the crazy preschool process - my sidewalk chalk blog - nyc school help:
by joyce
SUNDAY, MARCH 3, 2013 AT 8:33AM
First off, let me say that I am so sorry that so many of you are sad. The vast majority of people who are contacting me these days are despondent. That doesn't mean that many, many people didn't get placements. It just means that the ones who didn't, are writing me in the middle of the night.
With that being said, I am now going to give you a little tough love (and trust me I do love you). Everyone starts off the conversation with "this is such a CRAZY process". It really isn't (for the stand alone preschools). You tour and submit an app. The school either picks by lottery, first come first served or they fill seats not taken by siblings from the pool that is balanced by age and gender. Most schools don't require anything more than your child's name, address and birth date. They may want to know how you heard about them or a brief statement about whay you like about them, but that may be for their own information rather than
by joyce
You can apply online for public prek here from March 4- April 5.
You can download a copy of the new 2013-2014 prek directory here.
You can attend a free DoE PreK information session in Brooklyn on March 11 6pm at Sunset Park HS.
For more info and the prek calendar here.
In my quick perusal of the procedures, it looks like everything is the same as last year. You should contact each individual school for tours and for information about how the school will handle a wait list (if they have seats left over) in June. The one difference is that if you attend prek at a school that is outside your zone, you have a slight preference above regular outside of zone families to attend that school at kindergarten.
A very quick and inaccurate survey of new programs:
PS 10, 107 and 321 in District 15 no longer have seats available.
In District 13 AND 15:
PS 133 has additional seats
In District 14:
PS 84, PS 110, 196 and 250 all have more seats.
by joyce
So lets just put it out there: Feeder Schools (preschools that feed the Independent elementary schools). How big a deal is this? Here is my take.
by joyce
A lot of strong schools in several neighborhoods have been getting new principals for the past couple of years. Sometimes it is because the principal is retiring, sometimes they have been offered a position that is too good to pass up. Usually the school will do a search for the right candidate, inside their school as well as outside. Being a Assistant Principal is not like being "Vice President" or the first runner up for Miss America. They may be a likely candidate, but the job of Principal is not a natural career progression for everyone. More than half of the new principals below came from outside the school community.
Shout out to Lena Barbera at PS 20 in Ft. Greene, Eve Litwack at 107 in the South Slope, Rebecca Fagin at PS 29 in Cobble Hill, Eric Havlick at PS 154 in Windsor Terrace, and now Linda Mazza at PS 295 in
You can apply online for public prek here from March 4- April 5.
