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Step By Step Lottery Process

Step 1:

Ê®·ÖÁùºÏ²Ê's Communications and Ê®·ÖÁùºÏ²Ê Outreach Department announces lottery dates to the community, defining the application window, the lottery and parent notification dates.

Step 2:

New applications are submitted through the . Parents will log-in using their existing Q/ParentConnection PIN & password. Parents not on Q/ParentConnection have the ability to create their own online lottery account.

Step 3:

Each school/program will review new applications that have been submitted for accuracy and to determine if applicants have a sibling or area preference.

• Errors
  If inaccuracies within the application are found upon review, the parent is notified to make the necessary corrections.
• Sibling preference
  Sibling preference is granted to those with a sibling currently enrolled in that specific school or program. To qualify for a preference, the enrolled student must still be in the program at the time the sibling enters. For the K-12 language immersion programs, a sibling preference is granted so long as the enrolled student will still be enrolled at any level of the program (elementary, middle or high), regardless of the entrance level of the sibling.
• Area preference
  Area preference is given to students who live in the attendance area of a neighborhood school and who wish to enroll in that school’s alternative program. If a student has sibling or attendance area preference, their name will be grouped with other preference students at the same grade level according to board policy.

Step 4:

Students with approved applications are placed into the school/program applicant pool.

Step 5:

The lottery application window closes per the dates announced by the superintendent and published by the District.

Step 6:

The Instructional Division Executive Directors (IDED) will then run the lottery according to Administrative Regulation 5116(a).

Step 7:

The lottery system adds new applicants to each program's existing wait list from previous lotteries. This placement data is then verified by Ê®·ÖÁùºÏ²Ê administrators.

Step 8:

Five school days after the lottery has been run, parents will receive automatic system notification of placement results via email or phone communication. At this time, parents can also log into their lottery account to view placement data.

Step 9:

Two placement categories are created: “Accepted” or “Wait List”.

• If “Accepted,” the parent has the ability to accept or decline entrance into the program.
• If “Wait List,” the student is placed onto the program-specific wait list.

Step 10:

A parent of an “Accepted” student must do the following

• If the program is desired, the parent must accept placement within two school-days of notification.  Additionally, the parent must call the school within 5 days of accepting to commence the registration process. 
• If the program is declined or if the parent fails to accept within two school days of notification, the student is removed from the “Accepted” list. The next student on the “Wait List” will then be notified of his/her acceptance.

Step 11:

A parent of a “Wait List” student will be notified by automatic communication and will be asked to confirm if they want their child to remain on the school/program wait list.

• If yes, the student will then remain on the wait list for the next lottery event.
• If not, the student will be removed from the program wait list.

Step 12:

Parents of a “Wait List” student who fail to confirm their desire to remain on the wait list are subject to board policy 322.3f, which allows Instructional Division Executive Directors to remove that student from the school/program wait list.

Understanding the wait list

The following is a simplified example version of the wait list for each grade:

Assume Harold, who is in the lottery for grade 5, also has a sister, Sarah, in the lottery for grade 1. Harold and Sarah have sibling preference because their brother is already enrolled in the same alternative program. Once the drawing is complete for grade 5, Sarah’s name will be pulled from the grade 1 lottery pile. She would be immediately entered on the grade 1 wait list. Her name would be placed after students who were entered on the list during the March 30, 2010 lottery, but she would be the first grade 1 student for the August 12, 2010 lottery:

If Frank, who was drawn after Harold in grade 5, also had a sibling in the grade 1 lottery, Frank’s sibling would be placed immediately after Sarah on the grade 1 list. Both Sarah and Frank’s siblings would be placed above the current lottery applicants for grade 1 whose names have yet to be drawn.

At the end of each school year, the wait list becomes the list for the next higher grade. For example, the wait list for grade 4 during the 2010-11 school year will become the wait list for grade 5 for the 2011-12 school year.

Preempting the Lottery Process

The lottery process may be preempted for the following reasons:

1. Grade level balance
2. Documented hardship (extenuating circumstances, medical, safety, psychological, or curriculum considerations)
3. Gender balance

All preemptions require advance approval of the appropriate Instructional Division Senior Director.