Any charter or Magnet schools accepting kids in the middle of the school year (transfer to, neighborhood)
Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill, CaryThe Triangle Area
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First of all, I know that the public schools are very good. Researched them on niche and other sites. However, the best fit for my kids are small class sizes and even uniforms if possible(although it doesn't seem like the charters here use uniforms). which is not an issue. I know that usually the classes are full and you get put on a waiting list. I just want stability. Not to move there, get into a public school only to transfer them again to charter. So if you know of any charters or magnets that are accepting students right now, please let me know.
I do not have a job lined up yet but am trying hard to get one. So I have no clue where I will be working.
When you move into Wake County, you can submit a transfer request within ten days of enrolling for school. https://www.wcpss.net/Page/33766
There are some magnet schools that still have space for priority magnet students. These are students that are zoned for high/medium SES school and live in a high/medium SES area. You'll need to look through this list to see which schools are still open to transfers, but for elementary schools I know Partnership, Green. These are schools that are generally under enrolled and need more high income students to balance out their diversity ratios. There are also some non-magnet schools available to transfer. You can see the list of schools available for transfer here: School Transfer Status
I don't know how the charters work, but you'd have to call each school individually to find out.
Charter schools have waiting lists. Looong waiting lists. Extremely long for any grade other than kindergarten. I could be wrong but I think they choose from those as spots become available during the school year.
You can try for a charter school next year, but as mentioned, the odds are stacked for those not entering either kindergarten (for elementary schools) or 6th grade (for middle schools). Otherwise good charters might have only a few openings each grade as people move.
You have a better shot at magnet schools this year, and the above has some good info. I think you should be prepared though that odds are your kid is going to their assigned public school unless you pony up for a private school.
1. Do kids transfer schools a lot in the Triangle area? I just don't want to put them in public school then an opening for charter school happens and I have to take them back out. Or does that happen more often than we think?
2. What makes the charter schools here so popular? Because the public schools seem to be top notch as well.
The deadline for charter school applications is typically January or February and the lottery is held shortly thereafter as mandated by state law. Then the popular/good charter schools will build a waiting list from the students who did not get selected in the lottery. If a school doesn't have a waiting list it is either brand new or not so popular (aka good).
It's a fast growing area with very involved parents so all kinds of schools are popular and full to capacity. Typically the parent who sends their kid to a charter school is a more involved parent who researches what might be better for their kid than the school they are zoned for. Kids who have uninterested parents who just don't care are not the ones who end up in magnets or charters. They may end up in good public schools just by virtue of where they are lucky enough to live, though. There are many many very involved and interested parents who send their kids to traditional public schools, too. They typically research which neighborhood goes to "the best" public school which is why you have overcrowding and capping of certain public schools.
One reason charter schools are popular is because you can live in a less expensive area that doesn't have top-notch public schools and still get a top-notch education experience. Not all public schools are created equal, even in Wake County. Plues, there may be other perceived advantages, like the ones you mentioned (smaller class size, uniforms) and others (academic specialization, etc.)
1) How is quality of education in charter schools vs magnet schools? Aren't there some charter schools that aren't even as top notch as public schools?
2) If one is in a charter/magnet school already, can one apply via lottery to another charter/magnet school come every new school year?
3) If one moves within Wake County in the middle of school year, will they allow transfer to your new area's base school in the middle of school year?
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