My School DC is the common lottery for DC Public Schools and the majority of the District's public charter schools. The lottery experienced its inaugural year for the SY14-15, and is about to embark on year 2. This presentation discusses the My School DC application and common lottery process, including: who should apply, important things to note about the application, how the lottery works, changes to the process from the previous year, and how you can help.

1. My School DC
Community Partner Training
Wednesday, July 30, 2014

2. Today’s Training
1. Overview of My School DC
2. My School DC Timeline and Application
Process
3. My School DC Resources
4. Year 1 Data
5. Partnership Opportunities

3. Overview of My School DC

4. My School DC is the common application
and common lottery for DC Public Schools
and participating public charter schools.
What is My School DC?
My School DC is a completely voluntary initiative.
The SY14-15 common lottery signified the first
time DCPS and public charter schools joined
efforts in such a large-scale, cross-sector
collaboration.

5. Goals of My School DC
➔ Facilitate access to school choice options for
all families
◆ Families complete one simple online application per
child, and can rank up to 12 schools (both DCPS and
public charter) in order of preference
➔ Decrease student movement across schools
◆ Students receive one school match, and are waitlisted at
schools ranked higher
➔ Increase family access to information about
public school options

6. Key Components of My School DC
➔ Random lottery
◆ Not a “first come, first served” lottery
◆ Applicants are assigned a random lottery number
➔ Ranking matters!
◆ Lottery algorithm is designed to always try to match
families with their #1 choice.
◆ If space is not available, it is programmed to move
down families’ school list in the order in which they
ranked schools.
➔ Only one offer of admission

7. Who should apply?
➔ Families applying to a public charter school (PK3-
12)
➔ Families applying to an out-of-boundary DCPS
school (K-12)
➔ Families applying to PK3 and PK4 DCPS
programs
◆ Families still need to apply for PK3 / PK4 programs even if the
school is their in-boundary school
➔ Families applying to DCPS specialized high
schools (9-12)

8. Who doesn’t need to apply?
➔ Families re-enrolling in their current school
◆ Families would re-enroll with their school directly and
not through MySchoolDC.org
➔ Families attending their in-boundary school
➔ Families attending a feeder school

9. My School DC: Timeline and Application Process

10. ❏ December 15: Application launches
❏ February 2: R1 deadline (9-12)
❏ February 3: R2 opens (9-12)
❏ March 2: R1 deadline (PK3-8)
❏ March 3: R2 opens (all grades)
❏ March (TBD): R1 results
❏ May (TBD): R1 enrollment deadline
❏ May (TBD): R2 deadline (all grades)
❏ May (TBD): R2 results
Post-lottery app opens
Timeline

11. The My School DC Application
➔ Online application only available at
MySchoolDC.org
◆ Resources:
● My School DC Hotline: (202) 888-6336
● Schools
● Libraries
The My School DC
application is smartphone
compatible.

12. The My School DC Application
➔ Families will need to first create a My School
DC online family account
◆ Families can register with an email address
● 91% of applicants used an email address in year 1
◆ No email address? Families can create a username.
We encourage families to use
an email address. Allows them
to remain up to speed on key
news / alerts, including results
release.

13. The My School DC Application
➔ Families will need the following in order to
complete an online application:
◆ Student’s name
◆ Student’s date of birth
◆ New for SY15-16: The student’s universal student identification
(USI) number or other type of identification (e.g., DC One Card)
◆ Guardian information, including residential address at which the
child resides
◆ Schools of choice (up to 12)
➔ Additional requirements for DCPS specialized
high schools

14. Lottery Results
1. MySchoolDC.org: Log in to your family
account
2. My School DC Hotline: (202) 888-6336
3. US Mail

15. Key Changes for SY15-16 Process
❏ Families will need
to provide
identification
❏ Helps validate data
❏ Helps reduce
duplicate applications
❏ Waitlist
Management
❏ My School DC will
manage waitlists
Types of identification
include DC One Card, USI
● My School DC will
develop an exhaustive list
of acceptable IDs
● Families can contact
schools or the My School
DC hotline for this
information in the SY15-
16 lottery process

16. Round 2 Eligibility
To be clear…
❏ Available to those who did not participate
in Round 1
❏ Available to applicants who are not
matched in Round 1
○ Applicants should not re-apply to schools at which
they are on a waitlist
There’s no
advantage in waiting
to apply to Round 2!

17. My School DC Resources

18. ❏ Assist parents with questions about the
application and lottery process
❏ Complete and submit applications for families
❏ Login / password assistance
❏ Lottery results lookup
❏ In-language assistance available
❏ Retrieve families’ USI (coming soon)
My School DC Hotline
Call: (202) 888-6336

19. Online Resources
❏ Website: MySchoolDC.org
❏ Email: info@myschooldc.org
❏ Alerts: email / text
❏ Sign up at MySchoolDC.org
❏ Social Media: Twitter / Facebook

20. Year 1 Data (SY14-15)

21. ★ 22,469 unique applicants participated in Rounds
1 and 2
★ Wards 7 and 8 comprised the largest portion of
applicants in Rounds 1 and 2
★ 71% of families were matched in Round 1;
58% in Round 2
★ If you were matched, 85% of the matches
were to top three choices
SY14-15 Lottery Data

22. Partnership Opportunities

23. ❏ Disseminate information
❏ Refer families to My School DC
❏ Hotline: (202) 888-6336
❏ Website: MySchoolDC.org
❏ Email: info@myschooldc.org
❏ Emphasize:
❏ Importance of ranking
❏ Research school options (so many available!)
❏ Keep login information in safe place
❏ Inform families of events + host My School DC
❏ DCAYA + My School DC family workshop: September 9 from
6-7pm at Thurgood Marshall Academy
❏ My School DC Education Festival: November 22 (save the
date!)
Ways you can help

24. Questions?
Aryan Bocquet
Parent Engagement Manager, My School DC
E: aryan@myschooldc.org
P: 240.346.4521