Middle School Choice Mayhem Part II

It's a little confusing, the new middle school application, which gives Mark Twain its own spot. In previous years, parents pre–applied to magnet programs at Mark Twain, Bay Academy, David A. Boody and other schools in District 21, a result of a 1974 desegregation court order. Those children who met the ELA and Math cut-off scores received a special application, students auditioned/tested and then the fortunate received acceptance to two middle schools: the one in their district and the Mark Twain/Bay Academy.

Although the court order was overturned in 2008, Mark Twain Intermediate School for the Gifted and Talented remains the only school in District 21 that still accepts applications from all five boroughs. This little hot house of self–selected over–achievers at the very end of Coney Island produces a high ratio of graduates accepted into the specialized high schools.

Let's hope that the Office of Student Enrollment, Planning and Operations (OSEPO) has shaken out all the kinks that high school applicants experienced in their school selection process. Not to make you soon–to–be middle schoolers scared for the next three years, but there were accusations that Brooklyn students were purposefully excluded from the Millennium High School pool — even though all Department of Education publications indicate that there was no geographic restriction. Also, according to insideschools.org, three popular high schools were allegedly accidentally omitted or not filled from the Main Round (occurring after the specialized high school round); no one received acceptances to Bard HS-Manhattan and open seats mysteriously remained at Millennium and Leon M. Goldstein in Brooklyn.

Middle school choice is much simpler, since the vast majority of students will stay within the district of their elementary school, with the exception of NEST+m, Professional Performing Arts and Mark Twain.

But I worry… a new application with a new option… does that mean new ways for the DOE to mess up?