Kindergarten admissions: Many families still waitlisted
UPDATE 4:40 p.m. April 7: A new kindergarten waitlist released by the Department of Education shows that close to 1500 students (1492) are actually still on a waitlist, not the 1367 that was reported on the earlier version. Among the numbers on the new list: 111 waitlisted at PS 87, not the 91 reported below. View the latest waitlist here.
The number of incoming kindergartners waitlisted at their zoned schools for next September has decreased from more than 2000 on the initial listto 1367, according to new data released by the Department of Education this week.
The DOE cautioned that the list is "simply a snapshot in time" and the numbers will continue to go down as families move, choose to attend gifted and talented programs, or go to private schools. Insidechools reported that last year most schools across the city were able to accommodate their waitlisted, zoned students. Twenty eight schools in 2009, mostly in the Bronx, ended up capping their kindergarten classes and having to send zoned students to other schools.
This week, 10 schools still have waitlists of more than 50 zoned students. PS 290, on Manhattan's Upper East Side, with 92 students, and PS 87, on the Upper West, with 91, have the longest lists. In both cases, new neighborhood schools will open in the fall to help alleviate overcrowding. Despite the opening of two new schools in Tribeca, popular PS 234has 73 students still vying for a kindergarten slot.
In Queens, two popular schools in Forest Hills also have sizable waitlists: PS 196with 55 students, and PS 303with 78.
All families still on waitlists in mid-May will get letters from the DOE with an alternative placement, although they will not be given a choice of schools. Those families can also remain on the waitlists. Frequently there are some openings during the first week of school. For more information, check out the DOE's Q&A about kindergarten admissions.
View the current kindergarten waitlist here.
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