Gutiérrez asks about dual-language lottery seats and waitlists
Gutiérrez asks whether dual-language programs hold designated seats for children whose primary language is not English. Emmy Liss says programs aim for 50% target-language and 50% non-target-language seats, with waitlists possible.
I also want to acknowledge you've been joined by committee member, Councilmember Gail Brewer and Councilmember Julie Wan online.
I'm going to ask a couple more questions and then pass it over to, oh no, not a lantern fly, Councilmember Brewer.
Save us.
Goodness.
Okay.
I had a question about, somebody will save us.
I had a question about families who want to see it in, let's say, an existing pre-K dual language program.
I guess, is there designated seats in the lottery for children for these programs whose primary language is a language other than English for these dual language programs?
Is there like a certain amount of seats?
So by design, dual language programs, those that specifically are teaching in that format, are meant to have
50% of children coming from a household that speaks the target language and 50% of children who are coming from a household that does not speak the target language.
And so in the admissions process, essentially 50% of the seats are held for each group.
And so a family does indicate when they apply on my schools whether or not they speak that language at home.
Okay.
And do you have a sense, are there instances where there are waiting lists for the 50% of those families who speak that language versus the 50% who don't?
Just as with any early childhood program, there may be waiting lists.
When a family applies for 3K or pre-K, they can list essentially an unlimited number of programs on their application.
And any program that they ranked higher than the program they are ultimately offered a spot at, they are automatically placed on the wait list.
So a family may have ranked five dual language programs, for example, and gotten into their fourth choice.
So they would then be on the wait list for those three that they ranked higher.
Or similarly, a parent who ranked a mix of dual language and non-dual language programs, they would have any of the programs ranked higher than their admitted choice.
They'd automatically be placed on a wait list.
Got it.