Pinellas choice: Good or bad?

So here you are again, or perhaps it’s your first time. You’re trying to get your child into a Pinellas County public school next year. Or maybe you’re a student going through the process on your own. This is your place to share, to vent. (You should know that School Board members read this blog, and they're planning to change the choice plan soon.)

Tell us about your choice nightmare. Tell us where you thought things went well.

First, some fodder for discussion.

If you’re one of the thousands of families who recently applied for a "countywide" program – a magnet, a fundamental school or a career academy – we know many of you have already called the choice application line this week to see how you fared. We know you have a story about not getting into the program you wanted. Or you're sweating it out on a waiting list. Or you have an elaborate strategy for playing out your choice options in the coming weeks.

Let’s hear it.

And what does everyone think about the ideas that were advanced recently by a Pinellas task force on choice? One idea is to expand popular programs like magnets and fundamentals, which annually say no to hundreds of disappointed families each year. Another task force idea is to combine the application periods for "regular" schools and "countywide" schools. The current system of two periods can get complicated and often forces parents into a contorted set of options.

Have at it.

- Tom Tobin, Pinellas education reporter

Comments

[Cindy]

My son, who is entering Kindergarten this year, got none of our 3 Fundamental/Magnet choices where people I know got all 3 : ( The sad part is our wait numbers are so high it's CRAZY (277 at Pasadena, 179 at Lakeview). I did the math with the numbers that were reported in the St. Pete Times and you only had a 17% chance at getting in one of the Fundamental Schools. It's crazy that supply and demand are so out of wack. I am so disappointed and considering private school. All this said, I am a former teacher for the county...

[Julia]

My daughter is in the 20s on the waitlist at Pasadena. That was our best number after to applying to all three fundamentals and two magnets. I am very disappointed. Her wait list number is good but that only adds to the stress of not knowing if we will ever get it. We may not get it until mid-way through next school year. I don't understand. Every year it is the same thing. Hundreds of disappointed families. Every year it is around the same amount. School Board - if you are reading this please open more fundamentals and magnets. Start turning other existing campuses into them the way Bay Vista was a few years ago. It's simple consumer demand. The people that are applying tend to be taxpaying homeowners. We should not have to feel on pins and needles, begging and or grateful if some one actually gets it.

[Doug]

If we stop thinking of programs and campuses as synonymous, next year Pinellas can begin implementing a simpler and more effective process for matching students with programs. Here’s how it could work.

Next fall the district should review the choices parents have made for the last several years and create programs on campuses based on these historic trends. Some campuses may be projected to house two or more programs, while some programs may be projected to occupy two or more campuses. For the last decade the arts program at Perkins Elementary has received four-to-five applicants for every available seat. Therefore the district should anticipate expanding this arts program to multiple campuses to accommodate all the parent requests. If the brand “Perkins” is important to parents, then all the campuses could be called the Perkins Elementary arts program. Just as St. Petersburg College houses its programs across nine campuses, the Perkins Elementary arts program may be houses on three or more campuses.

In the spring parents would then choose the program and campus they wanted. All parents would be guaranteed to get their chosen program, but not necessarily their chosen campus. Admittedly sorting through the conflicts associated with oversubscribed campuses will be problematic for the next few years. McDonalds, Publix and most other organizations in the world have learned to manage their physical infrastructure so that they don’t have to turn away customers, and after going through this process a couple of years our school board will do the same. If this process is managed well, within a few years all parents will get the program and campus they want.

In the near future matching students to programs and campuses will be greatly impacted by the expansion of online courses (and other distance learning technologies), partnership schools and dual enrollment, but those impacts will generally be positive—unless you drive a school bus for a living. We’re going to need a lot fewer school bus drivers in the near future.