Implementation Description

Being around people from different backgrounds promotes better discussions, more creative thinking, and more positive collaboration (Phillips, 2014). These are the kinds of goals Community Public Charter School (CPCS) has for their classrooms. And because CPCS believes that more diversity leads to better educational outcomes, they have prioritized finding a system that would make their weighted lottery process easier and more accessible for everyone.

 In the 2020-21 academic year, CPCS began using two new programs that streamline their enrollment and lottery systems (Enrollease and Lotterease respectively, were chosen from the available options). Now when potential parents visit the school website, they are prompted to make an account with the enrollment program and are then given step-by-step instructions on how to proceed with the application process. All aspects of the lottery process including the management of student data, notifications to families of their enrollment status, and school data analysis reports are easily accomplished using these programs, allowing school staff to focus on the daily tasks necessary to running a school. As Dr. Randall Bretz of the National Association for Independent Schools suggests “Every organization is limited in the resources it can devote to any given task. When you outsource some of the peripheral tasks, you can redirect your staff and often budget allocations to those all-important core operations at your institution” (Bretz, 2002). While Dr. Bretz’s comments are made with private schools in mind, they also apply to public and public charter schools. By outsourcing their weighted lottery system, CPCS staff simply type in the percentage of students from certain demographics they want to enroll for the upcoming academic year and the lottery system analyzes the applicant data from the enrollment program to make these goal percentages a reality. Thus far, it has been a very user-friendly and efficient process for parents and staff alike.

Results

The school’s 2020-21 enrollment goal was for 35% of their student population to be Educationally Disadvantaged (ED) children living in their community. They exceeded their goal by enrolling 36% ED students and intend to grow that number to 38% for the 2021-22 school year. 

 School staff have greatly appreciated the ease and convenience of having a program manage the potentially time-consuming and complicated processes of enrollment and selection associated with the implementation of a weighted lottery. Parents have also appreciated the up-to-date communication and transparency they get from this program.

Challenges

Some prospective families had difficulty understanding how to apply for enrollment online or lacked adequate access to reliable internet to do so. To address these challenges, school staff made themselves available by phone and in-person to assist these families with the enrollment process. CPCS is dedicated to breaking down technological barriers in their community, which you can read more about here.

Future Modifications

CPCS’ enrollment goal for 2021-22 is to serve at least a 38% percent ED student population. They will edit the preferences in their lottery software to reflect this goal percentage. As their enrollment numbers increase and they continue to build their middle school program.

Critical Components

Getting Started

CPCS was able to pay for these enrollment and lottery programs due to the availability of NC ACCESS funding. The use of Enrollease and Lotterease has allowed school leadership and staff to continue focusing on student learning and eliminated the time-intensive work of manually managing the weighted lottery process.

Ongoing Supports

It will continue to be important to provide support to families who may need assistance in accessing and completing the weighted lottery application online.

 Equity Connections

In recognition of the persistent issues surrounding educational equity and the benefits of a diverse student population (Potter, 2019), CPCS implemented a weighted lottery designed to supplement their current recruitment efforts and increase enrollment numbers of people with diverse backgrounds.  Research shows that when integrated into an effective recruitment plan, “the use of weighted lotteries could be a particularly effective strategy for maintaining diversity and advancing educational equity” (Potter, 2019).

 CPCS has implemented a weighted lottery system to supplement their current recruitment effort and increase the enrollment of a more diverse student population.

Research

1.     Bretz, Randall (April 2002). Outsourcing: Exploring the Benefits for Independent Schools. NAIS. Accessed April 13, 2021. Retrieved from https://www.nais.org/articles/pages/outsourcing-3a-exploring-the-benefits-for-independ/ 

2.     Phillips, Katherine W. (October 1, 2014). How Diversity Makes Us Smarter: Being around people who are different from us makes us more creative, more diligent, and harder-working. Scientific American. Accessed on April 2, 2021. Retrieved from https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-diversity-makes-us-smarter/ 

3.     Potter, H. (May 16, 2019) The Century Foundation. Testimony: D.C. Charter Schools Should Use Weighted Lotteries to Promote Integration. The Century Foundation. Retrieved from https://tcf.org/content/commentary/testimony-d-c-charter-schools-use-weighted-lotteries-promote-integration-halley-potter/?agreed=1

4. United States Census Bureau, Quick Facts North Carolina, Retrieved from https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/NC/PST045219

Click on the links below to learn more about this school and to download the complete Best Practice Implementation Strategy.