In the past, for the DCPS lotteries, each school was essentially considered it's own lottery with preference offered for in-boundary, proximity, and having sibling preference. I had hoped that as a unified lottery was pursued the lottery would begin providing a weighted preference based on how high you ranked a school--so if you're out-of-boundary for two schools and rank one as your top choice you'd actually have a bit more chance to get a spot at that top ranked school in the initial lottery pull. Trying to match families up with their top choice in the initial lottery will create more stability and help diminish the shuffle in late summer.

So will this new lottery incorporate some weighting that gives a family a better shot at getting a spot or will each school's lottery continue to be essentially stand-alone?

This is a problem, the initial lottery/wait list process may be fair and limit double enrollment, but once the waitlists are handed over to the administration to be managed all integrity is lost. None of the charter or DCPS administrators are double-checked or held accountable as to how they manage those waitlists.

I asked a question somewhat related to this at a recent open house for a charter participating int he common lottery; if you accept a spot at a school, and then get off the waitlist over the summer at another school, do they share the information? The principal said clearly that no, they do not share the information with one another -- it is incumbent on the family to remove themselves from the school in which they originally enrolled. I'm pretty sure that they are not going to share waitlist information with one another. Rather, more likely is that each school will submit to the PCSB, as they did this past summer, a list of enrolled students, and the PCSB will let them know if people are double-enrolled.

Also, maybe I'm naive, but I really don't feel like school officials have the time to try to figure out how the families who enroll ranked them. And even if they did, I don't think it would affect how students are treated.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
You don't give up your spot in your current school by entering the lottery. Just apply to #1 school. If you get in, take the spot. #2 school won't even know you applied to #1, unless you leave for #1.

Whew! And yea!

I am not sure that is true since I thought I read that the common lottery would share wait list and acceptance info with all schools to prevent hogging wait lists.

That is correct, but you will not be in violation of anything unless you accept the spot at #1 and don't let #2 know.

I'm not sure you're right, PP. The FAQ has the following entry:

Will the schools be able to see how I ranked them?
No. My School DC will not give this information to schools.

If the schools share wait list information, they can probably infer the ranking. That's not really such a great idea. Do you want the charter in which you enroll your child to see that you are sitting on the wait list for two or three other charters? Will you child be treated differently if word gets around that your family was not really committed?

Sharing enrollment information makes sense. If children are enrolled in multiple schools, it will slow wait list movement. Sharing wait list information is potentially prejudicial.

Representatives from the group running the Common Lottery will be at Moms on the Hill (MoTH) School Information Night to answer questions. This year's event is on Sunday, December 8, from 2-5 pm at Capitol Hill Day School. In addition to the MySchoolDC people, there will be over 60 schools and organization/programs in attendance. MoTH would like to cordially invite other parents in the general community to attend. The schools attending are mostly of interest to people who live on or directly next to the Hill, but are also of interest to families in areas such as Hillcrest, Anacostia, SW Waterfront, Penn Quarter, Brookland, Bloomingdale, Woodridge, and the many other nearby areas.

Some popular charter such as Bridges, IT, Cap City, Stokes, YY, and 2Rivers will be there. Space is limited so please come childless and especially strollerless if possible.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
You don't give up your spot in your current school by entering the lottery. Just apply to #1 school. If you get in, take the spot. #2 school won't even know you applied to #1, unless you leave for #1.

Whew! And yea!

I am not sure that is true since I thought I read that the common lottery would share wait list and acceptance info with all schools to prevent hogging wait lists.

That is correct, but you will not be in violation of anything unless you accept the spot at #1 and don't let #2 know.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
You don't give up your spot in your current school by entering the lottery. Just apply to #1 school. If you get in, take the spot. #2 school won't even know you applied to #1, unless you leave for #1.

Whew! And yea!

I am not sure that is true since I thought I read that the common lottery would share wait list and acceptance info with all schools to prevent hogging wait lists.

Anonymous wrote:
You don't give up your spot in your current school by entering the lottery. Just apply to #1 school. If you get in, take the spot. #2 school won't even know you applied to #1, unless you leave for #1.

Whew! And yea!

Anonymous wrote:So what happens if you have 2 kids already in a decent school, but want to trade up?

By putting our kids in the lottery do we loose the spots we already have?

Here is my quandary: my kids are in my 2nd choice school. Love to get them into my 1st choice school, but at the same time, do not want to be booted from our current school and be forced into #3 or #4 school if we apply for #1 school and don't get into it.

Strategy ideas?

You don't give up your spot in your current school by entering the lottery. Just apply to #1 school. If you get in, take the spot. #2 school won't even know you applied to #1, unless you leave for #1.

Anonymous wrote:So what happens if you have 2 kids already in a decent school, but want to trade up?

By putting our kids in the lottery do we loose the spots we already have?

Here is my quandary: my kids are in my 2nd choice school. Love to get them into my 1st choice school, but at the same time, do not want to be booted from our current school and be forced into #3 or #4 school if we apply for #1 school and don't get into it.

Strategy ideas?

apply to just your #1 school. if you get in and still want the school, take the spot. If you don't get in, stay at your #2 school.

So what happens if you have 2 kids already in a decent school, but want to trade up?

By putting our kids in the lottery do we loose the spots we already have?

Here is my quandary: my kids are in my 2nd choice school. Love to get them into my 1st choice school, but at the same time, do not want to be booted from our current school and be forced into #3 or #4 school if we apply for #1 school and don't get into it.

Strategy ideas?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
I don't think you're right about this, PP. The FAQ clearly states that once a child gets a spot, he/she will be wait listed only at schools ranked higher on his/her application.

So, if child #1 is accepted at 1st choice school and child #2 at 3rd choice school, child #2 will rise to the top of the wait list for 1st choice school, and keep the same position on the wait list at 2nd choice school. Child #1 will NOT be wait listed at 3rd choice school or any other school, because child #1 got in to 1st choice school.

You should call or email and ask. The other cities on which this is based--like Denver--have elaborate algorithms that definitely account for sibling preference. I'm pretty sure PP to whom you are responding is correct. They definitely don't have all the details of the algorithm online.

You might be right, PP. I retract my post. I suppose it would be more fair to give both siblings the option of attending the 3rd choice school than to force them to attend different schools, even if that policy is inconsistent with the FAQ.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Under the current rules if one child gets into a school, any siblings who don't also get in go to the top of the waitlist for their grade at that school. I see no indication that rule is going to change.

Under the unified lottery, every child is assigned to a school. So if you have two children in the lottery the same year, one of two things can happen: either both get into the same school, or they get into two different schools, and each is number one on the waitlist at the other's school.
Under the unified lottery there is going to be less waitlist shuffling, but there's going to be some, because people with multiple kids at multiple schools are going to pick one school or the other, and when that happens a waitlist spot opens up. So number one on the waitlist at any school is almost guaranteed to get in. So having multiple kids in the lottery is like having multiple picks, and then being able to use the best pick for all your kids.

So if child #1 is accepted at 1st choice school, and child #2 is accepted at 3rd choice school, child #1 will be put on waitlist at 3rd choice school b/c of the sibling?

Correct, but child #1 won't be taken off the list at school #1. So #1 will have a spot at school 1 and a waitlist spot at school 3. Child #2 will have a spot at school 3 and waitlist spots at schools 1 and 2. Because of child 1 waitlist spot 1 will improve for child 2.

I don't think you're right about this, PP. The FAQ clearly states that once a child gets a spot, he/she will be wait listed only at schools ranked higher on his/her application.

So, if child #1 is accepted at 1st choice school and child #2 at 3rd choice school, child #2 will rise to the top of the wait list for 1st choice school, and keep the same position on the wait list at 2nd choice school. Child #1 will NOT be wait listed at 3rd choice school or any other school, because child #1 got in to 1st choice school.

You should call or email and ask. The other cities on which this is based--like Denver--have elaborate algorithms that definitely account for sibling preference. I'm pretty sure PP to whom you are responding is correct. They definitely don't have all the details of the algorithm online.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Under the current rules if one child gets into a school, any siblings who don't also get in go to the top of the waitlist for their grade at that school. I see no indication that rule is going to change.

Under the unified lottery, every child is assigned to a school. So if you have two children in the lottery the same year, one of two things can happen: either both get into the same school, or they get into two different schools, and each is number one on the waitlist at the other's school.
Under the unified lottery there is going to be less waitlist shuffling, but there's going to be some, because people with multiple kids at multiple schools are going to pick one school or the other, and when that happens a waitlist spot opens up. So number one on the waitlist at any school is almost guaranteed to get in. So having multiple kids in the lottery is like having multiple picks, and then being able to use the best pick for all your kids.

So if child #1 is accepted at 1st choice school, and child #2 is accepted at 3rd choice school, child #1 will be put on waitlist at 3rd choice school b/c of the sibling?

Correct, but child #1 won't be taken off the list at school #1. So #1 will have a spot at school 1 and a waitlist spot at school 3. Child #2 will have a spot at school 3 and waitlist spots at schools 1 and 2. Because of child 1 waitlist spot 1 will improve for child 2.

I don't think you're right about this, PP. The FAQ clearly states that once a child gets a spot, he/she will be wait listed only at schools ranked higher on his/her application.

So, if child #1 is accepted at 1st choice school and child #2 at 3rd choice school, child #2 will rise to the top of the wait list for 1st choice school, and keep the same position on the wait list at 2nd choice school. Child #1 will NOT be wait listed at 3rd choice school or any other school, because child #1 got in to 1st choice school.

If you have a younger child applying the same school that an older sibling attends, is there any reason to list a second choice, third choice, etc?