Department of Elementary and Secondary Education Logo
Massachusetts Charter Schools

Massachusetts Charter School Waitlist Updated Report for 2017-2018 (FY18)

As of October 1, 2017 (Posted January 2018)

Each spring, charter schools send the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (Department) the number of students enrolled for the upcoming school year as well as the number of students who were placed on the schools' waitlists through each school's initial lottery, which is typically held in February or March. The Department's March 2017 waitlist collection included students who applied for admission for the 2017-2018 school year (the initial waitlist).

The information provided below is an update to the initial (March 2017) waitlist data as of October 1, 2017. The information reflects late offers of admissions, which may result in acceptances or declines, as well as any new lotteries for seats that may have opened up over the summer and into the school year.

For the March 2017 initial waitlist, 741 out of 80 charter schools had waitlists for which they reported 58,733 entries, with 31,600 unique students identified. Of that student headcount, 24,524 unique students newly applied for admittance to at least one charter school for the 2017-2018 school year; the remaining 7,076 unique students applied for admittance prior to March 2014.

The information provided below reflects the number of students who applied to charter schools for the 2017-2018 school year (FY18), but did not gain admittance and were reported on a charter school waitlist as of October 1, 2017. This updated 2017-2018 waitlist report finds the following:

  • Of the 74 charter schools who submitted initial waitlist data in March 2017, 73 continued to maintain or had created a subsequent waitlist.
  • The updated charter school waitlists contained 48,572 entries on all waitlists, representing 27,416 unique students.
    • Of the 27,416 unique students, 6,333 students applied for admittance prior to March 20142; representing a decrease of 2,712 when compared to number of pre-2014 applicants first identified on the 2016-17 initial waitlist report.
    • The remaining 21,083 unique students3 newly applied for admittance to at least one charter school for the 2017-2018 school year; representing an increase of 852 students when compared to the number of unique students who were still reported on the 2016-2017 waitlist report update.
  • Of the unique students, 19,917 students appear on a single waitlist and 7,499 students (27 percent) appear on more than one waitlist.

As stated in the 2017-2018 initial waitlist report, 16 Commonwealth charter schools utilized the Boston Charter School Application online application system, which made it easier for families to apply to one or more of the participating charter schools. While this change in application process contributed to the overall increase in total waitlist records initially observed (58,733 in March 2017 compared to 44,250 in March 2016), it also resulted in similar a number of unique students applying for entry to the upcoming school year (24,524 in March 2017 compared to 23,602 students in March 2016) being maintained on more than one waitlist (27 percent in March 2017 compared to 17 percent in March 2016). Partially as a result of this initial overall increase, this year's updated waitlist report found approximately seventeen percent fewer total reported entries from March to October 2017. It is important to note that not every student on a charter school waitlist would accept an offer of admission if it were proffered. Some students may have been admitted to other schools that meet their needs, while others may be reluctant to switch schools after the beginning of the school year. Another factor contributing to the overall decrease is the number of schools that are continuing to grow due to age or recently granted expansion requests or have increased access to new seats by revising backfilling practices to exceed requirements.4

Figure 1. Unique Number of Students on Charter School Waitlists
Number of Waitlists a Student Appears On Unique (Unduplicated) Number of Students on Charter School Waitlist(s) Waitlist Status
Unique (Unduplicated) Number of Students who Applied for Admittance and Were Waitlisted Prior to March 31, 2014 Unique (Unduplicated) Number of Students who Applied for Admittance for the 2017-2018 School Year and were Waitlisted
119,9176,32513,592
22,48582,477
31,67801,678
49720972
58480848
66450645
75460546
81810181
992092
1034034
11808
12606
13101
14303
Total27,4166,33321,083

In 2014, the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education adopted regulations requiring charter schools to refresh their waitlists every year, based on the most recent application cycle. These regulations, however, allowed schools to keep students on their waitlists who submitted applications before March 31, 2014. As shown in Figure 2, 8 schools continue to include such students from prior years on their active waitlists. The table below (Figure 2) also identifies charter schools that have held subsequent lotteries and the number of students who were added to these school waitlists.

Figure 2. Total Number of Applications Reported on Charter School Waitlists
School Name Type Total Number of Applicants Reported on Initial Waitlists as of March 15, 2017 Applicants Reported on Initial Waitlists that were Removed as of October 1, 2017 Remaining Applicants that were added to Waitlists prior to March 31, 2014 as of October 1, 2017 Remaining Applicants that were added to Waitlists by March 15, 2017 as of October 1, 2017 Applicants Added to Waitlists after March 15, 2017 as of October 1, 2017 Total Number of Applicants Reported on Updated Waitlists as of October 1, 2017
Abby Kelley Foster Charter Public SchoolCW659114 5450545
Academy Of the Pacific Rim Charter Public School*CW1,329351 9780978
Advanced Math and Science Academy Charter SchoolCW53766 4710471
Alma del Mar Charter SchoolCW46464 4000400
Argosy Collegiate Charter SchoolCW241164 77105182
Atlantis Charter School†CW43114036255123414
Barnstable Community Horace Mann Charter Public SchoolHM2412 12012
Baystate Academy Charter Public SchoolCW309121 1880188
Benjamin Banneker Charter Public SchoolCW35226 3260326
Benjamin Franklin Classical Charter Public SchoolCW35578 2770277
Bentley Academy Charter SchoolHM2323 03232
Boston Collegiate Charter School*CW1,797287 1,51001,510
Boston Day and Evening Academy Charter SchoolHM5549 65662
Boston Green Academy Horace Mann Charter SchoolHM26919 2500250
Boston Preparatory Charter Public School*CW1,203257 9460946
Boston Renaissance Charter Public School*CW2,39273 2,31902,319
Bridge Boston Charter School†CW1,322581,06819601,264
Brooke Charter School*CW4,398270 4,12804,128
Cape Cod Lighthouse Charter SchoolCW23639 1970197
Christa McAuliffe Charter Public SchoolCW211108 1030103
City on a Hill Charter Public School Circuit StreetCW319319 000
City on a Hill Charter Public School Dudley SquareCW187187 000
City on a Hill Charter Public School New BedfordCWNone initially reportedNone initially reported None initially reported1212
Codman Academy Charter Public School*CW3,503344 3,15903,159
Collegiate Charter School of LowellCW214145 69069
Community Charter School of CambridgeCW641 632891
Community Day Charter Public School - GatewayCW71311 7020702
Community Day Charter Public School - ProspectCW71221 6910691
Community Day Charter Public School - R Kingman WebsterCW67215 6570657
Conservatory Lab Charter School*CW3,082723 2,35902,359
Dudley Street Neighborhood Charter SchoolHM346194 15278230
Edward M Kennedy Academy for Health Careers (Horace Mann)HM491130 36122383
Excel Academy Charter School*CW1,491712 7790779
Four Rivers Charter Public SchoolCW9021 69069
Foxborough Regional Charter School†CW2,1041,03277729501,072
Francis W Parker Charter Essential SchoolCW19975 1240124
Global Learning Charter Public SchoolCW349102 2470247
Hampden Charter School of Science EastCW295180 1150115
Helen Y Davis Leadership Academy Charter Public School*CW21020 19080270
Hill View Montessori Charter Public SchoolCW20331 1720172
Hilltown Cooperative Charter Public SchoolCW26134 2270227
Holyoke Community Charter SchoolCW8853 352964
Innovation Academy Charter SchoolCW22171 150160310
KIPP Academy Boston Charter School*CW2,187245 1,94201,942
KIPP Academy Lynn Charter SchoolCW1,360127 1,23301,233
Lawrence Family Development Charter School†CW5413831818518521
Libertas Academy Charter SchoolCW7575 03434
Lowell Community Charter Public SchoolCW302116 1860186
Marblehead Community Charter Public SchoolCW11474 402565
Martha's Vineyard Charter SchoolCW1914 505
Martin Luther King Jr Charter School of Excellence†CW1869928555142
MATCH Charter Public School*CW4,460181 4,27904,279
Mystic Valley Regional Charter School†CW3,0783391,82791202,739
Neighborhood House Charter SchoolCW3,697909 2,788322,820
New Heights Charter School of BrocktonCW1340 13473207
Old Sturbridge Academy Charter Public SchoolCW999 90090
Phoenix Academy Public Charter High School Chelsea*CW178178 000
Pioneer Charter School of ScienceCW1,136159 9772181,195
Pioneer Charter School of Science II (PCSS-II)CW267105 16260222
Pioneer Valley Chinese Immersion Charter SchoolCW11353 602080
Pioneer Valley Performing Arts Charter Public SchoolCW30871 2370237
Prospect Hill Academy Charter SchoolCW269124 14554199
Rising Tide Charter Public SchoolCW309116 19310203
River Valley Charter School†CW6171043391740513
Roxbury Preparatory Charter School*CW856800 56056
Sabis International Charter School†CW2,4461341,97433802,312
Salem Academy Charter SchoolCW19723 17426200
Seven Hills Charter Public SchoolCW34363 28039319
Silver Hill Horace Mann Charter SchoolHM12792 35035
Sizer School: A North Central Charter Essential SchoolCW6340 23124
South Shore Charter Public SchoolCW928160 7687775
Springfield Preparatory Charter SchoolCW24049 1910191
Sturgis Charter Public SchoolCW55098 4520452
UP Academy Charter School of BostonHMNone initially reportedNone initially reported None initially reported1212
UP Academy Charter School of DorchesterHM74981 6688676
Veritas Preparatory Charter SchoolCW364162 2020202
Commonwealth (CW) Subtotal56,64910,9786,34139,3301,20946,880
Horace Mann (HM) Subtotal2,08460001,4842081,692
Grand Total58,73311,5786,34140,8141,41748,572

Please note that the total number represents every student record found on each charter school's submitted updated waitlist.

† These 8 schools have indicated to the Department that they included waitlist information established prior to March 31, 2014 in accordance to 603 CMR 1.05(10)(a).

* Of the 16 schools that utilized the Boston Charter School Application online application system, 12 schools still maintained a waitlist as of October 1, 2017.

The year's reports, for both the initial and update, build on last year's additional support and technical assistance provided by the Department to the field. The Department continues its efforts to increase the timeliness and accuracy of school waitlist reports. Each charter school is responsible for maintaining its own individual waitlist. To ensure uniformity, the Department created a waitlist collection template and required charter schools to use it to update waitlist data that was originally submitted by March 15, 2017, as well as input any new waitlist data. This template embedded tools that automatically flagged duplicate records, which each school could then remove before submitting its waitlist. The template also embedded tools that flagged the waitlist for other inconsistencies, such as unrealistic dates of birth (e.g., 10/1/2017). In order to verify student information and address overall waitlist accuracy, the Department corrected any transcription errors or inconsistencies in submitted charter school waitlists. Additionally, charter schools that self-identified as using waitlists established prior to March 31, 2014, as permitted by 603 CMR 1.05(10)(a), were required to identify each individual student who was included in those waitlists (and continued to remain on their waitlist) and each student who was removed from those waitlists. Finally, the Department continued to implement its matching process that was revised and updated last year in order to increase accuracy for identifying students who applied for admission to more than one charter school.

The Department has made significant improvements over the years in quantifying the exact number of students who may be actively waiting for admission to a charter school. The unique waitlist counts provided in this current report should be taken as the Department's best understanding and representation of the updated demand for the current 2017-2018 school year rather than exact numbers of students willing to accept offers at each school.

The Department thanks all of the charter school administrators and staff who worked diligently to report their waitlists as accurately and as promptly as possible.

The appendix to this report can be found in the attached Excel file, which contains updated numbers based on an October 1, 2017 data collection:

  1. the unique numbers of students on waitlists;
  2. the total number of pre-March 2014 applicants, remaining current year applicants reported on charter school waitlists by March 15, 2017, and current year applicants reported on charter school waitlists after March 15, 2017;
  3. the unique number of students on waitlists by grade;
  4. the unique number of students on waitlists by city/town;
  5. the total number of students on waitlists for each charter school by grade (with backfilling overlay);
  6. the total number of students on waitlists, by grade, for each charter school that includes pre-March 2014 applicants on their waitlist;
  7. the total number of students on waitlists for each charter school by city/town;
  8. the total number of students on waitlists for each city/town by charter school;
  9. the unique number of students on waitlists by city/town and grade;
  10. the total number of students on waitlists for each charter school by city/town by grade; and
  11. the total number of students on waitlists for each city/town by grade by charter school.

For more information on waitlist policy and procedures and the number of students found on previous cycles of charter school waitlists, see Charter School Technical Advisory 16-3: Enrollment Processes and FAQ's and Charter Schools Enrollemnt website, respectively. For further information regarding this report, please contact Brenton Stewart or the Office of Charter Schools and School Redesign .

Attachments



1 The Board of Elementary and Secondary Education adopted changes to the charter school regulations in March 2014 (see 603 CMR 1.05(10)(a)), which has affected how charter schools collect waitlist data. Under the amended regulations, charter schools maintain waitlists only for the school year for which students applied (i.e., carrying over student names from enrollment lotteries from one year to another is no longer permitted). However, charter schools were allowed to maintain any waitlists that were established prior to March 31, 2014 until such waitlists are exhausted, provided that such maintenance is clearly articulated in the school's enrollment policy approved by the Department.

2 The Department has worked with schools to identify the students who were placed on waitlists prior to March 31, 2014. This additional information now allows the Department to identify students who submitted applications for admittance in the current year.

3 Please note: out of 21,083 new applying students in 2017-2018, waitlist updates indicate 371 were added to new waitlists while still remaining on other school waitlists based on applications submitted prior to March 31, 2014.

4 To meet the requirements of M.G.L. c. 70, § 89(n), charter schools must continue all reasonable efforts to fill vacant seats until February 15th, and if the school chooses, it may continue to try to fill the seat after February 15th. Unless the school's enrollment policy or a term of its charter requires, the law does not require charter schools to fill vacant seats in the last half of the grades offered and in grades 10, 11, and 12. If a school has an odd number of grades, more than half of grades offered are included in grades for which the school must fill vacant seats. For more information on these requirements and others regarding charter school enrollment processes, see the Department's Technical Advisory 16-3.

Last Updated: February 19, 2019

 
Contact Us

Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
135 Santilli Highway, Everett, MA 02149

Voice: (781) 338-3000
TTY: (800) 439-2370

Directions

Disclaimer: A reference in this website to any specific commercial products, processes, or services, or the use of any trade, firm, or corporation name is for the information and convenience of the public and does not constitute endorsement or recommendation by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.