I have not been through this myself, but just generally in thinking about how bureaucracy works, I'm wondering about this (from your OP):

"What we need is for the school at which we would like my kid to enroll to be listed in the coming IEP as our specific enrollment option. But we won't do that until we can confirm they are in fact willing and able to enroll our kid."

Why don't you just... list it? And then if you get a "no" somewhere down the line, you deal with it then? I find with a lot of bureaucracy, especially in this kind of situation where you have something in writing that supports your desire (the OSSE language) if you just confidently assume you'll be getting what you want, and present your choices as a done deal, instead of asking, you can make more progress. Tell ES the IEP should say Charter School X. When they say "well, are you approved for them?" you say "they're happy to have us, and the OSSE regulation says they can" and go with it. Make someone say "no" instead of "I don't know." If they say "I don't know" you say, "oh, I do, the OSSE language is clear, they're going to go to Charter X."

Might work, it's at least worth a shot.

The charter anticipates your daughter could attend next year and does not want to alienate you. But a lot of charter schools really arent well setup to service IEPs. If the IEP is not written yet, it can be drafted to cover the charter school option in addition to a backup option. You can bring it up at the meetings and talk to a manger. But if ES staff starts gently telling you dcps might be better, listen to them. PreK is kind of weird in that the quality of the teachers/program (warmth/size/individual attention) does not always align with school reputation and this is an extra foundational year for your daughter who is only now turning 3.

Anonymous wrote:I genuinely think that an early stages seat at your zoned dcps is likely to be 10x better than a seat at a charter school that is not fully enrolled for preK.

This. DCPS preK tends to be pretty good even at schools with low test scores.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's not because your post merely mentions DCPS. It's because you're asking a legal or regulatory and procedural question that is specific to DCPS.

Regardless of the rules, it seems like your charter is determined to refuse you. Your situation is uncommon enough that you might not find anyone here who has experienced it. You can hire a professional to try and help you, but ultimately that may not succeed.

I would try the DCPS Office of the Ombudsperson next.

Try to bear in mind, before you go to battle with your school, that OSSE may be incorrect. They often are.

The thing is, they're really not looking to refuse us. The school's leadership is new enough to DC that they literally had no idea that there's a policy that allows some kids to start early. The issue is that this leadership has now gone to Early Stages twice to get guidance on how to engage in this unfamiliar process, and twice been given either irrelevant or baseless information from the agency that is confusing and misleading school staffers about my kid's eligibility, and seems designed to discourage us from pursuing any avenue but our zoned school. After the second round, ES contacted me also and said charters weren't service providers for early PK3, just DCPS - and I responded that OSSE guidance says the two are considered the same category when it comes to this process, and that they should point me toward any written guidance to the contrary. They have not yet responded.

The charter seems to be doing its (confused, less-informed) best, but is being steered badly by ES, and the result is that we're caught in crazy-making situation: all we need is for ES to confirm the clearly written existing policy, after which the charter can confirm whether or not we can enroll, and then ES can release an accurate IEP with an accurate school destination...whatever that school may be! Instead, we can't even have a conversation about enrollment with a school that by every other indication does want us, because the relevant agency is giving everyone irrelevant or misleading information about existing policy. I'm happy to reach out to the DC ombudsman, but posted here first to see if there were any parents who had experience with early PK3 who could confirm or rebut my understanding of this process. The OSSE language all reads pretty straightforward, but maybe I've missed something? Has anyone ever enrolled in early PK3 anywhere, DCPS or charter, that wasn't their zoned school? Or tried to do so and been told they couldn't - not due to space, but due to some OSSE requirement that isn't listed with posted web guidance?

Well, what your school says to your face vs what they actually want may be different. They might be thrilled that they can blame ES while still not taking a high needs kid for free. Sorry to be so cynical but I've been a parent in this system for 10 years.

There is tons of OSSE guidance that isn't posted or is hard to dig up.

Whoever you're talking to at ES, try escalating to their manager.

You are missing that the charter needs to be setup to service the IEP. They get zero money for it.

I genuinely think that an early stages seat at your zoned dcps is likely to be 10x better than a seat at a charter school that is not fully enrolled for preK.

Anonymous wrote:It's not because your post merely mentions DCPS. It's because you're asking a legal or regulatory and procedural question that is specific to DCPS.

Regardless of the rules, it seems like your charter is determined to refuse you. Your situation is uncommon enough that you might not find anyone here who has experienced it. You can hire a professional to try and help you, but ultimately that may not succeed.

I would try the DCPS Office of the Ombudsperson next.

Try to bear in mind, before you go to battle with your school, that OSSE may be incorrect. They often are.

The thing is, they're really not looking to refuse us. The school's leadership is new enough to DC that they literally had no idea that there's a policy that allows some kids to start early. The issue is that this leadership has now gone to Early Stages twice to get guidance on how to engage in this unfamiliar process, and twice been given either irrelevant or baseless information from the agency that is confusing and misleading school staffers about my kid's eligibility, and seems designed to discourage us from pursuing any avenue but our zoned school. After the second round, ES contacted me also and said charters weren't service providers for early PK3, just DCPS - and I responded that OSSE guidance says the two are considered the same category when it comes to this process, and that they should point me toward any written guidance to the contrary. They have not yet responded.

The charter seems to be doing its (confused, less-informed) best, but is being steered badly by ES, and the result is that we're caught in crazy-making situation: all we need is for ES to confirm the clearly written existing policy, after which the charter can confirm whether or not we can enroll, and then ES can release an accurate IEP with an accurate school destination...whatever that school may be! Instead, we can't even have a conversation about enrollment with a school that by every other indication does want us, because the relevant agency is giving everyone irrelevant or misleading information about existing policy. I'm happy to reach out to the DC ombudsman, but posted here first to see if there were any parents who had experience with early PK3 who could confirm or rebut my understanding of this process. The OSSE language all reads pretty straightforward, but maybe I've missed something? Has anyone ever enrolled in early PK3 anywhere, DCPS or charter, that wasn't their zoned school? Or tried to do so and been told they couldn't - not due to space, but due to some OSSE requirement that isn't listed with posted web guidance?

Also this — charter schools hate enrolling new students after count day. They get no additional funding for them. So the charter school is potentially being nice to you because you are a current family while telling ES they are not setup to support your daughter.

I think what you're encountering is that charter schools feel free to violate OSSE policy if they think they can get away with it, and there's very little a parent can do. You can make a complaint to the PCSB but they won't care.

I suspect the school doesn't want your kid because kids with SN are more costly to educate, and they especially don't want an underage kid with SN because younger kids require the most attention. So they're going to stall until you give up. Sorry, this is the reality of our system.

Not filling up PK3 is a red flag, btw, about your school's performance and financial stability.

Unclear if the charter school your son attends is setup for the IEP services your daughter needs and ES needs to supervise. I think your “poorly performing” zoned school is likely the better option for this preK year.

Yes, you need to go through early stages as part of their IEP plan. Getting a preK placement is case by case and done through them. My child qualified for some speech-related services during the year she turned 3 and they just started them at her school the following fall.

What reasons is ES giving you? Maybe we can help you make sense of them

It's not because your post merely mentions DCPS. It's because you're asking a legal or regulatory and procedural question that is specific to DCPS.

Regardless of the rules, it seems like your charter is determined to refuse you. Your situation is uncommon enough that you might not find anyone here who has experienced it. You can hire a professional to try and help you, but ultimately that may not succeed.

I would try the DCPS Office of the Ombudsperson next.

Try to bear in mind, before you go to battle with your school, that OSSE may be incorrect. They often are.

Have you contacted Early Stages? They are the people who let the school know that your child meets eligibility criteria and they should be enrolled to fill an "early stages" pre-k3 seat.

(Posting here because the special needs forum keeps saying all questions that even mention DCPS belong in this forum)
My kid has a minor delay - just enough to qualify to start PK3 on her third birthday in a few months. The OSSE language seems pretty unequivocal: "To be eligible for Pre-Kindergarten 3 (PK3), a child must turn age three by September 30. However, three-year-old children with active IEPs are entitled to enroll in DCPS or public charter LEAs with available seats that accept midyear transfer students at any time once the child is three years old, regardless of when in the year they turn three." And then they detail the process by which this occurs at DCPS schools and charters, mentioning both as a singular category throughout the document.

We are zoned for a (poorly performing) public school, but my kid's older brother is in a bilingual charter school with available PK3 seats that accepts midyear transfers and provides language support for both languages spoken in our home. OSSE policy on PK3 early starts says sibling preference and other factors can be taken into account when relevant. So if my kid - who is dealing with a speech delay - qualifies, and the school is willing to enroll her to attend with her brother - all good, no?

No. First the charter wasn't sure they could enroll her for this year because they'd never heard of this birthday cutoff exception for IEP kids (some new staffers), so when I mentioned this was a special provision via Early Stages they reached out to that agency for clarity - and ES told them there are only a few schools in the city that can enroll kids for PK when they're under the age of 3, and that they weren't one of those schools. True enough - but not even remotely what we'd asked about. So I told the school to circle back to ES to stress that they were asking about enrollment for a kid with an IEP after her 3rd birthday - at which point the ES response was that charter schools are in a different category than other public schools, and that the early PK3 start and special services provision just applies to zoned DCPS public schools... even though there is literally nothing anywhere in OSSE guidance that even implies the slightest distinction between the two - private schools are treated as a clearly delineated special category, while charter schools are grouped with regular DCPS.

Obviously zoned schools have a special obligation to enroll ES PK3 if they can, but other DCPS and charter schools clearly have the option. Now, I get that this situation - a school being willing to voluntarily enroll a kid with special needs after count day - probably doesn't come up often, but by my read there's literally nothing in the rules that prohibits it. What we need is for the school at which we would like my kid to enroll to be listed in the coming IEP as our specific enrollment option. But we won't do that until we can confirm they are in fact willing and able to enroll our kid. And the school won't do that until ES confirms the very clear OSSE policy written in black and white on the website. And so far, ES isn't doing that...for reasons. They just keep coming up with irrelevant or inaccurate "reasons" our only option is our zoned school and we can't even have a conversation with any other.

Am I correct in my read on this policy? Or am I missing something? If you've had a PK3 kid start early due to an IEP, did they tell you you had to seek enrollment at your zoned school before looking elsewhere? If so - where on earth can one find the language stating that requirement...is it written in invisible ink? What's our next move to get an eligible kid enrolled at a school with space?