Enrollment Policy:
As a charter school in the state of Michigan, Academy will be open to all pupils in grades K-12 (following the grade expansion plan) who are qualified for admission to a public school under the laws of the State of Michigan and who reside within the state of Michigan. Within one year after the charter school begins operation, the population of the school shall reasonably reflect the racial and ethnic composition of the special population that the school seeks to serve residing within the local school administrative unit in which the school is located.
The Academy will be open to all students entering the grades served by the school, subject to the provisions of the enrollment policy, with the only limit being the number of available seats. In administering the admission requirements set forth below, no admission decision shall discriminate against any student on the basis of intellectual ability, measures of achievement or aptitude, athletic ability, disability, race, creed, gender, national origin, religion, or ancestry.
In accordance with the law in the state of Michigan, the Academy may refuse admission to any student who has been expelled or suspended from a public school until the period of suspension or expulsion has expired.
The Academy will have an open enrollment period starting in or after approximately March of each year with duration of 2 weeks (14 consecutive days). After the first year, in the weeks prior to the open enrollment period, the school will conduct a re-enrollment period where current students will have the opportunity to claim their continuation for the upcoming school year. If the number of applicants exceeds the number of spots available, there will be an open and public lottery on that date. There will be written notice of the open lottery stating its purpose and it shall be posted, published and advertised pursuant to required laws.
Enrollment Preference:
Preference is first given to currently enrolled students. Next preference would like to be afforded to the following ordered categories of applicants:
1 . Siblings of currently enrolled students who were admitted to the school in a previous year.
2. All remaining applicants
Random Selection Drawing (RSD or Lottery):
The lottery will be held in a public forum and will be easily understood and followed by all observers. All students whose applications were filed by the application deadline will be separated by grade and entered into the lottery. A drawing of names by grade will then be held until all spaces are filled. An impartial individual will draw the names. To minimize the risk of bias, the school will exclude from the task of drawing names those who are employed by the school, or whose relatives are school employees, as well as those who are seeking admission for their children. One surname shall be entered into the lottery to represent all of the multiple birth siblings. If that surname of the multiple birth siblings is selected, then all of the multiple birth siblings shall be offered the first available seat in their respective grade or placed on a Sibling Priority Waiting List. Siblings are defined as children who have at least one common parent/legal guardian AND are living in the same household at least 50% of the time. Once all seats for a grade are filled, any names drawn from that grade will be entered onto a waitlist in the order that they are drawn. Parents will be notified of student acceptance or status on the waitlist by mail. When an opening becomes available at a grade level, students will be admitted first from the Sibling Priority Waiting List and then from the regular Waiting List if there are no siblings waiting at that grade level.
