Denver Public Schools Rolling Out New SchoolChoice Enrollment Process

DPS to Host a Series of Regional Events to Help Families Explore School Options, and Learn How to Enroll in a New School  

Denver -- Denver Public Schools is in the process of vastly simplifying the way families enroll their children in school by moving to a single application system. To acquaint families with the new process – called SchoolChoice – the district will be hosting a series of informative regional events in December.

During the five scheduled regional expos,families will have the opportunity to learn more about SchoolChoice and how to enroll their children in a new school. The events will also offer families the opportunity to learn about public schools in their neighborhood, with principals, teachers and students from each region on hand to answer questions.

Starting with the 2012-13 school year, any student transitioning to or entering a new DPS school, including those entering ECE, elementary, middle or high school for the first time, will complete a SchoolChoice form. The SchoolChoice form will be the only application that will need to be completed for all DPS traditional boundaryschools, as well as most magnet and charter schools.

Under the current system, there are more than 60 different enrollment processes for DPS schools, with different forms and due dates depending on whether the school is a charter, selective-enrollment or regular choice school. The new system will not onlyreduce the number of processes and deadlines to one but will maintain an emphasis on choice, with allowance for selection of up to five different schools.

“We need to do a better job of making the process of selecting a school simple and user-friendly,” says DPS Superintendent Tom Boasberg. “SchoolChoice will boil the process down to one piece of paper and one timeline for families to follow.”

The expo events, divided up by geographic regions, are scheduled as follows:

All elementary schools from the region will be in attendance. Participation is optional for middle and high schools and charter schools. For a list of schools by region, please visit http://schoolchoice.dpsk12.org.

The SchoolChoice form, as well as SchoolChoice Guides, will be available at each expo to families with children who will be transitioning to a new school for the 2012-13 school year, which includes current ECE students and 5^th and 8^th graders.  SchoolChoice forms will also be distributed to families in early December. They will also be available at each school and at http://schoolchoice.dpsk12.org.

In February, the DPS Office of Choice andEnrollment Services will collect and process all SchoolChoice forms, makingevery effort to get students enrolled in their most highly-preferred school. Applicants will be notified in writing of their 2012-13 school assignment on or aroundMarch 1, 2012.

Families may contact the DPS Office of Choice and Enrollment Services with questions about SchoolChoice at (720) 423-3493 or schoolchoice@dpsk12.org.