Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think the hard pill to swallow is that the residents who pay the most in city taxes are, by and large, the only ones who get shut out of their neighborhood schools for pk3 and pk4. Most everyone else has access to ECE within a mile or so.

What? PK in DC is to close the achievement gap. Not an amenity provided to the higher tax payers.

But if those kids can't get into their IB schools what is the point? DC still hasn't come to grips with the fact that more people are staying in the city. It will be interesting to see what changes DCPS makes in 3 years when their 5 years numbers start to catch up.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think the hard pill to swallow is that the residents who pay the most in city taxes are, by and large, the only ones who get shut out of their neighborhood schools for pk3 and pk4. Most everyone else has access to ECE within a mile or so.

What? PK in DC is to close the achievement gap. Not an amenity provided to the higher tax payers.

+1! That's the way it SHOULD be! Get PK3 and PK4 to the people who need it.

Anonymous wrote:I think the hard pill to swallow is that the residents who pay the most in city taxes are, by and large, the only ones who get shut out of their neighborhood schools for pk3 and pk4. Most everyone else has access to ECE within a mile or so.

What? PK in DC is to close the achievement gap. Not an amenity provided to the higher tax payers.

Anonymous wrote:I think the hard pill to swallow is that the residents who pay the most in city taxes are, by and large, the only ones who get shut out of their neighborhood schools for pk3 and pk4. Most everyone else has access to ECE within a mile or so.

The residents who pay the most in city taxes are by and large shut out of the Earned Income Tax Credit and Medicaid and SNAP and TANF and Interim Disability Assistance and Section 8 vouchers and Burial Assistance and adult literacy classes and matched savings accounts and homeless shelters too. And that's ok. Because they are targeted at low income people, and more necessary for them--if you're rich, you can pay your taxes and buy your own food too and SNAP is less necessary. Having excess capacity for PK within walking distance is also something more common in low-income areas; it doesn't bother me because I have flexibility with my job and my spouse's job, and the ability to pay for child care and transportation options that allow me to get a kid across town faster and easier than taking 3 buses each way.

A big reason why the schools WoTP don't have room for all the PK kids is because people in high-income areas are incredibly resistant to redistricting. If folks in Ward 3 who got shut out are willing to band together and say "we don't care about a Deal or Wilson feed; tighten up the boundaries because we want PK" then maybe it would happen. But that seems unlikely.

Nothing is stopping a rich family from moving to Deanwood or Kenilworth or Anacostia in order to have proximity to PK, if that's their top priority. Different neighborhoods have different tradeoffs. If you're rich, you have more ability to choose.

I think the hard pill to swallow is that the residents who pay the most in city taxes are, by and large, the only ones who get shut out of their neighborhood schools for pk3 and pk4. Most everyone else has access to ECE within a mile or so.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Vent..I knew this would happen but am still so bummed. Didn't get in to Brent PK3, IB family. Anyone else?

Same boat here. We matched at Tyler traditional. I guess we'll go, but not my ideal. Did anyone else match at Tyler traditional? Your thoughts?

You are IB for Brent and matched with Tyler traditional? Do you mind sharing the range of where you ended up on the Brent WL?

Our neighbors matched for Tyler Traditional, and they're going. There are always a number of Brenties at Tyler traditional, close by. Good option for ECE.

Anonymous wrote:It seems like most posters here are considering private school options since they didn't get into their PK3 IB. That's fine; this post is not for them. I want to add something else to the conversation. We moved to area over winter break and first learned about the lottery at EdFest. The post-lottery lottery wasn't even up any more at that time. We met a person with the Early Childhood Education Office of Teaching and Learning. She said she would help us find a school. She later emailed us a list of eight schools that had had PK3 slots, including two within walking distance. She was a real lifesaver; when we moved here only one of us had a job. Private school wasn't an option.

Which schools were they?

It seems like most posters here are considering private school options since they didn't get into their PK3 IB. That's fine; this post is not for them. I want to add something else to the conversation. We moved to area over winter break and first learned about the lottery at EdFest. The post-lottery lottery wasn't even up any more at that time. We met a person with the Early Childhood Education Office of Teaching and Learning. She said she would help us find a school. She later emailed us a list of eight schools that had had PK3 slots, including two within walking distance. She was a real lifesaver; when we moved here only one of us had a job. Private school wasn't an option.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anyone WOTP?

Yes. Didn't get into Janney. It sucks, not least because I'd really like to start meeting more neighborhood families with same age kids.

We got waitlisted at Key and everyone else we know got in. I think our number is bad enough that we will not get a spot.

Anonymous wrote:A quick reminder that non income based, all day, free, pre k 3/4 wasn't even offered in DC until not that long ago, and outside of D.C. it's unheard of. If you're IB you're guaranteed a spot at least by K, might still make it in pre K 4. You have options, but yeah will have to pay. If you don't have the means, look into Head Start. It seems like people forget that all day non income based pre k 3-4 is not a right. (Maybe it should be, that can be a topic for another day, but then we shouldn't be voting for republican party and fighting tax increases nationwide)

Head start is in DCPS, pp. In the title 1 schools. They aren't separate facilities like they are other places.

Anonymous wrote:New parents- relax about you and your kids being shut out of friends group if you don't enter school in prek. We did private preschool for all 3 kids and started them at neighbourhood public school in k. No issue meeting people or other kids. Some people and kids seem to know each other better for the first couple of years but it is a short term effect. You will be fine and your kids will be fine if you start in k.

+1
My kid started PK4 at a WOTP school last fall. And most of the kids in the class already knew each other...because 17 out of the 20 had older siblings, or lived on the same block, or the parents already knew each other through work or church. However my son had no issues making friends. He's invited to parties, play dates, given hugs when we run into classmates on the street. I'm actually looking forward to K so he can meet even more neighborhood kids!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A quick reminder that non income based, all day, free, pre k 3/4 wasn't even offered in DC until not that long ago, and outside of D.C. it's unheard of. If you're IB you're guaranteed a spot at least by K, might still make it in pre K 4. You have options, but yeah will have to pay. If you don't have the means, look into Head Start. It seems like people forget that all day non income based pre k 3-4 is not a right. (Maybe it should be, that can be a topic for another day, but then we shouldn't be voting for republican party and fighting tax increases nationwide)

What's funny is that people list free preK as a great benefit of living in DC, but forget to mention that it's a) not guaranteed, and b) has nothing to do with your choice.

I believe it is actually guaranteed, just not at your school of choice. As long as you can make the commute work, most of the programs will be fine (if you're not afraid of black and brown kids).

And of course we shouldn't vote Republican and cut taxes!

Last year there were about 600 more Pk3 seats offered than people who entered the lottery, but nearly the reverse for PK4. http://www.myschooldc.org/sites/default/files/dc/sites/myschooldc/page/2016-lottery-applications-and-seats-offered.pdf

But many of the people who entered the PK4 lottery were already enrolled at school for PK3 and could stay there another year. They were doing the lottery to see if they could get in somewhere they liked better. They may have only applied to one or a few very highly desired schools. Most of them will be fine. It does suck for folks who move to the area after the PK3 lottery though.

I don't think that's true at all. Most PK4 applications come Ward 3 schools where our IB schools (with the exception of Hyde) don't offer PK3. So most of us are applying for the first time at the PK4 level and many of our schools shut out IB applicants.

Anonymous wrote:This may be old information. I don't think most waitlist move hundreds of spaces anymore. Things are tightening up.

Agreed. Last year we were on 12 waitlists for PK3. The one that moved the most was Appletree lincoln park, which moved about 30 spots. Everything else moved just a few spots.

New parents- relax about you and your kids being shut out of friends group if you don't enter school in prek. We did private preschool for all 3 kids and started them at neighbourhood public school in k. No issue meeting people or other kids. Some people and kids seem to know each other better for the first couple of years but it is a short term effect. You will be fine and your kids will be fine if you start in k.

Anonymous wrote:This may be old information. I don't think most waitlist move hundreds of spaces anymore. Things are tightening up.

+1. With the common lottery, people can't really hold multiple seats (unless LAMB is one), so less September shuffle.