Board approves magnet school procedure

Sibling, military and students of teachers will be given first preference for magnet school admissions for at least one more year as school district officials continue to look into new admission policies.

During Tuesday night's school board meeting, board members voted 4-1 to return to an earlier admissions procedure for magnet schools that gives preference first to children of magnet school staff members, then to those in the military, those with siblings in the school and last to those considered through portfolios and a lottery.

Board member Sandra Nicholson voted against the measure saying that, even in the short term she is against giving sibling preference.

"I think magnet schools are losing their focus," Nicholson said. "That's why I support 100 percent portfolio applications."

She added she would like to see magnet schools not accept applications from students until they're in second grade - giving students more time to build portfolios.

The last category of students to be considered would be selected based on a formula where 70 percent of applications would come from portfolios, 30 percent from a lottery system.

According to the draft, the lotteries will be drawn during the last Friday in February.

Prior to the agenda item, parents commented on the matter voicing opinions for and against sibling and other preferences.

Esperanza Prevatte, who was the first to speak about the matter, said the goal of magnet schools shouldn't be to keep families together. Instead, she said it should be to cultivate students with certain talents or aptitudes while giving all students equal opportunity to compete for admission.

She did however agree with preference given to students of teachers who work at a magnet school.

"Taxpayers were asked to fund magnet schools, not to fund schools where select groups are granted preference over qualified students who meet admission criteria," Prevatte said.

Other parents, such as Laura Paige, said parents with one child in a magnet school are being penalized by their child not being given preference to help keep the families together.

"I wanted to make the best choice for my daughter and I didn't want her to be in an overcrowded classroom," Paige said. "Pretty much if you can extend this one more year (after next school year) not just for me, but other parents out there."

Meanwhile, Interim Superintendent Sonya Jackson said the final makeup of the magnet school committee has not been finalized and that staff members are still working on it.