To answer everybody's question

[conuly]

NYC has been moving away from zoning and towards school choice, especially for high school, for the past 25+ years. There are good points and bad points in both systems. Trust me, when Eva's high school admissions come around to eat my brain and I spend September - December of this year obsessing over it you will hear all about it. (Be afraid. Be very, very afraid.)

I forgot some of you weren't here when I was obsessing over Ana's high school admissions process! To sum up, during those months significantly more of my brainspace was devoted to high school admissions than to my mother's cancer treatment. I hope Eva's process is a little more streamlined. At the very least, I already have wiped off the schools I don't like from her list.

Comments

[wpadmirer]

Never having had a choice (you went where you were told to based on where you lived), I don't even want to think about it. I think that would be for crazy-making.

[conuly]

It definitely can be. Actually, what I think would utterly infuriate these parents, if they knew it, is that lower-performing students are much more likely to get their top-choice school. Because they aim lower, and their priorities are mostly "is it close to home?" and "are my friends going there/is that person I hate going there?" rather than "do I think this will challenge me while also allowing me to stand out to colleges?"

[gwydion]

*crosses fingers it turns out okay*

[conuly]

Ah, well, my standards for schools is somewhat different from the parents I'm complaining about AND from that of underachievers. The first group wants schools with high test scores and Good Kids. The second mostly wants schools close to home, with their friends. My sole concern is "is this school run like a freaking prison", and you'd be surprised how many schools pass and also have good odds and decent test scores!

[kyrielle]

I can't imagine dealing with that system, but then, I don't have to. My town has just two high schools. One of them *is* by choice only while the other is the zoned school, but when you're talking a specialty school with less than 150 students, the prevalent assumption is you go to the main one. (The district has another high school, but in another town - we could apply for it, but then they'd have to drive/be driven every day.)

[adafrog]

Once they get in are they in until they graduate?

[conuly]

Typically.

If a student is woefully far behind and unlikely to graduate before the age of 20 then they'll be recommended to move to a transfer school that only takes students aged 16 and older.

If a student doesn't like their school for whatever reason, they may be able to transfer out. The easiest way, if you decide in the start of 9th that you don't like your school - or if you just want another shot at that really great school all your friends go to - is to do a second round of high school admissions for 10th. There are fewer seats available, because not as many kids participate in this process.

If you realize you want to transfer after the 9th grade, it's a little trickier. The DOE recognizes certain reasons for transferring, such as an inaccessible school for a disabled student or their parents, a long commute (over 75 minutes), a safety/bullying issue, or a school being labelled as underperforming or persistently dangerous. If your reason doesn't fit those categories you might still be able to wrangle a transfer if you're unhappy, but your best bet there is probably to identify a better school that has open seats first, then just ask them if you can re-enroll. If you've already found the school and done the legwork, they're not likely to complain.

But yes, once you're in high school, unless you want to leave, you're set.

[adafrog]

Makes sense. Thanks.

[conuly]

And there's some complications if you move outside the city. My understanding is that if you leave the city you can finish out the term for free, and the year for a tuition, but then you have to transfer to an outside-the-city school.

There's a tiny, tiny sliver of the Bronx which sends its students to the Pelham school district instead of the NYC schools (some weirdness with transportation and insurance), I don't know if those kids are allowed to apply to NYC high schools if they provide their own transportation. But it really is tiny - like, 10 houses.