Wednesday, May 22, 2013
Research and Pre-Register
BPS offers families a variety of information on our schools and registration process online, in-person, and in-print. On this page, we gather all the resources we offer to aid you in your registration process.
Research
Online
What are my Schools and DiscoverBPS.org are the best tools for families to find out for themselves the schools in their assignment zone which offer the grades of their children.
What are my Schools?
By entering your Home Address and the School Year and Grade Level for which you are applying, this online tool provides an authoritative preview of the school choices that will be on your Assignment application form. This list will include all the schools for which you are eligible to apply. Additional information will be provided on each school, such as:
1) Whether or not this school is in your walk zone, thereby giving you a priority should you apply for a seat at that school
2) Whether or not you are eligible for transportation should you apply for a seat at that school
3) The hours of that school
Using the same information as What are my Schools?, DiscoverBPS.org will also take into account (if applicable) the BPS school your child's sibling currently attends in its display of your school choices. Users can sort their list of school choices by eligibility, transportation, distance from home, and more. This online tool offers more school information and ways to organize school choices by providing a map view, school profiles, walk and drive time estimates, registration statistics from the previous year, and a Favorites function which allows users to create a customized list of preferred schools.
Note: DiscoverBPS.org is still in production mode. If discrepancies exist between the tools, please rely on What are my Schools? and report any errors to our technical team.
BPS School Listings
Each school in BPS has a listing page on the BPS website which lists essential information: a school's address, contact information, programmatic and facility highlights, grade levels, school hours, and displays a small photo gallery.
BPS Kindergarten Demand Reports
BPS is able to provide K2 school choice statistics from recent registration cycles in an Excel format.
Kindergarten demand report, 2012-2013
Kindergarten demand report, 2011-2012
BPS Registration Process: Step-by-Step
On the BPS website, the Office of Welcome Services offers a detailed step-by-step guide to registration for new to BPS families as well as instructions for currently enrolled BPS families seeking a new BPS school.
In-person
November to January is School Choice Season for BPS. The Office of Welcome Services coordinates with every school in the district to offer an array of opportunities for families to visit schools, take tours, and interact with current administrators, faculty, and students.
School Preview Time, School Showcases, and Information Sessions have ended for the 2012-2013 School Year. The School Choice Season for 2013-2014 will begin in November. Until then, please explore your school options by visiting DiscoverBPS.org, our "Introducing the Boston/files/introbps_13_english.pdf Public Schools" newsletter or our Next Stop: Middle School and Next Stop: High School guides.
In-print
The following documents are available to assist families with the school choice process. Many are in PDF format, which requires the free Adobe Acrobat Reader to be installed on your computer.
Countdown to Kindergarten Information Sheets, detailed information for K0-K2 families
How does the BPS School Choice process work?, a brief overview and guide
Introducing the Boston Public Schools 2013, a comprehensive guide to all our schools
Next Stop: Middle School, a guide to all BPS middle schools with school profiles from principals and data from the State Dept. of Education
Next Stop: High School, a guide to all BPS high schools with school profiles from principals and data from the State Dept. of Education
"Ready, Set, Go" - School Choice step-by-step, a chronological checklist for registration
Policies
Student Assignment Policy
Please note that BPS is currently undergoing an effort called "Improving School Choice" that may result in a new student assignment system in the future. For more information, please visit the Improving School Choice website.
BPS Residency Policy
In July 2011, the Boston School Committee voted to adopt a new "two document proof" process. This supercedes any residency or registration information dated prior to July 2011.
Pre-Register
BPSExpress is our online pre-registration site for families to electronically send standard information to the Family Resource Centers before their visit. BPSExpress opens in Mid-December.
Why use BPSExpress?
- Families can complete application form(s) and make school choices on-line in advance
- Filling out forms electronically reduces errors and saves time
- BPSExpress users access a separate line at the Family Resource Center during peak registration times
BPSExpress is only pre-registration. Families still need to visit a Family Resource Center with their required documents in order to complete registration. At the end of online pre-registration, BPSExpress provides a printable summary with a receipt number. Please bring this summary with you to the FRC.
Click here to see a sample packet of BPS Registration forms.
Visit the "Welcome" pages of this site for translations of many of these publications in the following languages: Cape Verdean Creole, Chinese, Haitian Creole, Portuguese, Somali, Spanish and Vietnamese.
