On Wednesday, February 11, 2009, the Pacifica School Board held a Work Study Session in the Vallemar MPR to discuss the district’s current enrollment policy. Click on message to see information presented at the meeting.

1. How did the present system
develop?
• Ocean Shore – 60s alternative program
• Vallemar – 70s to resolve declining enrollment
• Cabrillo – 90s to accommodate the growing
number wanting to attend Vallemar
• Ocean Shore – 2000 program “grew” to become
its own site
• Declining student enrollment eliminated
neighborhoods resulting in Open Enrollment

2. Goal for Tonight:
Provide direction to staff on
Enrollment Policy
Effective for 2010-11 School Year

3. Enrollment Options
• Maintain the current Open Enrollment Policy
• Maintain but refine the Open Enrollment
Policy
• Develop a “hybrid” system blending
neighborhood schools with open enrollment
• Change to a “neighborhood” school model
• Change the current configuration of school
enrollment

5. Overview of Enrollment Procedures
• Each school determines the number of
kindergarten openings at the site.
• Siblings are given priority
(sibling is described in detail in the formal procedures)
• Children of full time district employees have
priority
• Tours are required
• All residents of Pacifica are guaranteed a
space within the district

6. Overview of Enrollment Procedures
page 2
• Parents must be residents of Pacifica on the
day of the kindergarten lottery
• Students may only participate in the lottery
once
(provisions for mid-year k and kindergarten prep programs)
• Kindergarten students are guaranteed
continued enrollment in the school
• Students from Ortega and Sunset Ridge are
guarantee enrollment in Ingrid B. Lacy at 6th
grade

7. Overview of Enrollment Procedures – Wait lists
page 3
• Wait lists are created and maintained through
5th grade
• Students may only be on 1 wait list
• Parents may “pass” ONLY once on an
opening and maintain their position on the
waitlist
• Sibling are given priority placement on the
wait list on the first day of attendance at the
school for the sibling

9. Subcommittee Findings
page 1
Neighborhood School Proponents Feel:
• Environmental benefits/CO2 emissions
• Reduce traffic congestion, travel time
• Provide walking options
• More parent participation
• Pedestrian safety
• Provide sense of community
• Reduce elitism/hierarchy created by school
choice
• Allow people to attend school close to home
• Done in many other local communities

10. Subcommittee Findings:page 2
School Choice Proponents Feel:
• Each school has its own personality allowing parents
to find the right match for their child.
• K-5 vs. K-8 should be a choice
• Majority of neighborhoods not within walking
distance
• Lose option to choose with neighborhood schools
• Neighborhoods larger than school’s capacity
• More School Diversity/Equity across neighborhoods
• Alternative Programs won’t survive
• Only transfer dissatisfied people to another subset
• Allows everyone an equal opportunity

11. Subcommittee Findings:page 3
Alternative Solutions:
• Hybrid Models: Add neighborhood choice as
additional
factor in lottery (based on equidistant driving zones) .
• Employee preference policy
• Interdistrict sibling preference policy
• Interdistrict transfer policy
• Special programs at SR/Ortega
• Lottery Figures: Accuracy
• More students are accepted into SR/Ortega
• Waitlist Options
• Retaining waitlist position after refusing spot
• Allowing private school attendees to remain on
waitlist
• Waitlist effect on Ortega/SR

13. Pacifica Neighborhoods
For the purpose of data collection
Pacifica is divided into 14
neighborhoods by address. The
student data base identifies the
address with a neighborhood.

14. School Areas by Neighborhood
Vallemar
Cabrillo Ocean Ortega Sunset
Shore Ridge
Linda Mar Edgemar Sun Valley Fairmont Rockaway29
402 223 207 187
Pedro Point Pacific Manor Park Pacifica Westview Vallemar
36 175 363 402 149
Cabrillo Fairway
432 42
Sharp Park
202
West Sharp
Park
103

15. Current Enrollment K-8
October 2008
Cabrillo Ocean Shore Ortega Sunset Ridge Vallema Lacy total Total
Linda Mar 133 27 94 3 78 67 402
Pedro Pt. 11 4 3 13 5 36
Cabrillo 197 37 67 6 68 57 432 870
Sun Valley 51 21 47 41 47 207
Park Pacifica 71 14 122 76 80 363 570
Rockaway 7 6 4 7 5 29
Vallemar 7 21 18 7 88 8 149
Fairway 4 9 1 4 13 11 42
Sharp Park 16 46 32 37 41 30 202
W. Sharp Park 16 16 12 13 25 21 103 525
Edgemar 17 48 15 63 31 49 223
Pacific Manor 3 29 13 62 14 54 175 398
Fairmont 2 4 2 97 37 45 187
Westview 15 29 14 239 12 93 402 589
Interdistrict 3 34 7 29 3 39 115 115
Total 553 345 451 560 547 611 3067 3067

16. K-5 Capacity /
Neighborhood Student Numbers
700
600
500 Neighborhood K-5
400
300 Capacity K-5
200
100
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17. K-5 Capacity /
Neighborhood Student Numbers
Neighborhood Capacity
Cabrillo 554 374
Ocean Shore 361 285
Ortega 356 500*
Sunset Ridge 241 590*
Vallemar 423 374

18. K-5 Capacity /
Neighborhood Student Numbers
Revised
Neighborhood Capacity
Cabrillo / 910 874
Ortega
Ocean Shore / 602 875
Sunset Ridge
Vallemar 423 374

19. Current % Neighborhood
Enrollment
70%
60%
50% Cabrillo
Ocean Shore
40%
Ortega
30% Sunset Ridge
Vallemar
20%
10%
0%

20. Traffic is a Problem
page 1
Cabrillo
• Capacity: 560
• Enrollment: 870
• Need to travel: 310

21. Traffic is a Problem
page 2
Vallemar
• Capacity: 560
• Vallemar Valley: 149
• Need to travel: 411

22. Traffic is a Problem
page 3
Ocean Shore
• Capacity: 360
• Neighborhood: 398
• Need to travel: 38

23. Traffic is a Problem page 4
Assuming EVERY K-5 student walks to
the neighborhood* school;
759 students need transportation to a site
other than the neighborhood school
* Except Vallemar where only students in the Vallemar Valley walk

24. 2009 Lottery
• 348 kindergarteners enrolled for 2009-10
• 137 are siblings and received sibling preference
• 2 are children of district employees and received
preference
• 9 spaces at the K-8 schools were held for possible
retentions
• 31 students requested and received placement at
Sunset Ridge or Ortega as their 1st choice
• 138 students participated in the lottery
• 70 students participating in the lottery received
their 1st choice by lottery

25. 2009 Lottery
Present Situation:
• 280 students (80.4%) received their 1st choice
(priority placements + lottery)
• 70 of 138 students participating in the lottery
(50.7%) got their 1st choice
Most likely by fall an additional 7 students will
receive their 1st choice filling spaces held for
retentions:
• 82.4% will receive their 1st choice
• 55.8% will receive 1st choice by lottery

27. K-6 Option
All 7th & 8th grades go to Ingrid B. Lacy
800
600
400
200
0
Cabrillo Ocean Ortega Sunset Vallemar
Shore Ridge
Enrollment Capacity