Thankfully, J got her results in the specialized round, but all her friends are so anxious. Most of them put Frank Sinatra School of the Arts as the main-round first choice, then other performing arts schools like PPAS & Talent Unlimited. Then they put some good academic schools like Bard Early College, Townsend Harris, Academy of American Studies, and Cardozo. You may list the top 12 high schools you'd like to attend - most children only list 5-7, though - and you get matched to only one of them. K didn't try for any specialized schools when she was in 8th grade, and her main-round sheet listed only her 3 top choices. She got into her first-choice pick - but the wait was still nerve-wracking. Out of the 400 high schools in NYC, only about 30 are worth going to. So you can understand the anxiety for both the kids and the parents.
Many of J's friends took the test to get into the good Catholic High Schools. There, you list your top 3 choices and you can get accepted to all of them and choose which one you'll attend. The thing about Catholic schools is that they send their results in February and you have about 2 weeks to make a choice and then send them a (non-refundable) $600 payment to hold your spot - this, if you notice, is a whole month before your public school results arrive. Sneaky, isn't it. A good number of J's friends' parents paid the $600 - just to ensure their kids have a seat in a good school - but have no problem losing that money if they're happier with the main-round public school result. This is another reason for all the anger and anxiety over the delayed main-round letters. It's crazy in NYC. I love that we have so much school choice. The process is nutty, but usually worth it in the end. Hopefully this other nonsense will end soon and these kids will finally know where they're going to high school.
7 comments:
hi Angela, I guess I am one of those that are against closing schools, instead they should be working on how to improved the schools by hiring new teachers and finding new ways to reach the students. Closing school means that the schools that are going to remain open are going to become even more overcrowded. I bet if all the parents stand up and decided to take control over their kids education as we are by homeschooling them, a lot of things will change in the school system instead of having about 30 schools that are worth going we will have 400. I agree with you is the parents job to look for something better,but closing schools will just make everything worst for this type of neighborhood where most of this kids are been raised in a foster home and are been raised by a single parent that is working for the minimum wages. And in top of all this they are plannig to take the metrocard away from students.
The problem is that these schools have gone through overhauls in the past to no avail. I don't know if it's the neighborhood, the principal, the teachers, or what, but years and years of failure will take forever to improve upon. The kids will probably do better in a better performing school - yes it may be more crowded, but new schools need to be created in order to "start fresh". It may be a losing battle, but something has to be done.
Wow! I love reading your blog for a totally different view of life. All the waiting sounds nerve racking, on the other hand you have choice. I live in a rural area with one high school in the county. No parochial schools closer than 30 miles away. Our choices are public school or homeschool. As for closing the schools, why would you want to keep lousy schools open?
Hi Lisa, I think most of the country has the one high school in their town and that's it. Even 20 minutes away from in Long Island it's like that. It's just this crazy city that has 400 high schools in 305 square miles!
The argument for keeping lousy schools open is based on the assumptions that it's too drastic a measure, it's racist (?!), and for parents to have to shlep a few blocks farther to bring their kids to a better school is not fair. I believe some people just enjoy creating trouble and whining, than (effectively) trying to work to improve situations. The schools that are set to close comprise about maybe 1% of NYC schools. Why must the majority of kids suffer for the needs of so few. It's just selfish. But that's the world we live in. No one knows how to do anything for themselves anymore. They rely on everyone else to fix, pay for, & supply everything for them - and then throw a tantrum when they don't get it.
Hi, it turns out i got accepted to Beacon high school, my first choice! I am so happy and relieved. I was the only person to get accepted in my school.
Ps: i hope your daughter has great time in LagGuardia.
Congratulations and thanks! I hear Beacon is excellent.
My son is 12 and has been attending community college in CA for a year. We may move NYC. I am looking into good HS options because he is quite advanced academically. He will be 13 in a month. Any suggestions as to which grade level he should go to challenge himself in a decent high school. I would like to find out if there are good charter schools or schools that a flexible enough to accept his prior work.
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