Kindergarten application season opens this week
Is your child turning five this year? Today, Feb. 1 is the first day to submit a kindergarten application.
Families may apply to multiple schools by going directly to the school with proof of address and date of birth, and filling out an application.You don’t need to bring your child. Kindergarten admissions is a school-based process so the application may vary by school, with some schools using a kindergarten application template provided by the Department of Education. This round of applications will last until March 12.
According to New York State law, kindergarten is not mandatory (although it is strongly encouraged!) but every child who applies is guaranteed a place. Priority in admissions is given to students who are zoned for the school, and to unzoned students who have a sibling enrolled in the school. For a rundown of admissions’ priorities, see the Department of Education’s page on elementary school admissions.
Only District 1, on the Lower East Side, does not have zoned schools; it has a separate application process. District 3, on the Upper West Side, has schools which accept out of zone children in a lottery. On Feb. 6 there will be an early childhood fair from 11-1 p.m. at PS 242, where parents may meet representatives from these District 3 schools. Elementary school directories and lottery applications will be available at the fair.
The kindergarten application period runs from Feb. 1-March 12. Schools will notify parents of acceptances by March 23, according to the DOE. Theoretically students could be accepted at more than one school. Registration at the school will take place from April 12-23.
All students must apply to kindergarten to be ensured a space for Fall 2010, including students with disabilities. However most students with IEPs (Individualized Education Plan) who require a special class or a Collaborative Team-Teaching class will be placed by the Committees on Special Education later in the spring after the children have had their kindergarten IEP meeting. Students who get services such as speech or occupational therapy should apply now as should parents of children with disabilities who want to reserve a spot in a general education class for their child. However, registering for a particular school has no impact on whether or not a child will get a spot in that school’s self-contained class or CTT class because placement for those classes go through the CSEs and enrollment offices.
Last year was the first year that the kindergarten admissions timeline was standardized citywide and that it began this early in the year. It resulted in some early confusion at schools that weren’t prepared for applicants in February. And there were several schools that had more applicants than slots, especially in Manhattan on the Upper East Side and in Greenwich Village. The opening of new schools, and the rezoning of others, may have alleviated the worst of the overcrowding.
Are you applying to kindergarten for fall 2010? Let us know how it’s going. Are the schools ready for you?
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I have been trying to stay on top of the Turning-Five process – staying abreast of the latest news and strictly adhering to the relevant deadlines. What I experienced on February 1st proved that when working with the NYC DOE there’s little correlation between a parent’s diligent efforts and expected results.
At my Turning Five orientation parents were urged to register their child(ren) at their zoned school as soon as possible to ensure a placement, even if it was not likely that their child would attend that school due to a more appropriate placement by the Committee on Special Education. When I received an e-mail from the DOE stating that beginning February 1st, schools would be accepting applications, my husband immediately took time off from work to submit an application for kindergarten at our zoned school for our son.
Prior to his arrival, my husband called the school and spoke to a school administrator to inform her of his intention to submit an application. To his surprise and frustration, the administrator laughed and asked him why he was interested in submitting an application so early because “No one applies before September.” He told her that we had received an e-mail from the DOE. She said that we were misinformed and quickly dismissed his contention. He walked into the school and showed her the e-mail, after which he was told, “We knew nothing about this; check back next week.”
Needless to say, on February 3rd (2 days after the beginning of the application process), administrators at this school were informed that they should use the same applications that would be used for transfer students and those who enroll in September. The Turning Five process is stressful enough without having to deal with ignorance from those who are supposed to contribute to a smooth transition from preschool to elementary school. If this information is supposed to be distributed uniformly across NYC, why would a school be in the dark about this process?
Comment by D 29 Mom — February 8, 2010 @ 2:54 pm