Important Admissions Dates of Freire Charter School for Students Entering Fall 2013
Friday, February 1, 2013 All Applications due by 3:00pm
Weds., February 20, 2013 Admissions Lottery Held
Friday, March 8, 2013 Admissions Paperwork due by 3:00pm for students selected in the Lottery
Weds. March 20, 2013 Use of Waiting List begins (if needed)
**Dates are subject to change. Please check our website for the latest updates**
Admissions Policy of Freire Charter School for Students Entering Fall 2013
In order to attend the Freire Charter School, an applicant and his/her legal guardian must perform the following actions:
1. Complete and submit a Freire “Application for Admission”.
High School: Please note that Freire currently does not accept applications from students seeking spots in Grades 10-12. All openings at Freire are for the 9th Grade only at the high school level.
Middle School: Please note that Freire currently accepts applications from students seeking spots in Grades 5 through 8.
An individual can obtain an application online from the Freire website, requesting one be mailed home, or picking one up from the school in person. An individual can submit this completed application by mailing it back to the school or dropping it off at the school during regular school hours. We cannot receive faxes. Please note that Freire is not responsible for lost documents and cannot accept any claims for missing material being sent in by the deadline. Please send your material via certified mail if you would like a receipt of its delivery.
Upon receipt of your application, Freire will send you a confirmation postcard that will also contain your Application Identification Number (AIN). Please keep this number safe as it will be used during the posting of lottery results on the Freire website.
As required by PA charter school law, Freire Charter School uses a lottery system for admitting its students, unless you are a sibling of a current Freire student. Please note that only applications containing Philadelphia addresses will be placed into the lottery. Any application containing a non-Philadelphia address will be placed on a separate non-resident Waiting List. Furthermore, proof of residency will be required if your student is selected in the lottery to continue in the enrollment process. Any applicant who cannot provide a Philadelphia address during the proof of residency check will be placed on this separate non-resident Waiting List as well. Freire will not access this non-resident Waiting List until after the first day of August prior to the start of the new school year, and this list will be accessed only if spaces are still available in a particular grade level.
In the lottery, Freire will publicly draw AIN cards for as many spots as there are available in the incoming 9th Grade class and for all middle school grades. All students selected will be announced and enrollment paperwork will be mailed home.
All remaining students at this time for any filled grade will be placed on the Waiting List. The Admissions Office will continue pulling AIN cards until each card is associated with a spot on the Waiting List for that grade. Due to the large number of applicants, the results will be posted only on the Freire website by AIN rather than mailed. Please do not call the Admissions Office to find out your place on the list.
For all applications submitted after February 1st, Freire will select applications on a first come, first serve basis. No student will be accepted, however, until all students from the Waiting List mentioned above have been offered admission first. No preference will be shown to siblings who apply after this deadline.
2. Return required documents by deadline if selected in the lottery in order to hold your spot at Freire.
It is important to understand that being selected in a lottery is only Step One of being enrolled at Freire. The next step involves submitting the required documents by the proper deadline or your spot will be forfeited.
If selected in the Lottery, you must submit all documents directly to the school in person (no mail or faxes accepted) by 3:00pm on March 8th. Failure to meet this deadline forfeits your spot at Freire. No exceptions will be made. You may re-apply and be assigned a new AIN, giving your family a spot at the end of our Waiting List.
The required material to continue the enrollment process is as follows:
- Intent to Enroll Form
- Proof of Age (for example, Birth Certificate)
- Proof of Residency
- Recent Immunization Records
- Act 26 Form
- Home Language Survey
3. Submit Final Report Card by July 10th.
All students coming to Freire must submit proof of successfully completing their current grade by July 10th so that we can be sure we are placing the student in the appropriate grade and have filled all seats fairly. Report cards may be mailed or dropped off in person.
Freire Charter School values diversity and seeks students from diverse backgrounds. Freire Charter School does not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, gender, sexual orientation, religion, ethnic origin, or disability in its admission policy.
Approved by Freire Board of Directors 9/12/2012