2013-14 Open Enrollment Season Now Open

LAUSD has opened its Open Enrollment season with applications due by May 24th.  Parents can obtain a list of schools by Educational Service Center (formerly local districts) by visiting here.  

Feel free to ask questions in the comments section, but keep in mind the following:

• Parents can apply to as many schools as they wish.
• Transportation is not provided.
• Lotteries will be held 5/28 through 5/31

 

Help Your School Win $1000 with “The Loh Down on Science”

Sandra Tsing Loh, the original Magnet Yenta, has offered schools a great way to win $1000 by visiting her new website.  What public school couldn’t put that to good use?  Read on:

After seven years on KPCC and beyond, The Loh Down on Science has just received a mega-grant grant from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation to expand our reach.  Among other things, on May 1 we’re officially launching a new interactive website which contains what we hope is a handy, cross-indexed version of our 1700-plus archive of daily science minutes (since 2005).  The intention is for it to be an open-source, quickly-searchable science almanac–a useful and fun tool for families and even schools, given the current underfunded state of K-12 STEM education.    

 

Because the more people use us, the more we learn, we thought it would be fun to kick May off with a contest.  Kids, families and friends can register and play  for their favorite public school (it’s quick and can even be done on one’s mobile phone).  We feel it’s a win/win–as users interact with our site, more daily conversations about science will occur, and in thanks, I’m pledging $1,000 to the winning public school.  In addition, simply by enrolling, schools will also automatically be eligible for special upcoming Loh Down events involving JPL’s Mad Scientist Guy (from the Mars Rover landing), Mike Brown, the very nice Caltech astronomer who “killed Pluto,” and more. 

 

So visit http://www.lohdownonscience.org/forschools/contest/ register your school, and get learning for a chance at earning $1000!

Magnet Acceptance Letters Available Online NOW

LAUSD 2013-14 Magnet Acceptance/Wait List letters are available online here.  School resumes tomorrow after a week break, so if you’ve been wait listed, be patient before calling to find your number on the wait list.

SAS Applications for LAUSD now available online

Families seeking SAS permits to attend schools in LAUSD should head over to the Schools for Advanced Studies website and print out an application now.  Applications can be turned in on April 2nd, but it will give families enough time to gather the necessary paperwork and do research on the SAS programs they wish to apply.

Good luck!

Magnet Letters Go Out April 1

The Student Integration Services branch of LAUSD has announced that the magnet acceptance letters go out April 1.  Families will have just under three weeks to make a decision, before accepting by April 19.

If you get a letter and you wish to share for data purposes, post a response where you applied, how many points you have, and whether you got in or were rejected.  If you call the school to find out where you are on the wait list, feel free to share that as well.

It will be helpful for others next year as they try to decide where to apply.

 

Required Viewing for Test Scores and Ratings

GreatSchools.org has published a short video that succinctly says what we’ve been stressing for years: test scores are only part of the story.

LAUSD does not tend to break out the scores of magnets or other programs on a campus. So a school with a gifted magnet or SAS might look higher than it is, given that a percentage of the kids are scoring significantly higher. And as mentioned in the PI section of this site, an entire school can be labeled PI because of a struggling special education or ELL population. Dual-immersion programs tend to have lower scores in the beginning, and some brave schools teach off the ‘grid’ so to speak and their students may not look like the testing machines that their friends at more traditional campuses.

Bottom line: TOUR. If you don’t put puts on the ground, talk to parents, and investigate, your student might end up in a school that looks higher, but he or she might miss out on a really great educational experience.

Schools for Advanced Studies (SAS) Dates Announced for 2013-14

LAUSD’s SAS page now has the dates for the 2013-14 SAS application season.

2013-2014
Student Application for the SAS Program

Application period is April 1-April 30, 2013.

With the notification of applicants: May 6-May 10, 2013.

Unlike magnet season, where all applications are treated the same in terms of date they are received, SAS spots go quickly. Get applications in the first couple days to assure the best chance of receiving a spot. Also check the school for any additional paperwork they might require.

Keep checking here in case the applications show up earlier.