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Schools
Schools simplify choice process
Pinellas officials herald a new system of school assignment as less complicated, more automated and friendlier to newcomers.
By THOMAS C. TOBIN
Published October 26, 2005
LARGO - Pinellas officials rolled out plans Tuesday for a new system to choose schools for the 2006-07 academic year. They said it would be less complicated, more automated, friendlier to Pinellas newcomers and will offer more choices for high school students.
Gone is the paper application, replaced by an automated phone system. Parents of students entering middle and high school next year will have the added option of applying online.
The application period for magnet, fundamental and high school career academies will begin Feb. 1 and end Feb. 17. Families who gain a spot in these schools through a computer lottery must call the system again between March 10 and March 19 to accept that spot.
Career academies and magnet and fundamental schools are available to students throughout the county. The district plans to add five academies and a fundamental high school next year.
The application period for schools within students' "attendance areas" begins March 21 and ends April 9. Families will be notified on April 26 whether they got the choices they wanted.
The timing is an improvement for families who apply for countywide schools. In previous years, the application period for countywide and attendance area schools was the same. That forced countywide applicants to also apply for an attendance area school as a backup.
This year, they can find out whether they got into a countywide school early, eliminating the need to apply for a backup.
By moving the process later in the school year, the district also accommodates more families who move into Pinellas.
Under the old system, families who moved in after the Nov. 1 application deadline were offered leftover spots in schools. Newcomers were shut out of the process a full nine months before the start of classes.
The reason for the old schedule was to give the district enough time to conduct a computer lottery and assign seats before giving the information to the bus system, which needed the spring and summer to find routes for each student who qualified.
The bus system's needs haven't changed, which is one reason the application periods are shorter - about two or three weeks compared to eight weeks under the old system. Accepting applications only by phone or computer also saves the district time.
The phone application has been improved to give parents more confidence that they submitted their application correctly, said Tom Storey, the district employee who tweaked the system based on comments from parents and principals last year.
As they navigate the automated commands, the system is "constantly repeating to them what they just did,' he said.
The application period is for:
Students entering kindergarten and all others entering or re-entering the district in August 2006.
Students entering sixth or ninth grade who are not eligible for "extended grandfathering" or don't want to use it. Extended grandfathering gives students who were enrolled in the district before June 6, 2001, the chance to rise to middle and high school using the old zoned system that was in place before choice.
Students who want to apply for another school within their attendance area.
Andrea Zahn, the district's spokeswoman on choice, urged parents of the estimated 8,000 incoming kindergarteners for 2006-07 to get their children registered now so they will be ready to apply for schools in February and March.
They can register at one of the district's two Family Education and Information Centers.
"We are strongly encouraging them to get to a family center while traffic (at the centers) is still a bit light," Zahn said. "The message is, don't wait."
DATES TO REMEMBER
FEB. 1-17, 2006: Application period for magnet, fundamental and career academy programs, also known as "countywide" programs.
MARCH 10-19: Acceptance period for countywide programs.
MARCH 21 - APRIL 9: Application period for choice attendance area schools.
APRIL 26: Students are notified of their choice attendance area seat assignments.
MORE INFORMATION: Call 588-5172 or go to www.pinellaschoice.org
[Last modified October 26, 2005, 00:44:15]
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