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Admissions » Lottery Procedures

Lottery Procedures

 

If the number of applications exceeds the number of available openings, all applicants, with the exception of existing students, who are guaranteed admission in the following school year, will be entered into a public random drawing (“lottery”), which is held according to the following procedures to determine admission.

 

Lottery Procedures

Should the number of valid applicants exceed the number of available openings, Elevate will conduct a random public lottery designed to establish a diverse student population. The lottery will take place within thirty (30) days of the closing date of the open enrollment period. The exact date and time of each year’s lottery, along with the following rules and procedures, will be posted on the Charter School’s website at least thirty (30) days prior to the lottery:

 

  1. Elevate School shall contract with a third party, professional school lottery vendor to fairly conduct the lottery online according to charter provisions.

  2. The number of openings available per grade level will be posted online on the day of the lottery.

  3. Separate lotteries shall be conducted for each grade in which there are fewer vacancies than pupils interested in attending. Within each grade level, the lottery system shall be used to draw students from pools beginning with all applicants who qualify for the first preference category, and shall continue with that preference category until all vacancies within that grade level have been filled. If there are more students in a preference category than there are spaces available, a random drawing shall be held from within that preference category until all available spaces are filled. If all students from the preference category have been selected and there are remaining spaces available in that grade level, students from the second preference category shall be drawn in the lottery, and the drawing shall continue until all spaces are filled and preference categories are exhausted in the order provided below.

  4. The drawing shall continue until all names are drawn. Those individuals whose names are drawn after all spaces have been filled will be placed on a waiting list in the order drawn, except if the preferences described below require otherwise. Any applications received after the lottery will be added to the end of the waiting list for the respective grade level, in the order received.

  5. After the lottery, admission offers shall be provided to parents/guardians of admitted students, along with a required enrollment packet to be returned by an identified deadline. The enrollment packet shall include the following:

    • Student enrollment form

    • Proof of immunization

    • Home Language Survey

    • Completion of Emergency Medical Information form

    • Proof of minimum age requirements

    • Release of records

  6. Parents/guardians of students who are on the waiting list will be notified on two separate occasions by telephone and/or e-mail, to the contact information identified on their child’s application form, if space becomes available for their child. If the parents/guardians accept, they shall be provided the required enrollment packet to be returned by an identified deadline. If parents/guardians do not respond within 48 hours of the second attempted contact, they will forfeit their child’s enrollment for that school year, and the parent/guardian of the next student on the waiting list will be contacted.

Lottery Preferences

Admission preferences will be extended to prospective students in the case of a random public lottery in the following order:

  1. Children of Elevate Elementary teachers and staff and children of Elevate School’s Board (not to exceed 10% of the Charter School’s population).

  2. Siblings of students admitted to or attending the Charter School.

  3. Children of Active Military families (not to exceed 40% of the Charter School’s population).

  4. Students residing in San Diego Unified School District.

  5. All other applicants.

The Charter School and the District agree to adhere to the requirements related to admission preferences as set forth in Education Code Section 47605(d)(2)(B)(i)-(iv).

 

*Note: If one sibling is admitted during the lottery, other sibling applicants are afforded sibling priority. Siblings of a currently enrolled 8th grade student are also granted sibling preference.