Q:  My son is a junior at a high school in Queens.  He is an excellent student and would like to go to a prestigious college.  But his high school is huge and the college counselors don’t have much time for each student.  On the other hand, my cousin’s son goes to a prep school near Washington DC, and my cousin says their college counselors are known for getting kids into the best colleges.  What chance does my son have competing against applicants like that?

A:  I went to a very large high school myself, in Queens, many years ago.  There were about 1500 students in my graduating class.  Now I work at a private school, and yes, there is a vast difference in the amount of individual attention teachers and counselors are able to give to students.  But statistics confirm that students in each setting are successful in the college admissions process.

Going to a private school in itself does not guarantee acceptance to any college; nor does attending a large urban public school in itself, assure rejection.  Applicants are looked at in the context of their school environment, so your son will not be competing against his cousin.

I recently attended an admissions information session at an Ivy league university.  The admissions rep pointed out that if they accepted students who were all exactly the same in background and qualifications, the freshman class would be pretty boring.  To keep their school vigorous and stimulating, they admit students who come from a wide variety of schools, communities, and ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds who bring an array of interests and talents to campus.  To do this, they recruit widely at both public and private schools.  Colleges really do reach out, some more effectively than others. (more…)

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Dear Judy,

Our son is in 5th grade at a charter school that’s not in the district where we live. What middle schools is he eligible for?

Charter school parent

Dear Charter school parent:

Given the proliferation of charter schools these days, your question is a timely one. We put it to the Department of Education. According to DOE spokesperson Andy Jacob, “students are eligible to apply in the district to which they are zoned and in the district in which their (public, including charter) elementary school is located. ”

However, Jacob cautioned,”not all districts have choice processes. Some have all or mostly zoned middle schools. If the charter is located in one of those districts, the student wouldn’t have any choices in that district, because there’s no choice process.”

All applicants should keep in mind there are other middle school options, even if you live in a district that has limited choice: Some schools are unzoned — open to kids all over the city, borough, or district — and some middle schools require school-based applications, separate from the district middle school application.

Although the middle school admissions timetable is standardized across the city, each district has its own ways, so it is very important to study the online middle school directories  for specifics.

Most citywide schools run their own admissions processes and students need to apply to those schools separately.  A few parents have written to ask about Mark Twain, a popular, selective school in Coney Island which accepts students based on their performance on “talent” entrance exams.  Mark Twain takes applications from all over the city but, unlike other citywide schools, students who submit the “request for testing” form for the school “will see the Twain programs as choices on the application for their district,” according to Jacob. “They’ll rank Mark Twain along with their district choices and will receive an offer to one school - the highest-ranked one to which they receive an offer.” Jacob said the district schools will not see whether the student ranked Mark Twain as a choice.

Middle school applications are due on Dec. 15, but Oct. 28, is the deadline to submit a “request for testing” form for selective schools in Districts 17, 18, 20, 21, and 22 in Brooklyn, and Districts  24, and 30 in Queens.

I would take the time to tour as many schools as you can. The bottom line is to go after the schools that match your kid.  Good luck !

Judy

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If you’re still looking for a pre-Kindergarten program for your 4-year-old, the Department of Education wants you! According to the Daily News there are some 5400 open seats, so many that the DOE is advertising them on Craigslist.

What’s the catch? Many of the programs are half-day sessions, either morning or afternoon,which are inconvenient for working parents. But there are more than 900 full-day options as well, many of them in desirable schools. Be aware that some schools have just one open seat, whereas others have a few dozen.

If your child is turning four by Dec. 31, 2009, he or she is eligible. The DOE is asking parents to register by Oct. 30 because the city risks losing millions of dollars in state funding if they don’t fill the seats by Oct. 31. Openings will be filled on a “first-come, first-serve” basis,” according to the DOE.

Bear in mind, even if your child is accepted into a pre-K program this year, there is no guarantee that he or she will be able to attend the same school in kindergarten. You’ll have to apply again; priority is given to students living in the zone, and those with siblings already attending the school.

For a list of registration requirements, and schools and community organizations with available seats, check the DOE’s page on pre-kindergarten admissions.

This fall, kindergarten gifted andtalented programs opened in 27 of the city’s 32 districts. That’s in addition to five programs which are open to students citywide.

Students who score at the 97th percentile or above are eligible for citywide programs, but last year, because of the large number of students qualifying, only children scoring in the 99th percentile or above were admitted to NEST +M and the Anderson School. To gain admission to the new Brooklyn School of Inquiry, a score in the 98th percentile was needed. Only at TAG and the new STEM Academy at PS 85, in Queens, was a score at the 97th percentile sufficient.

The DOE said last year they planned to open additional citywide programs in the Bronx and Staten Island for the fall of 2010. No decision yet as to whether these programs will actually materialize for next fall. According to DOE spokesperson Andy Jacob they are still looking at that question. (more…)

Dear Judy

What is the best way to find out about high school open houses and tours? Is there an updated list on Insideschools.org? How many schools should we visit? Are open houses really helpful?

8th-grade parent

Dear 8th-grade parent:

Attending an open house or tour should be a priority for kids and parents looking for a high school but, try to narrow your list to a manageable number, based on your schedule. Your daughter may be excused from class to tour a school, but can you get a note for your boss?

The high school application allows you to apply to up to 12 schools, not counting the specialized high schools and charter schools. Our advice to families: don’t apply to a school you wouldn’t attend. Likewise, I can’t imagine sending a child to school without first checking it out in a visit. Students frequently venture out of their neighborhoods, and even their boroughs, for high school, so going on a school tour is a great way to test out the travel time and to check out the subway and bus connections. (more…)

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While GothamSchools joined Chancellor Klein on his annual five-borough, back-to-school tour, The New York Times’ City Room blog followed a few students as they embark on a new school year. We were particularly intrigued by the scene at PS 19 in Corona, Queens, where the Times said “confusion reigned.”

Though the K-5 school enrolls nearly  2,000 students and some classes are housed in trailers, the line of families hoping to enroll their children “extended down the better part of the block.” According to the post, the school is one of 27 that still had a kindergarten wait list in July.

What was the scene like at your  school this morning? Does your school still have students waiting to enroll? Let us know below.

Dear Judy,

My son is just starting kindergarten in a K-8 school. If he is unhappy in a K-8 school can he apply to middle school elsewhere? Or if you are unhappy in a 6-12 school can you apply to high school elsewhere?

- Apprehensive Mom

Dear Apprehensive Mom:

The beauty of schools that combine elementary and middle school grades, or middle and high school grades, is that families may not have to go through the tedious middle and high school admissions process and can continue at the same school. However, the answer to your question- are you able to switch schools if you are not happy at a K-8 or 6-12 school? — is yes, you always have the option of going through the application process at normal school entry points, including 6th or 9th grade. (more…)

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The start of the school year can be a confusing time for all families,but especially for those who are new to the public school system or who have children with special needs. Enrollment centers opened today for all high school students new to New York City, as did special education enrollment centers for new elementary and middle school students who need a self-contained or collaborative team teaching class.

To help parents navigate the system, and to anticipate problems that might arise, the ARISE coalition,which advocates on behalf of special needs students, has put together a handout for those families. A list of common problems and questions are answered in a Q&A format. (more…)

A group of Upper West Side parents, elected officials and other concerned citizens has been meeting this summer to plan a new, academically challenging high school focused on journalism and writing to open with a 9^th grade class in fall, 2010, in the Brandeis High School building on West 84^th Street. The group, organized by City Councilwoman Gale Brewer, hopes the school will be named in honor of Frank McCourt, a former Stuyvesant High School teacher and author of the bestseller Angela’s Ashes ,who died on Sunday.

The school is still in the planning stages, but the parents, led by Tom Allon, publisher of the West Side Spirit who taught with Frank McCourt at Stuyvesant, hope it will grow to serve between 800 to 1,000 students. That’s small enough to give students a sense of community, but large enough to offer art, drama, several foreign languages, Advanced Placement, special education and services for English Language Learners that are often missing at the new small schools that have been created in recent years. The Department of Education is interviewing prospective “project directors” for the school this summer. The “project director” will be hired part-time in the fall and, if the school is approved by the DOE, will likely be assigned as principal early in 2010. (more…)

If you have a rising high school freshman  or sophomore and  moved to the city after Oct. 31, 2008, you still have the chance to apply to some of the city’s most sought-after schools. You teen can register now to take the specialized high school exam, or audition for LaGuardia High School for the Arts, for entrance in September.

The nine specialized high schools are highly selective: eight of them base admissions on the results of an exam while LaGuardia requires an audition to one of its six arts programs.  There is at least one specialized high school in each of five boroughs, and you may register for either an audition or the exam (or both!) at any of the Department of Education’s borough enrollment offices. The exam will be given on Monday, Aug. 31, and auditions for LaGuardia will be held on Friday, Sept. 4. The last day to register is Aug. 27.

There are also high school  seats available for rising juniors at another selective school:  Bard High School Early College II in Queens, which offers students the opportunity to graduate with a high school diploma and a two-year degree from Bard College. Bard requires applicants to take an entrance assessment and schedule an in-person interview. To find out more, call (212) 995-8479 ext. 2043, (212) 995-8479 ext. 2041, or (845) 546-0364.

Is your high school still accepting students for September 2009? Let us know whom to contact below!

Q: I am on Facebook a lot with my friends, just to, like, stay in touch, share photos, nothing serious. Sometimes we use four-letter words in our conversation, it doesn’t really mean anything. My mom saw my page and really got on my case for this. She says college admissions people read applicants’ Facebook pages and judge them on that. I think she’s over-reacting. First of all, those people probably don’t have time to search for every applicant on Facebook. But also, most of the people using Facebook are teenagers and you have to expect that language. I mean, it’s just for fun, no big deal, right?

A: Using Facebook to “stay in touch” is not wrong, of course, and it is fun. In fact, it’s so much fun that thousands of people who are far beyond their teenage years use it. (Go ahead, look me up.) But it is wrong to assume that admissions people do not take the time to check applicants’ entries on social networking sites. They do. They don’t have the time to check every applicant; but they check many. Silly, frivolous things don’t turn them off. But entries that reflect bigotry, racism, homophobia, intolerance, or a violent nature definitely set off alarms. The admissions people aren’t trying to spy; they are trying to gather any additional information that could help them decide if a person should be admitted to their academic community. (more…)

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Looking for a slot in a public pre-Kindergarten program for September? The second round of admissions will begin on Monday, July 13, according to the Department of Education. To be eligible, children must turn four years old by Dec. 31, 2009.

A directory of schools with open seats will be available online on Monday; paper copies will be ready on Friday, July 17 at enrollment offices, according to the DOE. Some programs with open seats  are full day; others are only half-day, offering  morning or afternoon sessions.

Applications can be submitted online or by mail; the deadline is July 31. Letters notifying  families of placement will be sent on Aug. 28 - rather late for those who are trying to figure where their four-year-olds will be attending school in the fall!

Q: My son is finishing his junior year, and so far he has not done that well in high school — his average is not quite an 80. He wants to study pharmacy. I don’t want him to go to a community college — I prefer that he attend a college with dorms so that he has the full campus experience. Where do we start?

A: Your question actually has many parts. You are concerned because going into his senior year, your son does not have a strong academic record, yet he is expressing interest in a field that is very difficult to enter. While it might be relatively easy for him to start at a community college, where he could build up his academic profile, you want him to have a residential college experience.

I can understand this — part of the excitement of college is living away from home, learning how to get along with a roommate, and enjoying those philosophical discussions at 2 a.m. Yet — without knowing anything about your home situation — I am concerned that if your son is struggling academically now, while living at home, how is he going to handle his studies while surrounded by all the distractions of campus life?

My suggestion for him, and you, is to take small steps. First, he has to make academics his #1 priority if he is going to have a successful senior year. Senior year grades do count! Let’s see if he can get that GPA above 80. You do not mention his other credentials, but he needs solid SAT or ACT scores, and Regents scores. He should be involved in some extra-curricular activities, too, so that he is a well-rounded college applicant. And that’s the next step, gaining admission to a school where he can develop his academic skills and explore various choices of majors.

As for pharmacy, it is a graduate program. Students work for six years, going beyond the regular time span for a BA or BS degree, until they earn a PharmD degree. Admission to pharmacy school is extremely competitive. Students need high grades, particularly in science and math, and also have to score well on a national exam. Does this mean that I think your son can never become a pharmacist? No, it could happen — but I think that aiming for it right now is premature.

Your son may well be one of those students who is “a late bloomer” — he will be successful, but it hasn’t quite happened yet. He ought to apply to schools where he has a good chance of acceptance and where he can build up his academic skills. Do you know that dorms are available at two CUNY schools? CCNY has a dorm, and a dorm is scheduled to open this coming fall at Queens College. Your son might also consider one of the smaller SUNY branches, such as New Paltz or Old Westbury. Of course, I cannot predict that he will be admitted to any of these schools, but they are suggestions of where to apply if he can get his GPA to a B average. If he adjusts well to college and proves that he can take on a challenging program, he might apply to transfer to a school offering pharmacy.

Ask him to think about why he is interested in pharmacy. Perhaps his desire to help people achieve better health — if that is what inspires him — will make him look at other fields, including social work, psychology, nursing, and health education. I would encourage him to keep his options open. Good luck!

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As readers who’ve contributed to our comments can attest, myriad questions persist regarding gifted and talented program placement for rising kindergarten and 1st grade students. This is the second year the Department of Education has administered the process, which had previously been managed by individual districts and schools.

First, for those who have not, at this late date, received word on their child’s placement status, Andy Jacob of the DOE provided an email address, giftedandtalented@schools.nyc.gov, as the best point of contact. Telephone calls and actual visits are less welcome, it seems, than email — despite the experiences of many parents whose emails have gone missing or remained unanswered. Some parents have had success by calling the individual schools to which they applied, and asking for information on their child’s placement status. It’s not the way it’s supposed to work, and it’s labor- and time-intensive, but it’s working, in some cases.

Andy Jacob also asked that we clarify that there are NO wait lists for G&T programs or schools. This is the DOE’s policy, and differs substantially from past years when the schools and the districts administered their own admissions. “There are no wait lists,” he wrote in an email message. “Students get only one placement, and if they reject that placement, they do not get another one.” (more…)

It’s the last week of school, but the questions and concerns swirling around gifted and talented program placements continue, as the hundreds of comments responding to the previous  G&T post attest.

In hopes of getting answers to some of the questions that have been raised, we’d like to hear from readers who have not yet received news of their child’s placement — as of yesterday, at least some families hadn’t yet had word — and from those who’ve had difficulty registering their children for G&T district programs.

We are gathering questions this morning for the Department of Education; please let us know your concerns.

Dear Judy,

My child is eligible for the gifted and talented program in NYC, and I have a question regarding his future. If he does not perform well or meet the criteria for the program in several years, would he be forced to change schools, or would he receive extra support/tutoring, etc.?

~ Christina

Dear Christina,

These days, the watchword at the Department of Education is “data”. All schools keep track of their students’ academic achievement. This applies to kids in the gifted and talented programs, as well as the general classes. If your child is struggling, the teacher should let you know and discuss with you what kind of help the school can provide. It may be tutoring or, if appropriate, counseling. If the strategies don’t work, the school may suggest placing the child in a general education class in the same school, or, in extreme cases, if he is attending out of district, transferring him back to his zoned school. Chancellor’s Regulations A-101 and A-450 establish a chain of events, including parent conferences and extra help before a transfer is put on the table.

At the start of your child’s career in G&T, if the school has not already shared its policy with you, ask what their expectations are, what kind of help will be available to a student who falls behind, and how they will handle a child who seems to be mismatched with the program. You should also keep in touch with your son’s teachers so you can be aware of any difficulties right away.

Remember, in addition to personal observations and teacher conferences, you can keep abreast of your child’s progress by logging on to ARIS (Achievement Reporting and Innovation System ) from third grade on, to view state exam results. You can log on to Acuity for interim assessment results. The principal should provide you with an ID and instructions for using these databases, which have only recently become available to parents.

During the early grades, kindergarten through third grade, you will find that the best way to keep in touch is by participating in your son’s school, through the Parents Association or, if you have the time, by volunteering in his classroom.

Meanwhile, enjoy the summer while looking forward to the new term.

Judy

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Q: Is the Advanced Regents Diploma necessary for getting into SUNY colleges?

While our daughter passed most of her Regents exams, she failed one of them, a math test; she can re-take it, but is nervous that she’ll fail it again. And without this exam, she won’t be able to obtain an Advanced Regents diploma. She is stressed out about taking a review course, but also stressed about not being able to get into a strong SUNY program.

A: Every year numerous students are admitted to SUNY schools without Regents diplomas or Advanced Regents diplomas. Remember that SUNY admits applicants from many other states, not just New York! So while having an Advanced Regents diploma would certainly be a plus for your daughter, not having one will not destroy her chances.

Exams administrated by boards or agencies from outside the student’s high school, like the Regents exams, AP tests, or SAT and ACT tests — can help support a student’s application. In the best cases, these external evaluations validate the internal evidence — school grades — of the student’s qualifications. But they are not always necessary. Many high schools do not offer AP exams, and many students do not receive Regents diplomas. Yet if their credentials are strong, they are successful in their college applications.

Another thing to remember is that many other factors will combine to determine your daughter’s college admission. Has she challenged herself in the courses she has taken? Are her grades in school strong? Has she contributed to the life of her school and/or community in a significant way? Does she have special talents in music, drama, athletics, art, dance, or creative writing? Has she demonstrated leadership? Will she have competitive SAT or ACT scores? If she is doing well and just that one Regents exam indicates a weak spot, she’ll still have a strong admissions profile.

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Last week, we confirmed with Department of Education representatives that kindergarten and 1st grade gifted and talented placement letters would go out starting today.

Now, the DOE website says letters will go out starting June 19th, this Friday — which leaves exactly one week until the deadline for registration, June 26th. Reasons for the delay are, as yet, unclear. As always, we’ll post details when they’re known. But families waiting by the mailbox should bide their time for a few more days, as the June 15th deadline will not be met.

Dear Judy,

We just got the results of my daughter’s middle school choice process and ended up with a school we did not choose. Is there any way to appeal this placement? Could it be a mistake?

5th grade parent

Dear 5th grade parent:

You are not alone, we have heard from many parents with the same problem. Mistakes happen. We know a parent whose daughter was matched with a school she didn’t apply to out of her district, yet she was not “accepted” at any of the district schools she applied to. This was clearly an error. My advice? If you think this could be a mistake, check with your elementary school guidance counselor now; ask her to contact the school that “accepted” your daughter to see if her name is on their list. When in doubt, double check with the local enrollment office and finally, with the middle school enrollment office at Tweed, headed by Sandy Ferguson.

If it is not a mistake, but just bad luck, you have until June 10 to appeal the placement, according to Department of Education spokesperson Andy Jacob. This goes for schools in districts that have middle school choice. Ask your guidance counselor for an appeal form. She can review your daughter’s situation and help fill out the appeal application. You might have a guidance counselor who knows your child well enough to go to bat for her. She may know middle school guidance counselors; she may know which schools are still open to applicants. Jacob said that “Appeals are granted based on seat availability and the selection criteria of the schools listed on the application.” He cautioned that ” Submitting an appeal does not guarantee admittance to a specific school, or even that a new placement will be offered.” You’ll be notified about appeals decisions by the end of June, according to Jacob.

Also consider checking out the few new schools that are opening next fall – they may still have openings.

Be as patient as you can. Late in summer there will be special enrollment offices to deal with unsettled admissions problems, and often the schools do not have an accurate count of who is actually attending until September. If you have applied and been endorsed by the guidance counselor, you might get an open spot.

Meanwhile, another piece of advice: don’t deride the school to which your daughter has been assigned. Do look for bright spots and emphasize them. She might just end up there!

Judy

Correction: Previously we reported, as per Jimmy Bueschen of the Manhattan enrollment office, that children  could only appeal  to schools that they had already applied to. According to parents who have copies of the appeal form, and Andy Jacob of the DOE’s press office,  children can apply to any choice program or school to which they are eligible and whose admissions are handled by the Office of Student Enrollment. That includes schools to which a child may have previously applied and new middle schools opening in September. 

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Q: Some of my friends want to visit college campuses over the summer. But what’s the point of visiting a school when it’s not in session?

A: While it would be ideal to visit a college on a weekday during the regular academic year, for practical purposes this is not always possible, particularly if the campus is some distance from your home. So summer is a fine alternative, and you can still gain valuable information from campus visits. In the last 20 years or so, college admission offices, as well, have realized that summer is the only time when some families can travel, and they are not only prepared for but welcome prospective students. If you go to the admissions page of any campus website, you will see tour times listed and either a phone number or online form to arrange your visit. Admission offices are open year-round (though rarely on weekends). This schedule allows you to meet staff members, regardless of the time of year you visit the school. Also, tour guides are usually enrolled students, so you can get their perspective about the school.

There are two major goals you can achieve with summer campus visits. First, if you stop at the admissions office and sign in there, the college will have a record of your visit. Later, if you decide to apply for admission, this will be evidence of your “demonstrated interest” in the school (this doesn’t guarantee acceptance, of course, but it can be a plus factor). Remember to obtain the business card of the admissions officer who speaks with you. If you have further questions you will have someone specific to contact. (more…)

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Families applying to middle school should have letters by now. Since the middle school admissions process varies widely by district, we are curious how smoothly it has gone across the city. A few of the preliminary reports we have heard have included bureaucratic mess-ups (inaccurate admissions letters, contradictory information from the Department of Education offices and individual schools, special education delays). While the DOE is no stranger to admissions-process-bungles, we are hoping these are isolated cases.

Have you gotten your letter yet?

Questions from parents prompted us to reach out to the Department of Education for more information on 1st and 2nd grade citywide gifted and talented programs based in Manhattan.

First, prospective NEST parents of rising 1st and 2nd graders, what you’ve heard on the tours is correct: The news is not optimistic. At present, there are no seats available in 1st or 2nd grade at NEST, although some may open in late spring or summer, if families move or opt for different schools. The DOE needs to keep an orderly process in place, according to spokesperson Andy Jacob, so that students can be fairly assigned to the school if and when seats open up.

Anderson, which is moving seven blocks south, to the MS 44 building, will open a new 1st grade class, with 27 seats, but has no open spots in 2nd grade. TAG has more room for new students: There are 30 1st grade seats and 12 2nd grade seats to be filled for this coming September.

Parents should note that there is no guarantee beyond kindergarten and 1st grade that children will be offered seats in either district or citywide G&T programs — and the guarantee only holds if families list every district G&T option available to their child, as well as citywide schools of interest, on the application. Accordingly, Jacob said, there will be no waitlists; they won’t be needed when all eligible kindergarten and 1st-grade children are seated. It’s not clear why families of 2nd graders don’t have a waitlist option, for midyear access if seats become available, but the current DOE policy does not include one.

As in general education enrollment, siblings take priority over non-siblings, a decision that makes sense for families, even as it seems to potentially limit access for first-born children. Basically, qualifying siblings who list their big-sib’s school first on their application have priority over non-sibling applicants. Within the sibling group, enrollment priority is determined by test score, and if the number of seats is less than the number of qualifying students, children are randomly assigned to the school.

If seats are still open after siblings are placed, Jacob explained, the same process repeats for non-siblings, with enrollment priority determined by test score. If experience is any guide, non-siblings need to have higher scores than siblings to earn an offer: Last year, siblings with scores in the 97th to 99th percentile were accepted at all three Manhattan citywide programs; no non-siblings with scores below 99 were accepted at NEST or Anderson, although some were placed at TAG.

When Lydia Bellahcene’s son “E.E.,” who struggles with a reading disability, was picked from a lottery to attend Williamsburg Charter High School, she was elated. “I thought my son could be successful. He would be given the support he needed. I had no red light, yellow light to be cautious because they had an IEP team [a group of administrators who ensure special education students receive services].” Although her son worked with a special education reading instructor every day for 45 minutes beginning in 3rd grade at a regular Department of Education school, when he began 9th grade at Williamsburg Charter in 2007, the specialist was promised, but never appeared. As a result, he failed 9th-grade English, became depressed, and was forced to continue to wear the 9th-grade green uniform the following year, while his friends wore the gold 10th-grade Williamsburg Charter shirt, said Bellahcene.

Charter schools, which operate outside the city Department of Education and select students through a lottery, have become increasingly controversial as their numbers have grown. This fall an additional 24 charter schools are expected to open, bringing the total in New York City to more than 100 schools. As charter schools proliferate, and in many instances, post higher test scores than neighboring regular schools, some parents and advocates claim the schools are “creaming,” enrolling only the best students and ignoring disadvantaged populations.

“Those charter schools are not serving the main population,” said Aixa Rodriguez, a Spanish teacher who worked at International Leadership Charter School in the Bronx. She said students requiring extra services were pushed out. “They’re serving a boutique population…You’re not going to have a whole line of parents on welfare whose kids are PINS,” referring to the warrants parents place on run-away youth.

Charter school advocates disagree. “When somebody says a charter school is creaming, what they’re not telling you is there’s no way on God’s Earth you know who you’re getting,” said Jeffery Litt, superintendent of the Carl C. Icahn charter schools.

Charter schools claim they outperform neighborhood schools while enrolling the same student demographic. Opponents argue that charter schools only attract children whose parents are involved and invested in their education, since the parents had to seek out a charter school and fill out an application by the April 1 deadline. Additionally, because charter schools operate independently of the city DOE, opponents say there is no oversight to protect the most vulnerable students – those who don’t speak English or require special education services.

An analysis of student data involving some of the most challenging students to educate, students who are homeless, special education students, and English Language Learners (ELL), shows that charter schools don’t serve or enroll the same students as local public schools. Homeless students

In New York City, 51,316 public school students are homeless, and only 111 of them attend a charter school, according to Jennifer Pringle, director of NYS-TEACHS, a state-funded group that provides assistance to schools, social service providers, and families about the educational rights of homeless students.

“With many charter schools, you have an application process. It’s not just you can show up at the school on September 1st and register your child,” Pringle said, “and many families in crisis aren’t in a position to see that process through.” Although most city charter schools are located in low-income neighborhoods, 34 charter schools enroll no homeless students. In East New York, Brooklyn, a politically-forgotten neighborhood with decrepit buildings and the infamous Pink housing projects, nine homeless shelters are located near Achievement First East New York Charter School. The school does not enroll any homeless students.

(more…)

Heads-up, pre-K families: The Department of Education announced today that it will email or snail-mail placement results to city parents late this week. Although they’re not saying precisely when communications will go out, “the end of this week” sounds pretty committal. Families who applied online will receive word by email and letter; others will receive word just by USPS.

If you choose to accept an offer, you’ll need to register between Tuesday, May 26 and Monday, June 8 at the school your child will attend. Families whose children would have gone to pre-K at PS 3 or PS 41, we’re asking where you’ll register (the schools or the new program site) and will report details. For all families, we’d suggest calling the specific school to confirm their registration hours, to minimize time away from work (and frustration).

Failure to register means giving up the offer of a pre-K seat for your child.

Questions, concerns, and comments on the pre-K process are invited by the DOE at ES_Enrollment@schools.nyc.gov. If you write in, please let us know whether and when there’s a response to your email; last year, communications shortfalls plagued the process, which we hope, for everyone’s sake, will not be the case this year.

Space for pre-kindergarten classes shut out of PS 3 and PS 11 in Greenwich Village because of kindergarten over-crowding will be available next fall at 27 Barrow Street, the home of the Barrow Street Nursery School, according to City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and Department of Education officials who have been working this week to find a home for the displaced students.

Speaking to an auditorium packed with parents at the District 2 Community Education Council meeting last night, John White, of the Department of Education, said that the siting is a temporary solution “that will allow the [kindergarten] waitlist to completely disappear.” There are 79 kindergarteners now on the waitlist for the shared PS3/41 zone, he said, and moving the pre-K classes will allow one new class at PS 41 and two new classes at PS 3. White also anticipates that many of the 63 zoned students who qualified for gifted & talented programs would choose that option, freeing up more space in the crowded neighborhood schools.

Regarding a new site for a new PS 151, White indicated that the Our Lady of Good Counsel school would be the likely site; a formal announcement is expected on Monday.

White also said that new sites will be found for two middle schools now sharing elementary-school buildings, Greenwich Village Middle School and the Clinton School for Writers and Artists, for the 2010-2011 school year.

Parents fired questions at White and DOE enrollment chief Elizabeth Sciabarra about kindergarten waitlists and challenging DOE statistics. A CEC member asked parents: “Are you happy with what you are hearing tonight?” Parents, some carrying placards, responded with a resounding “NO!” (more…)

After days of scrambling and searching for about 60 missing gifted and talented program tests for students at PS 9 in Manhattan, Department of Education spokesman Andy Jacob said yesterday that the test company, Pearson, found the mis-marked box — but that the tests everyone thought were there, weren’t.

“We’re going to retest the students whose tests we can’t locate,” Jacob said after a letter went out to PS 9 families explaining the process. Do-overs will begin this weekend at the DOE headquarters, Tweed Courthouse, and continue through Thursday at PS 9. Department of Education officials will hand-score the tests and have promised that families “will receive score reports by Tuesday, May 26″ — with applications due Friday, the 29th. Jacob also said that “turning in their applications later won’t affect their chances of being placed in a particular program.”

“There’s nothing we can do to fully make up for the inconvenience and frustration of this situation for the affected families,” said Jacob. “The best thing we can do is retest the students and get them their results as quickly as possible.”

The students will not repeat the full OLSAT exam that was offered in the fall, but will instead take a “breach form of OLSAT,” according to the DOE’s letter to parents, which is the “alternate form used in all retesting situations.”

Parents at PS 9 wonder why their kids have to retest at all. Natalie Redmond, whose daughter’s test was lost, asks why last year’s test scores can’t be used in lieu of a new test. Redmond points out that DOE will use old tests to place some children in G&T programs – if it’s “good enough for kids in the outer boroughs,” Redmond asks, why isn’t the option of using last year’s scores open to PS 9 parents as well?

Whether the missing-tests kids will gain a competitive edge by repeating a familiar test hasn’t been broached. It seems clear, though, that the DOE could mandate practices to prevent this kind of crisis: Why aren’t schools required to photocopy test papers before they’re sent? Seems as simple as a fail-safe can be.

For parents of PS 9 students, on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, who took the gifted and talented tests this year, the wait for results has been particularly tough, because their children didn’t receive test results — and the actual tests aren’t in the possession of the Department of Education.Now, according to DOE spokesman Andy Jacob, the mystery is unraveling: it seems that a mislabeled box, which held about 60 tests, was shipped to the company that’s contracted to score the tests in San Antonio, Texas. The box arrived, according to package-tracking records, but as “the test company didn’t realize that it contained materials that needed to be scored, … it was placed in storage” along with extra test materials and other non-scorables.

The search is now on at the test company, Pearson, to locate the mismarked box and score the tests pronto. Once they find the box, “they will be able to score the tests immediately,” said Jacob, who added, “we will hopefully be able to get results to families within a matter of days.” It’s impossible, of course, to say precisely how many days might elapse until the missing box is found, tests are scored, and results are known.

The DOE will likely relax the admissions timeline for affected families. Jacob said, “any of these students who qualify for gifted programs will not be at a disadvantage in the application process. We will make sure that their families have enough time to explore their options and complete their application.”

Let’s hope Pearson finds the box, and quickly, too. Updates to follow; stay tuned.

Update: It’s not good news: Pearson found the box in San Antonio. The tests aren’t there, and no one knows where they are. DOE plans to retest the children whose tests have gone missing; we’ll have details in the morning.

Parents of children who tested for 1st, 2nd and 3rd grade seats in district and citywide gifted and talented programs this year have faced frustration and confusion as they await news of test scores — and, for parents at one Upper West Side school in Manhattan, for evidence that their children actually took the critical tests.

Department of Education spokesman Andy Jacob confirms that “several parents at PS 9… have not received a score report even though their children took the admissions test.” He continues, “We are working with the school and the test company to locate the tests,” and adds, “We’ll obviously make sure that none of these students who took the test are at a disadvantage in the application process.” What he doesn’t detail is precisely how the students whose tests are AWOL will be evaluated; some parents have suggested using last year’s scores, others protest that using old tests will skew this year’s outcome (see below). To date, the DOE is silent on how it means to address any potential “disadvantage.”

We’ve also heard from many parents of children who were permitted to apply for citywide G&T programs based on last year’s scores — which contradicts what Jacob told us last week. In an email, he writes to correct “incomplete information” for students in the Bronx, Staten Island, and Queens — boroughs that, for the most part, did not have kindergarten-entry G&T programs last year. “The hardship of traveling to Manhattan may have dissuaded some families from applying,” says Jacob, which is why the DOE will permit eligible children to apply for citywide G&T programs based on last year’s scores. (Never mind that none of the new citywides will open in the Bronx or Staten Island.) So the bottom line seems to be, some students may apply for citywides on last year’s scores — provided they don’t live in Brooklyn or Manhattan.

The situation with PS 122 in Queens continues to evolve: (more…)

Quick catch-up for parents looking for 1st-grade gifted and talented program information; we have answers from the Department of Education to some general questions (thank you, Andy Jacob), and look forward to details on a couple of specific questions tomorrow or early next week.

First, Jacob says, “Applications were mailed to all kindergarten and 1st-grade students, including those who qualified as entering kindergarteners in 1st-grade-entry districts last year.” If you haven’t yet received word from the DOE about your child’s application, contact the DOE’s Gifted and Talented program office at (212) 374-5165 or (212) 374-5972.

Second, parents have asked if their child’s kindergarten seat is at risk if they choose to apply for citywide G&T (provided their child tested this year and meets eligibility criteria, of course). Concerns about risking a seat are unwarranted, says Jacob. “Unless a child actually accepts another placement, she keeps her current placement.”

Third, we raised a number of questions that have to do with particular districts or particular schools: Regarding Queens’ District 30, the DOE plans to offer G&T programs in three schools come September: PS 150, PS 122 (both in District 30) and PS 217 on Roosevelt Island (District 2). (We are going back to DOE with questions about the commute.)

Readers raised questions about PS 122, which historically began G&T classes in 2nd grade, wondering whether beginning next year’s program in kindergarten would jeopardize 122’s current 1st-graders, some of whom might enter the school’s established G&T program next year. Jacob was unfamiliar with the specific situation, but promised to follow up with G&T staffers; we’ll stay on this.

In District 28, where parents had concerns about too few seats for the number of children who qualified for district G&T programs, Jacob says two additional schools are listed on the application — at PS 220 and PS 55.

Additionally, we have heard from two families of current G&T kindergarten students in Manhattan’s PS 9 who told us that scores for the tests their children took this year are missing. Despite thorough searching at DOE by G&T office workers, the parents say, there is no trace of the test results — or any record that the children actually sat for this year’s test. These parents rightly ask, what happened to the tests their children took? They also want to know what’s next if the tests are truly AWOL — will the DOE use eligibility scores from last year’s test? And finally, in a DOE whose professed hallmark is accountability and transparency, how can there be no paper trail — no physical record of who took which test when? Jacob will, we trust, offer answers to these questions soon.

In the interim, if your child sat for the G&T tests and you have not received notice of her or his scores from DOE, let us know, contact your parent coordinator, and call the DOE to report your concern first thing Monday morning. And if you’re among the families of PS 9 whose children’s tests seem to be missing, please be in touch, so we can try to track down what happened.

With all the attention focused on kindergarten overcrowding, it’s important not to forget the middle school students who have yet to be matched with a high school they want to attend. It’s time for the Department of Education to stop boasting about how many more students got their first choice and imagine for a few minutes what it must feel like to be graduating next month and assigned to a high school you don’t want to go to — or still be scrambling to appeal a placement.

This is not an outcome a city, where less than half of high schoolers earn a diploma on time, can find acceptable. And the Department of Education simply has to find a way to place students like those detailed in this week’s Daily News story. Students like Ostap Paviliv, an honor student from Sheepshead Bay, or Max Hellerstein, a high scoring 8th-grader who got assigned to a fashion high school. What sense does that make? And what about Phoebe, middle-schooler from Manhattan who scored in the top 2 percent of all 7th-grade students and got exactly zero of her six first-round choices?

It’s outrageous that high-achieving students who have worked hard and fully expect to graduate and go on to college are in this limbo. The DOE’s response — that only 9 percent of 8th-graders did not get a match — is wholly inadequate. There needs to be a system in place that helps each and every one of these students find a proper placement.

Over the summer, some students with high school seats will move or perhaps choose parochial or private  schools instead.  High school seats will open at desirable, strong schools. Unmatched or mismatched students, who in some cases are near the top of their class, must be a DOE priority. It’s wrong to leave them stranded. These are kids and parents who believe in public education.  This city cannot and should not fail them.

News has been scarce for families of kindergarteners who tested for 1st-grade gifted and talented programs. While the numbers are far smaller than those for kindergarten-entry G&T, families have questions — and deserve answers. Here’s what we’ve learned.

Not only were fewer rising 1st-graders tested than kids entering kindergarten, the 1st-grade numbers this year are smaller than they were in 2007: some 11,300 students took the test in 2008, compared with about 15,500 in 2007. Despite the drop, the number of students who qualified for district or citywide G&T programs was comparable: 1,454 in 2007 and 1,429 in 2008, which suggests a proportionally stronger outcome with fewer students tested. Have a look at the spreadsheet to see how children in your district fared.

Andy Jacob, the Department of Education’s press officer, says the difference in the overall number of students tested is due in part to the change in entry grade for programs. Last year, G&T programs began either in kindergarten or 1st grade, but this year all programs begin in kindergarten. Children who tested into district programs in areas where G&T started in 1st grade, didn’t have to retest this year, and will be ‘grandfathered’ into this year’s 1st-grade district G&T pool.

Children who qualified for a citywide G&T kindergarten program last year, but declined the offer of a seat, will not be ‘grandfathered’ into citywide applicant pools. Some families declined seats last year due to distance from the programs, which were all located in Manhattan. This year two new citwide programs in Brooklyn and one in Queens will open, providing more opportunities for children who tested this year.

In terms of qualifying 1st-graders, District 2 still leads the pack: 29 percent of students tested are eligible for gifted programs. Even though other districts tested hundreds more students, District 2 also had the most 1st-graders to clear the citywide bar. Bronx District 5, however, showed the biggest percentage gains. Last year 2 percent of students qualified for citywide G&T, compared to 11 percent this year — a jump from two to 12 students. And 32 District 5 children, up from 12, qualified for district G&T programs.

[Ed Note: New details from DOE added in Update at end of post.]

The Department of Education has gathered and analyzed kindergarten waitlist data for Manhattan districts 2 and 3, according to a message sent by DOE spokesperson Andy Jacob at 5 p.m. today. Data on other districts are not yet complete, Jacob wrote, but will be available “within the next two weeks.”

There are fewer children waitlisted than has been reported, according to the DOE’s count, which shows a total of 273 students waitlisted at seven schools in districts 2 and 3 combined. For the numbers-hungry: 31 students are waitlisted at PS 166; 90 students are on a combined waitlist for PS 3 and PS 41 (which share a zone); and 152 students are waitlisted on the Upper East Side (25 at PS 6, 40 at PS 59, 30 at PS 183, and 57 at PS 290).

“Waitlists will disappear or be greatly reduced,” Jacob wrote, as gifted and talented program enrollment siphons off students, and as families choose “non-public school options for children zoned in schools with waitlists.”

At PS 166, “we expect the wait list…to disappear after students accept gifted placements in June,” he writes. In the West Village, 26 students zoned for PS 3 and PS 41 qualified for G&T programs (but it’s not known whether they will accept). There’s no official mention of the impending cut to pre-K at both schools — just an allusion to “details within the next few days.”

On the Upper East Side, “almost all students on a waitlist at these four schools [PS 6, PS 59, PS 183, and PS 290] will receive a placement in their zoned school by the end of next month,” according to the statement. As 182 students zoned for those four schools qualified for G&T, “waitlists at these schools will shrink or even disappear,” Jacob anticipates. (more…)

Thirty Bronx parents gathered in a small Riverdale office suite on Monday evening to discuss the gifted and talented admissions process, following the Department of Education announcement that 45 percent more students qualified for kindergarten “gifted” programs this year. The chatter quickly highlighted the logistical and moral challenges of where to place gifted programs in a socio-economically disparate district.

District 10 is home to Riverdale, a quiet, secluded neighborhood that borders the Hudson River and Westchester County. Residents live in comfortable apartments and large estates hidden by a canopy of tree-covered, lush green lawns. District 10 also includes neighborhoods such as Fordham, Kingsbridge, and Tremont, where there are few trees, public housing, and noisy, congested streets.

This year, District 10 parents can choose among three district-wide gifted programs: PS 24 in Riverdale, PS 7 in Kingsbridge, and PS 54 in Fordham. Some parents say PS 24 is the only logical choice, others disagree. (more…)

The students waitlisted for kindergarten at Manhattan schools PS 3 and PS 41 will be able to register at one of these schools for class this September — but the pre-K students promised seats for next year will not be able to attend the schools. PS 3 and PS 41 have been directed to close their pre-K classes to make room for more kindergarten students.

“We canceled our pre-K,” said a staff member at PS 41, who asked not to be named. “It was a decision made with the DOE…We had no choice. The space is so limited, and the kindergarten kids needed space. That’s the decision that was made.”

Principal Lisa Siegman of PS 3 said that she did not have any official confirmation. Unlike pre-K students, who stay in their classroom, kindergarten students move to the cafeteria, gym, and other specialty classrooms. Siegman expressed safety concerns, citing crowding, a complicated split-lunch schedule, and other logistical difficulties that may result from increasing the number of kindergarten classes.

PS 41 began to make calls to parents of pre-K students, who now have to scramble for pre-K seats in nearby public schools or find scarce (and costly) spots at private pre-Ks. “We got word, and we got on the phone,” the PS 41 staffer said. “We would love to have some solution or options for our families.”

DOE sources say they plan to release more news in the next few hours with “very specific details about the wait lists in Districts 2 and 3.”  Stay tuned for updates.

Previous reports at insideschools.org and The New York Times highlighted the shortage of kindergarten seats at high-profile Manhattan schools. However, an informal Insideschools survey completed by principals across the city indicates that schools outside of Manhattan face similar challenges. Many popular schools in Brooklyn and Queens have waitlists for their kindergarten class, filled with children who live outside of the school zone.

Several of the three dozen principals we heard from said that the new kindergarten process, which allowed parents to apply to an unlimited number of schools, had caused “anxiety” and promised more school choice than it could deliver. (Many respondents elected to remain anonymous in their comments, even as they shared data and opinions with Insideschools.)

Although some schools have well-documented crunches , like PS 3, PS 41 and schools located on the Upper East Side, several other Manhattan schools we heard from, such as PS 63 in the East Village, PS 199 on the Upper West Side, and PS 112 in East Harlem, reported no kindergarten waitlist. (more…)

Q: My son is a junior and is going to a college fair next week. What questions does he need to ask and should he bring anything with him? How does he prepare for a college fair?

A: Spring is college fair time! When I was a college admissions rep, I always looked forward to fairs because I got to meet interested students and encourage them about higher education. There are basically two kinds of fairs: smaller fairs where 30 to 50 representatives from an array of colleges and universities come to a high school and set up information tables; and larger public events, where there can be hundreds of colleges represented. Students can browse and ask questions, pick up materials, and give their names to the reps as prospective applicants. College fairs are informal and fun, yet there is a certain protocol.

Here are some do’s and don’t’s about college fairs: (more…)

 Have a question for Jane?  Search archives | Contact the College Counselor

The Times, the News and the Post all cover the 45 percent rise in students who qualified for kindergarten gifted & talented programs — but none cite the clash between the numbers of citywide-eligible students and the quantity of available seats. With more than 1300 qualifying children and fewer than 300 seats, we’re eager to hear how Department of Education will address the shortfall.

Meanwhile, eighth-graders shut out of the high-school admissions process went through a second, supplemental round this spring, with decidedly mixed outcomes. The difficulties in high-school placement are by no means confined to ‘difficult’ students. Kolodner quotes solid B students who didn’t get matched with the schools they wanted, as well as a student who scored in the top two percent on seventh-grade standardized tests yet was closed out of all six of her first-round choices.

Parents struggle to explain (and to understand) mismatched placements; one refrain we hear often asks how parents can encourage their children to work hard because their efforts will be recognized and rewarded, while the ‘choice’ process continues to exclude, and alienate, thousands of families.

The Department of Education just released statistics on the current crop of students who applied for gifted and talented programs, citing a whopping 45 percent rise in qualifying students: 3,231 students who will enter kindergarten qualified for G&T programs this year, as opposed to 2,230 last year. A total of 14,822 children sat for the tests, and 22 percent qualified — another rise compared with last year, when 18 percent of 12,410 children tested qualified for G&T seats. To meet the rising demand, the DOE says it “will open as many as 24 new district gifted programs” and create “as many as 150″ new citywide kindergarten seats. On the list of G&T programs offering tours during the next two weeks, there are several schools that have never had a gifted and talented program or have had one in the past but didn’t accept a class of kindergarteners in 2008.

The overall numbers of students who qualify for citywide programs and schools, by scoring at or above the 97th percentile, has risen substantially as well: 1,345 students met or passed that high bar this year, compared with 1,026 last year. Where these students will attend school is a pressing question: The Anderson School will add 25 new seats, for a total of 75 kindergarten seats, according to the DOE, and three new citywide programs will offer 150 places. But even 225 new seats, combined with the 210 kindergarten seats the three citywide schools now offer (according to New York State accountability statistics), adds up to about 435 seats. You don’t need calculus skills to see that’s just under a third of the total of 1,345 qualifying students. It’s not known whether DOE projections estimate that two-thirds of those who qualify for citywide G&T will opt for other programs; it seems entirely possible that an awful lot of families might face disappointment. (NB: See Update below for details.)

While the numbers of children who took the test and scored at or above the 90 percentile increased in many districts, persistent trends continued, as higher numbers of District 2 and District 3 students in Manhattan — 40 and 45 percent, respectively — scores merited G&T seats, compared with 8 and 13 percent of the students’ scores in Districts 7 and 8 in the Bronx. In 31 of the city’s 32 districts, the number of students eligible for G&T programs increased, with the numbers of qualified students doubling in some districts that have had historically low participation.

Click here to see the DOE’s Excel spreadsheet, for district-by-district minutiae. (Or try this pdf version.)

Uptdate, 5pm: Andy Jacob of the DOE wrote to correct an error in the DOE’s release of information. In fact, Anderson will add only 25 new seats, for a total of 75 kindergarten seats next year — and those 25 seats are part of the 150 new seats the DOE plans for citywide G&T programs.

The adjustment makes the admissions math even less hospitable: According to the revised numbers (110 current seats plus 150 new seats), there will be approximately 260 citywide G&T kindergarten seats for more than 1300 eligible students. Basic percentages: The DOE will offer sufficient seats for 20 percent of the total number of eligible students.

Update, 6pm: The Anderson School will reportedly add an additional 25 seats to its first grade program, for a total of 75 seats on the grade.

Update, May 5th: Thanks to Robin Aronow, PhD, for correcting my math: The three citywide schools currently offer 210 seats; the DOE plans to add up to 150 new G&T citywide seats, including the 25 new kindergarten seats at Anderson, for a maximum total of 360 available seats — which tallies roughly to 30 percent of the total number of children who qualified.

Morning and afternoon rallies will bracket lawmakers’ workdays this Wednesday, May 6, with the focus squarely on kindergarten admissions. This year public school kindergarten admissions feature wait lists, overcrowding, and increasingly high demand for seats in neighborhoods where parents are being turned away from — or asked to patiently wait for — their zoned schools.

Starting with a 9  a.m. march from Battery Park, leading to a public event in City Hall Park at 10:30, “thousands” of city parents, union members and plain citizens are expected to  join AFSCME (the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, AFL-CIO) organizers to protest the Bloomberg budget proposal that cuts kindergarten from New York City-administered day care centers. The proposed closures would  effectively move 3,500 (or more) youngsters from city-run day care to public-school kindergarten classrooms (or wait lists). Event organizers say that at least three dozen City Council members will be present, as will Comptroller William Thompson, at least two borough presidents – Marty Markowitz of Brooklyn and Helen Marshall of Queens — and union leaders from New York and Washington, D.C.

That afternoon at 4 p.m., education advocates and parents will rally on the steps of City Hall to protest a “Kindergarten Krisis,” charging that more than 400 schoolchildren have “no school seats” for the fall term, particularly in neighborhoods like Manhattan’s Upper East Side, Tribeca, and Greenwich Village, where high demand has met with a limited supply of desirable kindergarten space. The problems are not unique to Manhattan: Brooklyn’s District 20 faces stiff challenges in its oversubscribed elementary and middle schools, and District 24 in Queens has already been busing young children, moving entire grades to schoolyard trailers, and making do with buildings that serve twice as many children than they were built to shelter.

Insideschools.org is surveying elementary-school principals to learn more about the kindergarten admissions process this year; feel free to comment below, especially if you know of a school or a district where the problems are particularly acute.

According to Department of Education spokesperson Andrew Jacob (and the revised ‘final’ timeline on the DOE website), the DOE plans to mail results from gifted and talented testing to families starting today, May 4th.

That’s good, because some schools, like the Anderson School and NEST+M, will offer tours and open houses beginning this week for families whose children qualified as applicants. The tour protocol varies by school: Parents should call the school/s in which they’re most interested for details. In Brooklyn, PS 20, which will house one of the city’s new G&T programs, plans tours this week and next week as well.

Online applications for G&T placement will be opened on May 6th. Students who score at the 97th percentile or above are eligible to apply for citywide G&T schools and programs, although there is no guarantee of admission, especially if the numbers of applicants exceed the number of available seats. Students who score at or above the 90th percentile are guaranteed seats at a district gifted and talented program.

The Department of Education announced on their website that score notifications for applicants to elementary school gifted and talented programs would not be released today, as scheduled, but on Monday instead. Last year, the process was delayed repeatedly and students’ placements were eventually delivered by a courier service. Parents who were closely watching the Department of Education website last night noticed that around 5 p.m. the timeline changed from May 1 notification to notification “shortly”. (more…)

All eighth and ninth graders who applied to high schools should have a placement by today, although they may not all be pleased with their assignment. The 7,455 students who were not matched in the first round of the high school process were asked to re-rank their preferences from a list of schools with available space. They could have listed up to 12 choices, but students and parents complained the options were limited. In the supplementary round, all students were matched with a school, regardless of whether they had ranked it or not.

“Any students who didn’t get a placement in a school that they had ranked were given a place at a school with available seats,” said Andrew Jacob, a spokesperson for the Department of Education. One parent posted that her child was placed at a school she didn’t rank. “The supplementary round is back and my daughter was accepted to a school,” the parent wrote. “The letter should have said “congratulations you have been excepted [sic] to a new school that you have never heard about, does not exist yet and that you did not apply to.”

Students who want to appeal their assignment from either the main admissions round or the supplementary round must meet with their guidance counselor and explain their reason for the appeal before the form is due on May 7, according to Jacobs. Students must list three programs or schools in order of preference.

(more…)

Only 100 parents attended the District 3 kindergarten lottery last week after the Department of Education announced that many popular schools did not have available seats.

“Parents were disappointed that they didn’t have a full range of options as they have had in the past four years since the lottery has been in operation,” said Robin Aronow, founder of School Search NYC, who attended the lottery.

The announcement, made on the Friday before the April 21 lottery, dealt a blow to the roughly 760 hopeful families seeking an alternative to their neighborhood school. A few of the most desirable schools, such as PS 87 and PS 166, had no seats available. And of the 251 openings, parents were informed that several schools, such as PS 9, would only be able to accept students with older siblings enrolled at the school. (more…)

Journalist and occasional Insideschools blogger Lauren Young comments on kindergarten admissions:

What if your child didn’t get into kindergarten at your local public school? As reported here, the waiting list for a spot at highly lauded P.S. 41 or P.S. 3 has reached 90 children. My son’s best friend Ben is among those shut out in the West Village; he’s No. 79 on the wait list. Ben’s mom is worried that he will start asking if he did something “wrong” because he wasn’t accepted to kindergarten at P.S. 41. “I so resent New York for all this,” she says. “They’ll place him ’somewhere,’ but…I just don’t want him ’somewhere,’ you know? Ugh.” The problem seems most severe on the Upper East Side, where 350 children cannot get into kindergarten at their local schools, according to Class Size Matters. and Department of Education planners are considering siting a new kindergarten in the basement of a crowded, popular East Side middle school.

On Tuesday, May 5 at 3:30 pm, Ben’s mom and other concerned parents will rally on the steps of City Hall to protest school overcrowding. (The rally is sponsored by Class Size Matters, Manhattan Task Force on School Overcrowding, Community Education Council of District 2, Parent Leaders of Upper East Side Schools, Public School Advocacy Committee, Community Board 2 and other groups.)

This madness probably feels familiar to veterans of New York City’s preschool admissions scramble. Indeed, Nursery University is a new movie about the insanity of landing a coveted spot at a desirable private-school, pre-kindergarten program. (It’s more competitive than getting accepted to an Ivy League school!) I see a sequel in the works: Kindergarten Wars, coming to theaters, and Netflix queues, all too soon.

Later today, Chancellor Joel Klein will speak at the Harlem Success Academy charter lottery. Harlem Success, founded by former City Councilmember Eva Moskowitz, can’t ever be faulted for thinking small: The draw will be held tonight at the Harlem Armory Track at 5:30 pm, a facility that can host thousands, as it did at a giant school fair and  a charter school-sponsored inauguration celebration.

Demand for charters is on the rise, especially given strong support by our mayor, chancellor, president and national education secretary. But amid all the governmental enthusiasm, there are important signposts that the charter processes may not be working as well — or yielding the anticipated strong results — that their promoters celebrate.

One dense report that closely analyzes New York City charter-school data shows little daylight between traditional publics and the charter schools on reading and math scores, despite a school year that’s up to 40 days longer than the conventional academic calendar (abstract is here; there is a fee to read the full report). A broad-canvas analysis in the Wall Street Journal highlights some of the obstacles charters face nation-wide — including union opposition and dozens of states that simply do not permit charters within their borders. And a hyper-local report documents a geographic dilemma that has its thorny roots in school zoning: A child who lives in one district (which makes him charter-eligible) attends an elementary school that promotes its grads into another district (which makes him charter-ineligible). Similar tales of infuriating bureaucratic arcana and personal frustrations abound.

Charters are a signature element of school choice, promoters believe, and their continued expansion seems an imminent reality. But charters are no magic bullet for school ills — and in many venues, they seem to show small gains, despite hundreds of extra hours of instruction and the machinations required to register.

Jacob Mnookin stood on the edge of the boardwalk in Coney Island, greeting the families who had come to witness the inaugural lottery for Coney Island Prep, south Brooklyn’s first charter school. Mnookin, the founding principal, still wasn’t sure where he would be holding classes in the fall, so the admissions lottery was taking place in the education room at New York Aquarium, a boxy facility between the iconic Cyclone roller coaster and the beach. Families sat next to giant turtle shells, sea sponges, and mounted fish skeletons, waiting to see if their child’s name would be one of the first 81 names pulled out of a plastic bingo drum, ensuring a place at the new school.

Like all charter schools in New York that receive more applicants than places, Coney Island Prep is required to hold a random lottery, with preference giving to students from the district and siblings of admitted students, to determine who would be offered a seat in the inaugural 5th grade class. The lottery was held on Tuesday, April 7 – referred to as “super Tuesday” by charter operators, since 28 of the 99 charter schools in New York were holding lotteries that evening. (more…)

Q: Some of my friends are telling me that if I don’t have any community service on my resume, I won’t be able to get into a good college. I’m not against doing community service, but I just don’t see where I could fit it into my schedule. I have a heavy academic load, plus I’m very involved in performing arts (orchestra, jazz ensemble, drama) and with all the rehearsals, I have hardly any free time! Will not having community service on my record really hurt me?

A: This is a timely question! At a rally for civic service yesterday, Mayor Mike Bloomberg called on all New York City public schools to offer public service opportunities to students although he said he would not make it a requirement for graduation as some high schools do. The theory behind requiring community service is that young people ought to put in some effort to enhance their community, and some students find themselves becoming inspired by the service they do in the process of fulfilling this requirement. Others find it a chore and only do it because it’s mandated.

There is no requirement that community service be listed on a college application, just as there is no requirement for work experience or extra-curricular involvement. There is space for both to be listed, but it’s optional.

Some colleges have “service to others” as an important part of their own ethic. If you look at a college’s website and it points out, for example, that 90% of the student body is involved in community service, from working in a neighborhood soup kitchen to tutoring children in an after-school program to calling the bingo numbers at the senior citizens’ center, then it’s obvious that evidence of community service will be valued (and the lack of service will be noted). (more…)

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Parents who responded to our high-school choice poll have strong opinions on the matter: More than half say there aren’t enough good schools for students and families to choose from, with demand strongest for progressive, rigorous high schools.

About 20 percent of responders say the system only works well for kids who are lucky enough to have strong adult guidance. Over 15 percent would welcome a return to zoned schools (and less choice). Less than 10 percent of parents say the system works just fine as it’s now constructed — a sharp counterpoint to the Department of Education’s claim of 86 percent satisfied customers.

This week, we’re asking about schools’ role in addressing online bullying. Weigh in; we welcome your thoughts.

While thousands of parents and students showed up at the supplementary round high school fair on Tuesday, many of the schools on the Department of Education list of available seats were not represented. We asked a few schools how many seats they actually have available. This is what they reported:

-The new, long-awaited Sunset Park High School has 25 seats left.

- The new, selective Cinema High School has only filled 15 out of their 80 seats. They will not hold another audition for applicants but will instead consider grades and test scores. The principal said they would look at applications with fresh eyes, so students who applied in the first round and didn’t get a seat at Cinema can apply again.

- The acclaimed Dual Language and Asian Studies High School has only 10 unfilled seats.

- Manhattan Business Academy has 58 seats left.

Some families at the fair were hopeful that they would get a good match in the second round, others remained very angry. Several families protested the process outside, refusing to enter the building.

A family from the Bronx said their son has good grades, but his middle school counselor “isn’t competent at all.” They described the process as “disappointing. It’s a public education- why all the rejection?”

Families have until Friday, April 3 to hand in new applications to their school’s guidance counselor. Those unhappy with the match they get in this round may appeal.

In the Daily News, Merideth Kolodner profiles a family whose talented, accomplished son was not matched with any high schools on the first admissions round, echoing comments we’re hearing from readers and parents citywide. On TV, Cindy Hsu at CBS Channel 2 covered the story, and Brian Lehrer invited Insideschools director Pamela Wheaton on the radio to discuss the high school match process.

The supplementary round high school admissions fair is on March 31. Insideschools has posted a list of schools with open seats, as well as tips on individual schools. And the pressure’s on: Unlike the first round, which spanned months, decisions must be made quickly. The deadline to submit paperwork to guidance counselors is Friday, April 3.