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Choosing a School: Have a Plan B!
If your child didn't get into that must-have school on the first go round, here are a few Plan B tips.
By Marian Wilde, GreatSchools Staff
1. Understand how the wait list works. In the San Francisco Unified School District, for example, there are detailed rules for the wait pool process. Parents in a wait pool for a school participate in a wait pool run, a computerized process that matches the waiting list with available seats according to a complicated diversity formula, soon after the first school assignment offers have been mailed out. There are then additional waiting pool runs in June, August and September.
The final run in September occurs after school officials have counted the number of students who actually show up on the first ten days of school. The "Ten Day Count," as it's called, is the final head count at the school site and the last chance to assign empty seats to students in the wait pool.
"Many wait lists are really wait pools," says Bryan Hassel, co-author, with Emily Ayscue Hassel, of The Picky Parent Guide: Choose Your Child's School with Confidence. "It's not really the case that things are going to be pulled off in some kind of strict order. So you actually can influence the wait pool or wait list process through a letter or through a communication to the principal of another kind."
Tales from the Trenches: A San Francisco Mom's Story
There seems to be one universal truth that applies to all schools and districts when it comes to getting what you want: communicate. Always communicate.
I learned that a few years back, when I — a well-intentioned but hardly perfect mother — changed my mind about the middle school I wanted for my daughter. And I did it after the district's application deadline.
More >
2. Learn what the appeal process is and don't be afraid to use it. In New York City, appeals are permitted if you are unhappy with your high school assignment. Valid reasons would be a recent move to at least 90 minutes away from the school, lack of appropriate special education services, or interest in a new school that opened after the application was submitted. You can also bring up any other reasons that might motivate an appeal, such as a new interest in a school program or a mistake on your part.
3. Look again for those hidden gems. If you've met with the district officials, written the appeal letter and waited out the waiting pool, and you still didn't get in, it might be time to take another look around for those hidden gems in the district.
Sandra Halladey of the San Francisco chapter of Parents for Public Schools reminds parents, "If a school is extremely popular it might just be that it's popular. It might not be any better. Parents have to go visit the schools. Relying on hearsay or outdated information can be very dangerous. Parents really need to make sure that they're getting information from families that are currently in the schools rather than from families that were at the school ten years ago, because schools can change very quickly."
So take the time to look at those schools that were on your early lists. You might just find a hidden gem that you've overlooked.
Additional Resources: Books: The Picky Parent Guide: Choose Your Child's School with Confidence by Bryan Hassel and Emily Ayscue Hassel, Armchair Press, Ross, California, 2004.
Online Resources: Education Commission for the States. School Choice State Laws: State Comparisons This site provides a detailed, state by state comparison of open enrollment laws.
The Web site for Parents for Public Schools, an organization that champions public education, offers in-depth information on how to help support our public schools. InsideSchools.org provides useful guidance to parents seeking to learn more about New York City public schools.
InsideSchools.org provides useful guidance to parents seeking to learn more about New York City public schools.
Updated February 2008
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Comments From GreatSchools.net Users
01/28/2008:
"LAUSD also offers open enrollment (where seats exist in neighborhood schools), child care permits, and Schools for Advanced Studies as other options, all with different deadlines. Smart parents apply to different programs and choose as many schools as they think they need to guarantee a seat in an acceptable school."
01/9/2008:
"If I'd like to choose another school for my 4 year old son next year, other than his assigned school, what should I do?"
01/10/2007:
"You definitely need a Plan B and C and D! We are in a local magnet school lottery, but they are very impacted in the lower grades (typical). The school district representative told me that I can enter the lotteries for an unlimited amount of schools in the district. I called and chatted with school representatives and district employees long before the lottery season, while they were still relaxed and willing to talk to a parent at length. Do your homework (research) and legwork (visiting every school and completing paperwork on time), and your child should get the best public schooling possible. "
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