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Schools
Schools refine choice process
Modifications to the "mechanics of choice" strive to simplify the procedure for families. More fundamental changes could follow.
By THOMAS C. TOBIN
Published June 20, 2005
In a move that is sure to lighten the load for Pinellas families, the school district has simplified its choice plan.
Thousands of students will now be allowed into schools without having to endure the choice application process.
The process itself will be made easier, with shorter application forms and more opportunities to apply by phone or computer.
Also, the window for applying to schools has been moved closer to the start of the academic year.
Previously, Pinellas families were required to apply for a school by Nov. 1 - about nine months before the next school year started. The application period for the 2006-07 school year was scheduled to start Sept. 1.
Now district officials have moved it to the spring, although the dates have not been set. They also plan to shorten the period to two or three weeks, down from eight weeks. One likely time for the new application period is late March, after the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test is over, said Jim Madden, the district official who oversees the choice plan.
"We're not asking parents to pick a school almost a year in advance, when all kinds of circumstances can change a parent's life," he said.
The move also improves options for newcomers to the county, many of whom missed the old application deadline after arriving in the winter or spring.
One of those newcomers was superintendent Clayton Wilcox, who struggled with choice last summer as he tried to enroll his own two children in elementary school. Ever since, he has wanted to reform the system.
"I want to make choice much easier for people to navigate," he said.
The changes involve what district officials refer to as the mechanics of choice. They already have been enacted because they don't require School Board approval.
Long-term changes that would alter the system in fundamental ways will be discussed in coming months by the School Board and a new "School Reform Task Force" that begins meeting Aug. 4.
One item on the table is the 7:05 a.m. start time for Pinellas high schools, which many would like to see moved to later in the morning. Wilcox has hired a company to study possible bus route changes that might accommodate such a change.
The task force also will be asked to address vexing questions about how to maintain racial diversity in Pinellas schools after the choice plan's race ratios expire in 2007.
Among the changes that will take effect immediately:
Students who apply for a school where a sibling already is enrolled will be admitted to that school automatically. Previously, they had to fill out an application. An estimated 4,000 students could be affected.
The number of choices allowed will be reduced to three schools, down from five. "If the truth were known, most parents have a first, a second and a third choice," Madden said. A large number don't even fill in a fourth or fifth choice, he said. "Why make people go through that exercise?"
--Choice applications will be shortened significantly. For example, the district no longer will ask parents to fill in demographic information on their children when the district's computer system already contains it.
--Students who have disabilities or are still learning English will be able to file a choice application by phone, which wasn't allowed before.
--Rules will be changed to shorten waiting lists. For example, those who get their second-choice school no longer will be placed on the waiting list for their first choice.
--The district will restrict changes between schools. Before, students could change schools within the first six weeks of classes if a spot opened up on a waiting list elsewhere. Now the deadline for moves probably will be 10 days into the year unless a student has a "defendable reason" for switching, Madden said.
The 10-day rule and the shorter waiting lists are designed to cut down on moves that typically keep class lists and bus routes in flux well into the first semester.
"What we see is a revolving door at schools" that causes upheaval and disrupts learning, Madden said.
"Once you get in a school, we think you're going to like it there because history tells us that most of you do."
The change also addresses the problem of students moving midsemester between high schools with different schedules. Some Pinellas high schools have six periods a day, others have four periods that are longer, move faster through material and are worth more credits. Moves from one type of school to another create complications, Madden said.
One other change affects a select group of students - those applying to a high school where an older sibling is in a magnet program. Previously, such an applicant could not get into that school's traditional program under the "family preference" rule. That's because the traditional and magnet programs within a school are considered separate. Now the district will let that younger sibling in automatically.
"We're trying to keep families together," Madden said. "It makes sense to do that."
The district is exploring additional changes to reduce lines at its two application centers. It also is considering whether to allow all students to apply through the choice Web site. Only students applying for sixth- and eighth-grade seats can use the site now.
Phone and Web site applications are easier for families, but they also work out better for the district because they prompt people to fill in information correctly, Madden said. Every year, the district spends staff time correcting errors in paper applications.
"What we hope parents notice is the entire process has been made easier," Madden said.
[Last modified June 20, 2005, 01:35:17]
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