The new enrollment program for DPS seems to be the talk of the town. I am curious to see how this new system will roll out. Parents are looking forward to an easier and streamlined application. While there are many changes that happen year to year regarding schools within a district, it’ll be reassuring to know that there will be consistency (ONE application) when enrolling your child in a Denver Public School. SchoolChoice guides and forms should be available this week. A special thanks to Sandra Konta, Application Processing Representative at DPS, for sending us this informative update detailing the enrollment process. 

Enrolling Your Child In a DPS School:  DPS SchoolChoice

Any student planning to attend a new school in the 2012-13 school year, including those entering ECE, elementary, middle or high school for the first time, should complete a DPS SchoolChoice form.  The SchoolChoice form is the one-and-only school application that needs to be completed for all DPS traditional boundary schools, magnet schools and programs*, and charter schools*.

*Please note that some magnet programs and charter schools require extra enrollment steps.  Please contact individual schools for details.

Step 1: Research

• Learn about DPS resources and programs: Consider your child’s strengths, challenges, and the kind of learning environment in which he/she is most successful. Then review the SchoolChoice Guide to create a list of schools that might be a good match for your child.

• Understand the DPS rating and ranking system: DPS uses the School Performance Framework (SPF) to evaluate how well Denver schools support student achievement. The rating is developed based on criteria that include academic growth, academic proficiency (status), student engagement, re-enrollment rates and parent satisfaction. Based on these criteria, all schools in the district are ranked on a 100-point scale and classified in five categories.  School-specific SPF ratings can be found in the SchoolChoice Guide.
• Research schools: Research schools by reviewing the SchoolChoice Guide, conduct online research at http://schoolchoice.dpsk12.org, and/or attend any of the upcoming events:

Far Northeast Denver Regional School Expo – December 3^rd; 10:00 AM – noon; Evie Dennis Campus

Southeast Denver Regional School Expo – December 3^rd; 10:00 AM – noon; Merrill Middle School

Southwest Denver Regional School Expo – December 3^rd; 9:00 – 11:00 AM; Lincoln High School

Near Northeast Denver Regional School Expo – December 6^th; 6:00 – 8:00 PM; Bruce Randolph Middle/High School

Northwest Denver Regional School Expo – December 10^th; 9:00 – 11:00 AM; North High School

• Visit schools that interest you: If possible, we strongly recommend that you visit the schools that interest you and your child. You may contact the school directly to meet the principal, take a tour, find out about an open house, or set up a classroom visit.

Step 2:  Prioritize

• After you’ve researched schools, resources and programs, prioritize your child’s top five schools in your order of preference.

Step 3:  Complete

• After identifying your child’s top five school preferences, determine if any of those schools require additional enrollment steps. Contact a school directly to learn what, if any, additional enrollment steps are required.  Information on which schools have additional enrollment steps can be found in the SchoolChoice Guide.
• List your child’s school preferences in order on the SchoolChoice form. It is important to list a total of five schools in the exact order of preference. Every effort will be made to assign your child into his/her highest preference school.  Please note that only listing one choice will not increase your chances of getting assigned to that school, and that your child is guaranteed a seat at his/her boundary school.
• Be sure to complete all the fields on the SchoolChoice form, fill in all five of your child’s top choices, and sign and date the form. SchoolChoice forms will be available on or before December 1, 2011 at any DPS school or online at http://schoolchoice.dpsk12.org.

Step 4:  Submit

• Submit your SchoolChoice form at any DPS school or bring your form to 900 Grant Street no later than 5:00 PM on January 31, 2012. Make sure to ask the school staff person who receives your form to make a time-stamped copy for you.  All SchoolChoice forms received by this date will be given full consideration for school assignments in the 2012/13 school year.  There is no benefit to submitting the SchoolChoice form earlier rather than later.

During the month of February, the DPS Office of Choice and Enrollment Services will work to collect and process all SchoolChoice forms in an attempt to get each student into his/her most highly preferred school.  SchoolChoice applicants will be notified in writing of their 2012/13 school assignment on or around March 1, 2012.

DPS Office of Choice and Enrollment Services 

(720) 423-3493 

schoolchoice@dpsk12.org

Denver Public Schools recently released the updated School Performance Framework (SPF) reports for the district’s 140 schools. The reports focus on the year-to-year growth of each school. It includes the academic progress of the students, along with other areas such as attendance, student and parent satisfaction, etc. Click on the link below to see how your school measures up.

School Performance Framework (SPF) Reports