pacifica school district enrollment

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

Goal for Tonight:

Provide direction to staff on Enrollment Policy

Effective for 2010-11 School Year

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

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

Overview of Enrollment Procedurespage 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

Overview of Enrollment Procedures – Wait listspage 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

Subcommittee Findingspage 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

Subcommittee Findings:page 2

School Choice Proponents Feel:

• Each school has its own personality allowing parentsto 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

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

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.

School Areas by Neighborhood

West Sharp Park103

Sharp Park202

Fairway42

Cabrillo432

Vallemar149

Westview402

Park Pacifica363

Pacific Manor175

Pedro Point36

Rockaway29Fairmont187

Sun Valley207

Edgemar223

Linda Mar402

VallemarSunset Ridge

OrtegaOcean Shore

Cabrillo

Current Enrollment K-8October 2008

Cabrillo Ocean Shore Ortega Sunset Ridge Vallema Lacy total Total

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

K-5 Capacity / Neighborhood Student Numbers

0100200300400500600700

Cabrillo

Ocean

Sho

reOrte

gaSun

set R

idgeVall

emar

Neighborhood K-5Capacity K-5

K-5 Capacity / Neighborhood Student Numbers

374423Vallemar

590*241Sunset Ridge

500*356Ortega

285361Ocean Shore

374554Cabrillo

CapacityNeighborhood

K-5 Capacity / Neighborhood Student Numbers

Revised

374423Vallemar

875602Ocean Shore / Sunset Ridge

874910Cabrillo / Ortega

CapacityNeighborhood

Current % Neighborhood Enrollment

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

CabrilloOcean ShoreOrtegaSunset RidgeVallemar

Traffic is a Problempage 1

Cabrillo • Capacity: 560• Enrollment: 870• Need to travel: 310

Traffic is a Problempage 2

Vallemar• Capacity: 560• Vallemar Valley: 149• Need to travel: 411

Traffic is a Problempage 3

Ocean Shore• Capacity: 360• Neighborhood: 398• Need to travel: 38

Traffic is a Problempage 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

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

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 choiceMost 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

K-6 OptionAll 7th & 8th grades go to Ingrid B. Lacy

0200400600800

Cabrillo OceanShore

Ortega SunsetRidge

Vallemar

Enrollment Capacity