Enrollment FAQ’s

Enrollment

How old must a child be to enter Kinder? My son has a late October bday, and has just turned 4 - he is smart and clever and I fear that he will end up understimulated if I have to wait until next year to put him in Kinder (i.e. 5 turning 6)

State law requires kindergarteners in all public schools to be 5 on Sept 1 of the school year in which they start kindergarten.

Is there buses to this school?

No.

If my child will be attending kinder in 2yrs how early can I submit an application?

Submit an application by March 31st of the year in which your child will be in kindergarten. So if s/he will start kindergarten in August 2013, submit your application before March 31, 2013.

In the questions about sibling, you say in the top question that siblings are guaranteed a spot. Further down, you say that a sibling enters the lottery. Can you advise?

Siblings of currently-enrolled students are guaranteed a spot if there is an open spot to offer in their grade level! If there is no open spot to offer, the sibling will be placed at the top of the waiting list for their grade.

Is ADS year round or does it have a schedule similar to local public schools? Thank you.

Our calendar is similar to those of the surrounding school districts. Please look under 'parents' then 'announcements and forms' for the 2011-12 school calendar.

do they were uniforms

No, our students do not wear uniforms to school.

Once a child is a part of ADS, do they have to do the lottery yearly or are they guaranteed an enrollment spot for the following years?

All of our current students are guaranteed spots in the future!

Hi, I just found out about this school, is it too late to apply for the school for the following year?

No, it's not too late! We have already had our lottery for next year, but you can certainly apply and put your child on our waiting list at any point.

How early can you submit an application? My daughter will be in kindergarten next year.

Our lottery for 2011-12 was held April 1, 2011. We continue to accept enrollment applications and will place the name of those children at the bottom of the waiting list.

Will all parents be notified if they have been accepted/not accepted for a position?

No. You will hear from us if we have a spot to offer your child!

When will the parents be notified if/if not their child has been accepted to ADS?

We have contacted the parents of all children whose names were chosen in the initial lottery on 4/1/11. As they accept or decline, we will continue moving down the waiting list and contacting parents.

When are the lottery positions announced?

Today - 4/4/11!

When you say \"Waiting List\" are you talking about the applications that are to be drawn during the lottery in April, or already submitted applications from an earlier time? I have a Kinder, that I am hoping will be a lucky lottery winner.

We have a waiting list of people who would like to enroll this school year should spots become available. We also have a list of people who have entered their child in our lottery for next school year. Those are two different lists.

Hi. What are your school hours? Your school sounds amazing, but we live far away and I am worried about the commute.

Our hours are 8-3:30 Mondays-Thursdays and 8-12:30 on Fridays.

What if I do not live in the boundary limits during the lottery, but will before the school year starts? Will we still be in the lottery?

Yes, you can be in the lottery. You must live within our geographic boundaries by the first day of school.

Has there been any additional discussions on adding 7th and 8th grades? I have a child that will be in 7th next semester and I would love to have them attend ADS

There have been many discussions and the executive director has polled parents on this topic, but although we would like to, we will not be able to serve children who will be in 7th grade next year (2011-12). We are hoping for the future, though!

Can we return the application by email or must it be mailed?

If you can scan it and e-mail it to dfreeman@austindiscoveryschool.org, that's fine! Otherwise you can FAX or mail it.

My family is relocating to Austin from having lived overseas for the past six years (practically the whole of our children\'s life so far). If I enter both in the lottery and only one is chosen, will the other be automatically enrolled as well?

We would make every effort to offer spots to both of them! The only circumstance in which we would only offer one sibling a spot is when one sibling's name is drawn and there are no more spots available in the other sibling's grade level. If you then enrolled the child whose name had been drawn, your other child would move up to the top of the waiting list for his/her grade.

What happens after a child is accepted into ADS? Would we have to fill out a new application for the following year?

No! Once a child is enrolled, they are gauranteed a spot for the next school year.

how can i get an application?

Our enrollment forms are available under parents, then forms & announcements. Look on the left side of the page for links to many different forms!

If an application is selected during the lottery, and the family choses not enroll will it affect the possibility of enrolling the following year? Can the enrollment be delayed until the following year? For example, putting off kindergarten for a year.

We start each lottery with a "clean slate," so declining a spot one year will not affect your chances the next year. Likewise, if you choose to delay kindergarten for a year, you must reapply for the following year.

I didn\'t find Aftercare hours and fees on the website. Can you post that information?

Thanks for pointing that out to me! I have just updated the Aftercare page of the website; the hours and fees are in the handbook, which you can open or download now.

What are the \"approved geographic boundaries\" for students to be able to apply?

Please see our website under 'enrollment' then 'geographic boundaries' for a complete list!

Hello ADS! My son is 15 months, so quite a bit away from Kinder...can you tell me when might be the best time to apply? The year he starts or before? I\'m new to the lottery system. Thank you!

Hi! Thanks for your interest. The best time to apply is the late winter/early spring before the August when your son will start kindergarten. Our lottery is held on March 31 of each year for the following school year, and it gives everyone who applies for the following school year an equal chance for a spot. So there is no advantage to applying earlier than that. Just submit the one page enrollment form (downloadable from our website) by March 31 of the year in which your son will be starting kindergarten! Thanks!

Do you have an open house or classroom viewings, so that I can see if ADS would be a good fit for my child?

Our tours will start in November and will be available in English and Spanish on Tuesdays at 9 am. E-mail or call dfreeman@austindiscoveryschool.org to sign up for a tour!

What is the difference between an application and enrollment form?

You must first apply to ADS if you are interested in enrolling at the school. Applications are one page forms used to secure a child's place in the lottery. Admission to ADS is determined by lottery in April each year. Once a child secures a spot, an enrollment form (packet of information) as well as other required documents are requested by the school.

How do I apply?

You may apply by filling out the admission application form and returning it, either by: Fax: 512-674-3133 Email: dfreeman@austindiscoveryschool.org Mail: ADS, 8509 FM 969 #200, Austin , Tx. 78724, or hand them in at the front desk.

Who can attend ADS?

Any child in grade K-6 in the approved geographic boundaries may apply to attend ADS.

How much does ADS cost?

Nothing. ADS is a tuition-free public school.

Will you continue to add grades?

We added 6th grade in 2009. The Administration and Board of Directors will consider expanding to 8th grade if there is sufficient interest from our community members.

When can I turn in an application?

You may submit an application at any time. Applications turned in by March 31st will be included in the lottery. Those received after the lottery will be placed in order received on the waiting list.

How old must my child be to attend ADS?

State law requires children entering Kindergarten to turn 5 before September 1st.

What is a lottery?

Each application receives a number. Vacancies are filled by pulling numbers at random and offering spots to those children first. All lottery procedures are witnessed by a current parent and administration.

When is the lottery?

The lottery is held the first Monday in April.

Can my child start during the school year?

Yes. If the school has a vacancy during the school year, it will be filled by lottery from the waiting list.

How are vacancies filled?

Vacancies are filled with applications on file. If there are more applications than vacancies, spots are filled by a lottery.

What if my child was home-schooled?

Home-schooled children will generally be assigned a grade based on age. Initial assessments and parental input will be contributing factors in grade placement.

DO you have letter grades?

No we do not

Don’t see your question? Submit a question to the FAQ section here: info@AustinDiscoverySchool.org