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What To Do After Your Child Has Been Waitlisted for a Public Charter School

Nearly all Baltimore City Public Charter Schools enroll students through an application system, not a school “zone.” Each school has its own application, lottery, and therefore their own waitlists.

When the number of students applying to a school is greater than the number of seats available, enrollment is determined by lottery. Learn more about charter schools and the steps of enrolling your child in a charter school.

Schools will notify families of their selection status soon after the district-wide lottery drawing date in mid-February. All notifications should be complete by early March.

Due to the high demand for charter seats in Baltimore City, some students will not be immediately offered a space in their preferred school’s charter lottery. These children will be placed on a waitlist at each individual school to which they have applied. Parents may then wait (and hope to be awarded a seat at a later date), explore public-zoned options, and/or apply to private schools.

What happens if my child is not offered a placement in the charter of our choice?

Waitlisted families continue to have options: explore and enroll at a traditional Baltimore City Public School, explore and enroll at an Independent School, and/ or wait for a placement offer from a preferred Public Charter School.

Explore and enroll in a Traditional Baltimore Public School: Baltimore City Public Charter Schools are not the only quality public schools in the city. Families should look into their zoned public school, public schools near their workplace, and schools that other families in their neighborhood or community attend. If moving into the zone of a preferred public school is important to your family, explore Five Star Family Neighborhoods. Baltimore City Public Schools prefers that families attend the school they are zoned for; however, families are able to enroll at Baltimore City public schools outside of their zone as well. Get in touch with a Live Baltimore representative to discuss your public school options.

Explore and enroll in an Independent School: Private and Parochial schools are still accepting admission applications. Attend open houses for schools of interest. While applications have often closed for financial aid at this point, a private school may be more affordable than families realize.

Wait & See: After families who have been offered placement at a Charter School accept or deny their offered placement, significant movement happens on the waitlist. Families have been known to receive a placement offer as late as September 30th for a school they were originally waitlisted.

If you have been waitlisted in the charter lottery and need information on ways to remain in Baltimore City, please view the presentation below for more information or contact Live Baltimore at schools@livebaltimore.com or 410-637-3750 x114.

Waitlisted Frequently Asked Questions

If we haven’t heard from a school, do we assume we were waitlisted?

My child is number 30 for the grade they’re going into. I thought that was a pretty good number, but then I heard the school has very little waitlist movement. Should I have my hopes up at all?

If you accept your second choice, but after mid-April you get a spot at your first choice, can you make that change? Or is it better to decline second choice and hope for the best with first choice?

Yes, you can accept a school enrollment offer even after you’ve already accepted at a different school. It is important to then also decline your previously accepted offer so that another waitlisted family can accept your place. Because of these kinds of changes, waitlists across schools can have movement and enrollment opportunities for waitlisted families as late as September 30th.

My child is going into middle/high school—what’s available to us?

For families with students entering 6th or 9th grades, Baltimore City Public Schools has what’s called the Choice Process for Middle and High Schools.

Families looking at middle schools can still explore traditional public neighborhood schools with middle school grade levels. You’ll want to see what’s convenient for your family, explore schools with programs you’re interested in, and connect with the schools to understand registration next steps. You can also explore specialized or independent schools as well.

Families looking for high schools will want to connect with City Schools’ enrollment to understand your application opportunities. For a list of all the public City High Schools, visit City Schools’ High School Choice page. Private and Parochial Schools are an option to consider as well – admission may not be as out of reach as you might think.

If we are accepted to multiple charter schools, do we need to select just one by April? I’ve heard some people fill more than one seat while waiting for their first-choice school. Is that common?

Yes, you do need to select one school by the acceptance deadline. We strongly recommend against accepting multiple offers as they come in. You can wait to respond to placements closer to the acceptance deadline to see what additional placements you receive before making a final decision. Remember, too, that waitlist movement happens so you can always accept a placement at your first-choice school should it come after you’ve already accepted elsewhere.

My child got into a school that said I needed to accept/decline within 24 hours. The city’s deadline is mid-April. Can an individual school make their own deadline?

A requirement for response within 24 hours of notice is unusual and goes against what the City Schools’ district office has shared both with schools and the public. Follow up with the school to find out more information and, if you need more time, you can connect with City Schools’ Enrollment Office to confirm what’s available to you.

Diversity is important to me; how I do I search for a school based on diversity?

Every Baltimore City school provides data for what their school demographics look like. For Baltimore City Public Schools (including Public Charter Schools), you can find the information about a school’s ethnic and racial demographic breakdown on each school’s page on BaltimoreCitySchools.org. Scroll to the bottom of the school page and select the “Data Profile” button.

Private and Parochial schools will present their school’s information in different ways on their individual websites as well. Lastly, we strongly recommend visiting a school to best understand what your unique child’s experience might be.

Are all of the Charter Schools closed to accepting applications?

Is it true that you can only apply to three public schools?

Have more questions about schools in Baltimore City?

Contact Live Baltimore at schools@livebaltimore.com or call 410-637-3750 x118 for help!

Learn About Other Baltimore City School Types

Public Zoned Schools Private Schools

What To Do After Your Child Has Been Waitlisted for a Public Charter School

What happens if my child is not offered a placement in the charter of our choice?

Have more questions about schools in Baltimore City?

Learn About Other Baltimore City School Types

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