1. Complete and submit a Charter School of Excellence "Application for Admission.
Please note that the Charter School of Excellence currently will accept applications for all grade levels but grades 6 and 9 will take priority.
An individual can obtain an application online from the Charter School of Excellence website, request one be mailed home, or pick one up from one of the school sites in person. An individual can submit this application by mailing it, faxing it, or dropping it off at the school during regular school hours.
2. Upon receipt of your application, the Charter School of Excellence will review for completion. The following items must be included for the application to be considered complete:
- Proof of Pennsylvania residence (a utility bill, lease or mortgage statement with the name of at least one parent who is named on the child's birth certificate or custody papers and the current address).
- Proof of child's age: The child's birth certificate, which needs to have the full name of at least one parent, OR original custody paperwork
- Copy of up-to-date immunization records.
- Parent photo identification of a parent named on the child's birth certificate or custody papers (i.e., driver's license, state identification card, etc).
- To submit an application for a child who lives with you, but for whom you are not the parent, original court documents must be brought in for review.
- If a student reports being "Homeless" as defined under the McKinney â€" Vento Act (Title X, Part C of ESEA), the right of the student to immediate enrollment even when records are not present supersede the above items identified.
3. Once an application is complete, it is dated and logged into our central enrollment student management system.
Student applicants go through a lottery and are then assigned a number. Students are then placed into a waiting list, with their lottery number indicating when they will be contacted for enrollment.
4. Non-Discrimination Policy:
A child's right to be admitted to school may not be conditioned on the child's immigration status and CSE will not inquire regarding the immigration status of a child as part of the admission process.
A child's right to be admitted to school is not based on a child's disability or the child's need for special education or supplementary aids or services.
A child's right to be admitted to school is not based on the child's intellectual ability. The Admission Criteria of CSE does not include measures of achievement or aptitude.
5. Enrolling Special Education students:
We do not require the submission of an Individualized Education Plan with the application.
6. As required by PA charter school law, the Charter School of Excellence uses a lottery system for admitting its students.
A lottery system is used if there are more completed applications than there are students needed to reach capacity. Children from the chartering school district, the School District of the City of Erie, are given preference. Children from other school districts will be selected by lottery if there is sufficient space. Otherwise, complete applications are handled in the order that they are received.
The public lottery will be scheduled on a monthly basis as needed. The process will include a random electronic selection process and involve the Central Enrollment Coordinator, an Administrator, and a community member. We will select as many students as we need to fill capacity.
Phone calls and mailings will be used to notify the family that they were chosen through the Charter School of Excellence's lottery process.
All remaining students will be placed on the waiting list.
7. If selected in the lottery:
You must go through an enrollment interview process. Failure to attend or cancel this meeting will result in being placed back on the waiting list.
CSE administers a home language survey for all students seeking first-time enrollment in its school.
9. According to state and federal special education regulations, annual public notice to parents of children who reside within a school district is required regarding child find responsibilities.
School districts, intermediate units and charter schools are required to conduct child find activities for children who may be eligible for services via Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. For 47 additional information related to Section 504/Chapter 15 services, the parent may refer to Section 504, Chapter 15, and the Basic Education Circular entitle Implementation of Chapter 15. Also, school districts are required to conduct child find activities for children who may be eligible for gifted services via 22 PA Code Chapter 16. 3 For additional information regarding gifted services, the parent may refer to 22 PA Code Chapter 16. If a student is both gifted and eligible for Special Education, the procedure in IDEA and Chapter 14 shall take precedence. For more information including a summary of the special education services, evaluation and screening activities, and rights and protections pertaining to children with disabilities, children thought to be disabled, and their parents or to request evaluation or screening of a preschool or school aged child, public or private, contact the school or district where your child attends or view the complete document on the Charter School of Excellence website www.phcse.org . Additionally, one may contact a school representative through the contact information listed below: Director of Pupil Services 1511 Peach St. Erie PA 16501 814-480-5908 The Charter School of Excellence will not discriminate in employment, educational programs, or activities based on race, color, national origin, age, sex, handicap, creed, marital status or because a person is a disabled veteran or a veteran of the Vietnam era. No middle or secondary school pupil enrolled in a Charter School of Excellence program shall be denied equal opportunity to participate in age and program appropriate instruction or activities due to race, color, handicap, creed, national origin, marital status or financial hardship.
