chance at getting in through the lottery regardless of where you live.

At the MS level, you have the option to continue in Immersion and Montessori (both programs are housed within the neighborhood MS Gunston). There is no MS option for continuation of Campbell EL or the traditional model found at ATS. But, then there is HB Woodlawn that goes from 6-12. I think it was started as a smaller school for kids who don't do well in a traditional comprehensive HS setting (it used to be known as "Hippie High") but it's become more of an elite option, like a private public school given that it has capped enrollment, the highest test/SAT scores, and will have a brand new super fancy building while all the other HS become overcrowded and have limited options to address the crowding. I think people apply for different reasons now than they may have in the past given the very different circumstances within the school system (for instance, parents who supposedly love ATS for the traditional model, but then opt for the least traditional school come 6th grade--schools at totally different ends of the educational spectrum. But they do share capped enrollment, the self-selecting nature of kids/parents, and very powerful and $$ PTAs, and I think that is attractive to a number of parents, myself included.

At the HS level you have the option to continue in Immersion (currently program is housed within Wakefield). Then there is the new school named Arlington Tech. It's hard to describe what it is--not really a VoTech program, but not TJHSST either. It's a small program now, something like 250 students, but they want to grow it to over 1,200 I believe. Then there is a new program that will be sited at W-L HS, but no decision has been made on the program's focus. Ideas floated include: an expanded IB program, a 9th Grade academy, or a World Languages program.

There are no "test-in" programs or schools within APS. APS does participate with TJHSST, though. I think there are something like 7 spots set aside for Arlington kids every year.

[/quote]

Options

	Disable HTML in this message
	Disable BB Code in this message
	Disable smilies in this message

Review message

Search Recent Topics Hottest Topics