Dozens of Indianapolis Schools, One Application: Nonprofit Aims for Easier, More Equitable Enrollment
Discover more about School Choice Week 2017 in an extensive way.
In certain cities, the process of applying to schools has become increasingly complex. However, in Indianapolis, a newly established nonprofit organization called Enroll Indy is simplifying the application process for grades K-12, making it more convenient for parents, teachers, and school administrators.
Enroll Indy will introduce a unified enrollment system that allows families to complete a single form to apply to all public schools in the city, including traditional district schools, magnet schools, and charter schools. This eliminates the need to apply to individual schools with different application deadlines. Parents can list up to 10 schools in order of preference, and a computer algorithm will match each student with a school, taking various factors into account such as geographic location and enrollment of siblings.
The concept of a unified enrollment system in Indianapolis originated from teachers, according to Caitlin Hannon, the founder and executive director of Enroll Indy. As the executive director of Teach Plus Indianapolis in 2013, she heard concerned educators discussing the challenges of managing classrooms when the number of students enrolling in each school was uncertain. The growth of the city’s charter school sector further complicated the situation.
"A group of teachers recognized the need for improvement and suggested that a unified enrollment system would facilitate the prediction of staffing and planning numbers for school districts," stated Hannon.
Simultaneously, families were experiencing extreme difficulty in dealing with dozens of applications on different timelines. Even affluent parents struggled to navigate their options, and the situation was even worse for those who relied on public transportation or had limited English skills. The unified enrollment system aims to address these issues and improve transparency and fairness for all families.
As Hannon and other educational leaders in Indianapolis devised the new system, they examined how other cities had approached the same challenge. For instance, Denver and New Orleans were the pioneers in launching common enrollment systems that included both district and charter schools. These systems have successfully introduced consistent enrollment rules, preventing families from influencing their child’s placement through personal connections.
However, unified enrollment systems do have their limitations, according to Betheny Gross, the research director at the Center on Reinventing Public Education at the University of Washington Bothell. In Denver, where participation is voluntary, researchers discovered that 20 percent of families did not submit applications, and those who opted out tended to live in neighborhoods with poorly rated schools. Gross emphasized that common enrollment systems don’t resolve the difficulties faced by families with complex lives, such as new immigrants or those with language barriers. A single application cannot address issues like finding transportation to a distant school.
Nevertheless, Hannon believes that providing families with information will be beneficial. The city’s public school district is already on board with the unified enrollment system, and Hannon is actively working on getting each of the city’s charter schools to participate. Although the system is set to go live in November for the 2018-19 school year, Enroll Indy has already begun informing parents about school options in their communities. A "school finder" tool is available on their website, enabling families to explore schools in Indianapolis based on various characteristics, such as transportation options, academic programs, and sports.
"People in positions of power often advocate for ‘choice’ and want individuals to make decisions based on their preferences. They believe that undesirable schools will naturally close down," explained Hannon. "However, this system only works if people are aware of their options and know what is best for their child."
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