Home › Forums › Chicago Public Schools (CPS) › CPS Elementary Schools › Selective Enrollment Elementary Schools (SEES) › Spring 2024- CPS SEES Classical & Gifted Results
Tagged: admissions, Classical, CPS, gifted, Magnet, Open Enrollment, RGC, SEES
- This topic has 329 replies, 15 voices, and was last updated 2 months, 4 weeks ago by Momofone.
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chicagoschooloptionsKeymaster
CPS will release elementary school offers for any programs applied to via the GoCPS applications (SEES & Choice Programs) as follows:
MARCH 22nd, 2024 – Results Released
APRIL 19th, 2024 – Accept/Decline Deadline
MAY 1st, 2024 – Rolling Waitlist Process Opens
2 BUSINESS DAYS AFTER OFFER ISSUED – Waitlist Accept/Decline DeadlinePlease feel free to post results to share. Applicants may be offered one Selective Enrollment ES offer (if applicable) and multiple Choice offers. Their neighborhood school is always available for them to attend at any time.
Comment below about your child’s SEES Classical and/or Gifted results and include the grade applied to, your Tier (if applicable), point total or percentage, and what order the school was ranked on your application. If you applied to Choice (lottery) schools as well, please post HERE. Good luck!
Here are videos slidedeck on “Selections Process Explained”
Guide to Understanding Rankings & Cutoff Scores is HERE. In prior years “No cutoff scores are posted for Classical and Gifted SEES programs” but see below for breaking news regarding cut scores. Tiers are only applicable for the entry year of a program (typically K for RGC & Classical or 7th for Academic Centers).
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chicagoschooloptionsKeymaster
Breaking news! Just attended a GoCPS webinar and they confirmed that Rank and Tier cut scores for each of the 7 Classical and 11 RGC programs will be shared this year with families. This is the first time ever, since the low number of seats at each school (typically 28 per Kindergarten classroom except for Skinner North & Bronzeville which are closer to 56 or so) had precluded sharing that info for privacy reasons.
To sign up for a GoCPS Family Training session to learn what to expect on 3/22/24 when CPS releases 2024-2025 offers, click: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScsQz2HW0XIrOs6rcqTxJSSCtEDmlReVhGvjw2ZFkHZpN1CEA/viewform
UPDATE: Initial Cutoff scores for entry year of Classical, Gifted, Academic Centers and RGC ELL programs published on 3/22/24; https://drive.google.com/file/d/1iIejOk1Xx782ZydK6dJsBWG_eTqakBoA/view
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cbGuest
Wow, that’s big news! That information has been difficult to get in past years. Thanks for sharing the update.
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SoLoMoSmSGuest
Anyone seeing results yet?
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Mommy_BParticipant
Yes. I see test results when I click on “Student Details”. I’m not seeing offer info yet… I’m anxiously waiting!!!!
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DaddyParticipant
Does anyone know if the Classical scores are out of 160
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DaddyParticipant
I see offers now?
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due bambiniParticipant
Offers are up
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KCGuest
Results were posted for me.
Rising 2nd grader
RGC: 141
Waitlisted at McPherson and Beaubien.It says waitlist General 1 for McP and General 3 for Beaubien. Does that really mean my kiddo is #1 on the waitlist at McPherson?!
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ChiMamaGuest
My son got a 1st grade (entry year) offer at Beaubien RGC. We don’t know a lot about it. If anyone has experiences there, I’d love to hear more about the school/program.
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ChiMamaGuest
@KC Yes, I think so! Congrats! But SES waitlist order can move in either direction as they are re-ordered nightly once the waitlist opened. On the training slidedeck it says they are indicating SES waitlist numbers this year. That is how choice waitlists look so I assume that’s what that means.
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DaddyParticipant
Congrats! What was his RGC score?
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Chi-townMomParticipant
Tier 2
Entering Kindergarten
Classical scores
Reading: 83%
Math: 93 %Skinner N: Not offered
Skinner W: Not offered
Bronzeville: Offered -
ORS MamaParticipant
Evening kindergarten
Tier 4
Reading: 92
Math: 87I’m a little confused on his RGC score because if I add up the non verbal and verbal scores I get a different number than what they say is his composite score. It was a lot lower than what I had expected (118).
Not offered: NTA
Not offered: Skinner W
Offered: Bronzeville (accepted)If anybody has insight into Bronzeville I’d love to hear it.
@chi-townMom Are you accepting Bronzeville?-
due bambiniParticipant
Same here, our composite score would give us 10 more points, so I can only assume there is a curve.
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Happymomof1Guest
Please see my post about Bronzeville below.
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Chi-townMomParticipant
@ ORS Mama
We’re still deciding between Bronzeville and Hawthorne. Bronzeville is a SEES and closer to where we live. Hawthorne (Choice lottery school) also seems to be academically rigorous and has sibling preferences which we like since we have a younger son. Still doing more research to see which would best fit our needs.
If any one has any insight on Bronzeville or Hawthorne, please help!-
Happymomof1Guest
Please see my post below about Bronzeville.
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Chi-townMomParticipant
@ ORS Mama
We’re still deciding between Bronzeville and Hawthorne. Bronzeville is a SEES and closer to where we live. Hawthorne (Choice lottery school) also seems to be academically rigorous and has sibling preferences which we like since we have a younger son. Still doing more research to see which would best fit our needs.
If any one has any insight on Bronzeville or Hawthorne, please help!
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due bambiniParticipant
Reading 99
Math 97
Gifted 145Offered #1 Edison
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due bambiniParticipant
Has anyone been able to decipher the cut scores? https://drive.google.com/file/d/1iIejOk1Xx782ZydK6dJsBWG_eTqakBoA/view
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due bambiniParticipant
If they didn’t give us the raw points how do we figure this out?
- This reply was modified 8 months ago by due bambini.
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ChiMamaGuest
You have to use the “rubric” or key that they also provide (different ones for K and 1-8) on the elementary resources cite.
This is one of the rubrics
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1jqth5h7r0XaB9KOa5GJ0UlirWVQ-ISfC/view?usp=drivesdk-
due bambiniParticipant
But I’m adding my classical scores and they are way above the highest scores on the rubric. I’ve tried to figure it out.
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ChiMamaGuest
They didn’t have this last year and this year my child is applying for 1st. I assumed given the rubric K was given points and not percentiles and since cut scores are only shown for Kindergarten I just couldn’t really compare (apples and oranges) but if K was given percentiles I don’t get it either. Even if you use the 1-8 to convert from percentiles to points and then the K rubric to go from points to points out of 300 it still seems like those are far lower cut scores than in the past. Seems like a piece of the puzzle is missing if you are applying for K. Maybe reach out to OAE to understand?
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cbKeymaster
Editing my comment as I later saw a mention of this in the training deck to say that “standard Scores are used in determining point total for Kinder applicants”. Based on this, I think you can convert cut scores to standard scores using this formula: =160-((300-
)/2.5) I played around with this in excel and the percentiles ended up making sense with past years. Will try to post it below.
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chimomssGuest
Kindergarten
Tier 4
Reading 99.6
Math 99.8
RGC 122offered #1 Skinner North.
My kid is currently in British South loop and we love the school. Any thoughts on which one to choose?
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AliaLaliaParticipant
When people are posting their reading and math scores, you’re posting the percentile, correct?
Mine is entering K:
Reading 77
Math 76
RGC 136Waitlisted tier 4 for bell, Edison, and Decatur
Anyone know how likely bell and Edison wait lists are to move for tier 4?
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ChiMamaGuest
136 converts to 240. Looks like the tier 4 cut scores are 250 (standard score 140) for bell and 245 (standard score 138) for Edison. So seems like you’d be near the top of the waitlist. But you never know. Some years (from data I’ve seen on here previous years) people below the round 1 cut get an offer and sometimes not. So frustratingly hard to predict.
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RebeccaGuest
My daughter was tier 4, score 133 last year and she was the last student to NOT get into Edison. (I know because my son is there and had communications with other sibling parents.) The last kindergartener in was tier 4 with a 134, and she started the 2nd week of school.
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Happymomof1Guest
For those with offers from Bronzeville, we have a second grader there, and we absolutely love it! Our kiddo always has fun learning there and the teachers are awesome. She especially loves the “essential” classes (PE, art, Spanish, and music with a Golden Apple recipient). We like that instead of spending the entire day with one teacher, students spend half the day in either STEM or humanities and then switch. They also have lockers in the hallway, so it reminds me of a mini-high school with moving from one classroom to the next. Our kiddo is also in chess club, and there are plenty of extracurricular and after-school care options. The administration is also great and really listens to parents. The only issue we have encountered is with the case manager. She seems like she genuinely cares about students, but she is new and does not always seem to know the best way to go about things. So, you might have to be persistent if your child needs an IEP or 504.
Let me know if you have any other questions!
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RKT24Participant
Hi HappyMomof1!
We have a rising 2nd grader with a score 0f 96/96 and will be applying to BCS as soon as the waitlist opens. Pending we have any shot, I would love to talk to you if you are willing to share more. It seems like such a well rounded, intentional school and we are crossing our fingers we have a shot. I don’t see any tours listed so I emailed the principal in the event she is open to us touring with these classical scores. Thanks for the posting your experience-it sounds like your family is happy there!
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Mama BearGuest
Tier 4 entering kinder
Classical scores
Reading 153 (99.9 percentile)
Math 160 (99.99 percentile)Rgc 101
Offered skinner north
We did prepare him for rgc but seems like his rgc scores prove to us he’s more cut out for classical schools. Our offers for choice school weren’t great either so we accepted Skinner North.
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SeeSawGuest
Tier 4
K
Math and Reading > 99Offered Skinner North
We have been waitlisted (high#) at the choice schools we applied to.
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GGKGuest
1st grade
RGC 141
Offered McPherson (2nd choice). First choice was Bell. Anyone get a 1st grade offer for Bell, or know if any spots will become available? Debating whether to accept McPherson or take a chance on the Bell waitlist.
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RosieGuest
Because you have an offer from McPherson, you’re officially not on the Bell waitlist. I would first call Bell and see where on the waitlist you might be with the RCG 141 score. If Bell doesn’t have the RGC numbers, then your next try would be to call or email the CPS Office of Access and Enrollment to see if they can give you an answer.
I believe last year, Bell’s 1st grade entry had 2 spots open up. On the flipside, I know McPherson’s 1st grade program had a couple of openings up to the start of the school year. So if you’re high on the Bell waitlist (maybe top 3), it may be worth a chance to decline McPherson’s offer and go on the Bell waitlist for Round 2 and wait to see how the Bell waitlist plays out. I also have friends at McPherson 1st grade RGC and they love the teacher there. Hope that helps!
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GGKGuest
Thanks for the tips – I will try that!
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ParentneedsomehelpGuest
Posting my kids’ results:
Daughter incoming 3rd grader, just 2 months shy of being 7 years old
Reading 71 percentile
Math 81 percentile
Gifted 149
Offered with Lentart gifted program,Son incoming K, 4 and 6 months old, started k program last September and has improved significantly since the exam.
Reading 90
Math 56
Gift 105
Offered with McDade selective programAny advice would be appreciated, should we accept the offers? Or retake the assessment this year. I feel both my daughter and son were not performing at their true capabilities (none of them were prepared, we wanted them to have experience when we decided to let them take the test)
Thank you in advance!
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ParentneedsomehelpGuest
Adding their tier = tier 4
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cbKeymaster
Hi Parentneedsomehelp,
I guess accepting the offers comes down to where you think the kids would best thrive and whether you can handle the commutes of having them in two different schools.
Your daughter’s RGC score of 149 is extremely high. On a non-entry year it’s a question of where seats are available, but that scores is going to very competitive no matter which school you are applying to.With your son’s offer for K, if you are happy with the offer, there is value in taking it. There are the most seats available at K, so that is when you have the best chance getting into a school (exception are the 2 first grade entry RGCs).
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Momto3Guest
We absolutely love McDade! I have a daughter in K there and I have been blown away. I wasn’t sure what to except and every expectation has been exceeded. Happy to talk if you want to know more. I also have a 5th grade son at the RGC at Pritzker and a son who is #1 on the waitlist at McDade and Poe for 3rd. Does anyone know when the waitlists start offering spots? Is it as soon as someone withdrawals or after the deadline? Thanks!
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hnleeGuest
How has it been for you at Pritzker? We just accepted an offer for fourth grade at Pritzker RGC.
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VeraGuest
Hi – @Parentneedsomehelp. Is your daughter still 6 but going to 3rd grade with an offer to Lenart? What are you thinking about moving forward? My daughter is 2nd on the waitlist for Lenart as one of the schools we applied so was wondering what your thoughts are.
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AnneGuest
Hi all, first of all, I was blocked from this website and could not post, so if someone has the same issue, please contact support email and they will unblock you.
My kid has tested 99/98 on classical test and is currently waitlisted 6th for non-entry grade at Skinner North. Does anyone think there is a chance? Since tiers do not matter, I assume only score does.
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RKT24Participant
hi @anne
I feel your excitement/wonder about this! Last year, my kiddo scored a 99/99 for 1st and on SN waitlist. We maybe moved 1-2 spots. It was really disappointing and I know non entry years are so hard…really sending positive thoughts your way. I think this forum helps to manage expectations (at times)…it least it gives me something to search when I have all these questions! Good luck!
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AnneGuest
Wow. So your kid did not get in to 1 grade at SN with 99/99 last year?
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AnneGuest
Did you know where he was in waitlist and how many spots were available? They did not disclose this information last year, only this year.
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RKT24Participant
Hi Anne,
I know that my kiddo was under 10 toward the end of the summer but don’t know the exact number throughout the summer so I’m not sure where my kid started on the list. I got the sense that the list did not move much at all given it was a non entry year, but of course don’t know that for 100% certainty. I’m sending positive vibes your way, hopefully with numbers this year expectations can be managed a bit more.
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AnneGuest
Thanks for the reply. I agree there is more transparency now and hopefully we will see the movement in waitlist. How did you find out last year where your kid was in line? I tried calling SN multiple times and I always got a voicemail and never was able to reach anyone.
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LSmithCGuest
This forum is helpful.
Does anyone know why I cannot see the percentile scores?-
cbKeymaster
Are you asking why you cannot see Classical percentile scores? In past years, those scores were only shown for K entry if you ranked a Classical school. For grades 1 and above, your child would have needed to register for a Classical exam specifically to see the scores.
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FAIZANGuest
Hi All,
Grade 1, Tier 3
RGC- Non-Verbal Score: 125
RGC- Verbal Score: 115
Regional Gifted Center Composite Score: 123Offered Beaubien Regional Gifted Center
Does anyone know how composite scores are calculated?Also, does anyone have an idea about the Beaubien Regional Gifted Center? The great school rating is 7/10. My neighborhood school where my son attends Kindergarten also has a 7/10 great school rating.
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ChiMamaGuest
@Faizan
Regarding composite scores. In the past I don’t think they provided the separate verbal and non-verbal scores. The composite is not a pure average. Often (though not always) the subscales are similar to each other. In this case the Composite may actually be slightly higher than either subscale. The composite looks at how a child performed on the whole test compared to other kids their age (if this test is similar to IQ tests) from large samples. The subscales (verbal and non-verbal) just look at the parts of the test that are non-verbal and parts that are verbal. Each of those parts is compared to how others of the same age perform. So for instance, your child performed better, relative to other kids their age, on non-verbal than they did on verbal. It represents a particular strength for your child. -
ChiMamaGuest
@Faizan My child also got an offer to Beaubien for first grade!
I don’t know a lot about it but I searched “Beaubien” on this forum and saw it described only positively. They said it was a “hidden gem”. I was able to talk to a current parent today who had only great things to say as well. Their website has a lot of information and I was encouraged to reach out to the program directly which I will do. It’s hard to see academic performance at Beaubien and other RGC’s housed in neighborhood programs because the whole school is evaluated together. There seems to be an emphasis on projects and logic and critical thinking that seems different from our current neighborhood school. The school locator information shows some good 5 essentials info and on the 5 essentials website you can find specific info for any CPS school. Here is Beaubien’s
https://www.5-essentials.org/cps/5e/2023/s/609796/ -
RebeccaGuest
We accepted an offer to Beaubien for 1st grade for my daughter as well. She just missed being accepted to Edison where my son is last year. I have heard good things about Beaubien from a parent on the tour we attended (her older child is in the options program at Beaubien) and from an Edison parent in my son’s class (her older daughter attends Beaubien). I am keeping my fingers crossed it is a good transition as she loves our neighborhood school. A little worried because the parent I met on the Beaubien tour said they have a lot of homework in the lower grades. Edison has only had optional homework plus spelling words in my son’s first 3 years and he has learned a ton. I am hoping the homework isn’t overwhelming.
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2019To2023Participant
Tier 4, 91/98/134. Waitlist around 15th position for both SN and Bell. Does that mean there is no chance this year?
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SouthSoxParticipant
Kindergarten
Tier 3
Reading 80
Math 88
RGC 128offered #1 Lenart and accepted
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TRHGuest
Hi! My son also received an offer at Lenart Regional Gifted that I think we will accept. Do you live close to the school? We are tier 4 and live in the South Loop so trying to figure out how we’ll get to and from everyday.
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VeraGuest
@TRH – did they receive the offer for kindergarten or another grade?
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TRHGuest
Kindergarten! Are you there, too?
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TRHGuest
Kindergarten! Are you there, too?
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VeraGuest
@TRH – did they receive the offer for kindergarten or another grade?
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TRHGuest
Hi! My son also received an offer at Lenart Regional Gifted that I think we will accept. Do you live close to the school? We are tier 4 and live in the South Loop so trying to figure out how we’ll get to and from everyday.
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AnneGuest
Last year this forum was sooo helpful and so many people posted and had detailed discussions and answered questions. Many people cannot post due to “access denied firewall” message and this is really sad. Can administrators do something to allow people to post easily?
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chicagoschooloptionsKeymaster
This is definitely both sad and frustrating as an administrator because after years of being fairly smooth, for some reason this winter the site security changed. After spring break we will try again to resolve this issue. Thanks for your patience and encouragement because we fully believe this site is extremely valuable as a “for parents, by parents” forum.
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AnneGuest
Looking forward to more discussions after spring break! Thank you for everything you do. Many parents stay sane thanks to this forum and community. 🙂
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ChiMamaGuest
There was a way/place I found where I could “white list” my IP and it resolved the issue in seconds and I didn’t need to contact anyone. Maybe a general post with this information? I agree. It’s very different than in years past. The link is in school forum registration.
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cbKeymaster
Thank you! Adding that information here directly so others see it in case of issues.
If you have trouble logging in, you can try “whitelisting” your IP address by clicking:
If you still have having trouble posting, please fill our out troubleshooting form so that we can work to make this forum as easy to use as possible.
https://forms.gle/kzt8b2QKaeqhZiT46- This reply was modified 8 months ago by cb.
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RosieGuest
That worked for me. Thanks ChiMama and cb!
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RKT24Participant
Hello! Anyone have thoughts about a BCS offer in a non entry year with a 96/96?
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AnneGuest
You should have good chances in the summer if you rank Bronzeville number 1.
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RKT24Participant
@Happymomof1
Hoping you see my post above!
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Happymomof1Guest
Hi! I just saw this. Is there something you would like to know about BCS?
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RKT24Participant
Hi HappyMom!
Yes! Would you be open to chatting offline sometime so I could hear more your kiddo’s experience and yours as a parent? We don’t know anyone at BCS and I am so excited to learn more if it ends up being an option for us. If so, I am trying to figure out a way to put some contact info out here that isn’t my phone/regular email and doesn’t require me getting a burner phone : )
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Happymomof1Guest
I can post a google Meet here. Just let me know when you are available. I can meet now, if you want.
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RKT24Participant
Thanks for being open to this! I found a way to create a temp email address so if you email me at [email protected] we can exchange contact info. So appreciate this.
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Happymomof1Guest
I just sent you an email.
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chimomGuest
RGC: 154
I thought 154 out of 160 for RGC is pretty high, but we are placed at 9th on waitlist for Edison (5th grade).
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BportmomGuest
That is really high. But, it’s very hard to get into the RGC schools as the kids get older (until 7th grade). My kid got into a RGC late in the summer with a score that would have gotten him in no problem if he were applying at an entry year. So, it’s kind of a crapshoot TBH and it depends on the school. But, not to be harsh, I wouldn’t hold your breath with a wait list spot of ninth for a 5th grade entry.
If you’re open to other schools, you would be likelier to get into somewhere like NTA, Lenart, or Keller. Add yourself to the waitlists when they open again.
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chitown22Guest
Posting Academic Center results here since the other thread doesn’t appear to be very active.
557.5, Tier 4
#3 Waitlist Whitney (1st choice)
#5 Waitlist Lane (2nd choice)Do spots ever open up on the Academic Center waitlist? I’m thinking our chances are slim to none.
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TGuest
I asked CPS and was told not to expect any movement from the waitlist. We had the same score, but didn’t get a waitlist number because we were offered Taft. Are you already on the Skinner North waitlist? I heard 25-35% of the kids go to Academic Centers.
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Chitown22Guest
Thanks. That makes sense. It’s good to have that expectation. We are not on the waitlist for SN because we got an offer to Skinner West.
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TGuest
Hi. Can I ask what your score breakdown was? My child’s was 140 non verbal/135 verbal. Just trying to figure out where we would be on the waitlist if we didn’t accept Taft.
I know it doesn’t make a difference, but curious if it was lost on points or was a lottery. It might help my child accept the results better and move on to other choices.
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KarolinaGuest
My daughter got 557.5 ( Tier 4)for academic centers currently waitlisted
#11 for Lane
#8 for Whitney
Her RGC scores
Composite 143
Non verbal 141
Verbal 137
We only took RGC test and originally applied to academic centers but now we are considering elementary gifted schools ( she is in private school currently)
Do you think I will be able to join rolling waitlist that opens May 1st?-
Chitown22Guest
Composite 143
Non-verbal 149
Verbal 125
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WSGuest
How are the composite scores calculated? Are the two RGC scores out of 150?
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KarolinaGuest
My daughter got 557.5 ( Tier 4)for academic centers currently waitlisted
#11 for Lane
#8 for Whitney
Her RGC scores
Composite 143
Non verbal 141
Verbal 137
We only took RGC test and originally applied to academic centers but now we are considering elementary gifted schools ( she is in private school currently)
Do you think I will be able to join rolling waitlist that opens May 1st? -
Nelly RamirezGuest
My daughter got waitlisted for acamdeic centers. Pretty high numbers and can’t find any info on if we have hope or not.
Lane 49
Taft 3-
BrightGuest
I heard from one of the assistant principals at Taft that 15 seats were filled from the waitlist last year.
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BrightGuest
I just received clarification from CPS regarding the waitlist. Let’s say I’m ranked #2 on the waitlist and I’m in tier 3. In that case, I would be #2 on the rolling waitlist for tier 3, and offers are made based on seat availability by tier. Additionally, for selective enrollment programs that rank based on point totals, students with higher point totals joining will also affect their position. If there aren’t two kids in my tier declining an offer, then there wouldn’t be any additional offers in my tier
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Nelly RamirezGuest
Thank you !!!
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Nelly RamirezGuest
My daughter got waitlisted for acamdeic centers. Pretty high numbers and can’t find any info on if we have hope or not.
Lane 49
Taft 3 -
ksGuest
for WY it is slim to none for waitlist to Academic Center. they admit / plan for a certain number, and so few decline it, the waitlist usually does not move at all. [sorry….and best wishes]
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Chitown22Guest
Hi! Thoughts about a Skinner North offer in a non entry year for 7th grade with a 98/98? I imagine there will be some spots as some Skinner North students will move to Academic Centers for 7th grade.
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ksGuest
Yes a lot of SN kids move to ACs [my child is in an AC and has more than 10 SN kids in his class].
There should be spots and the waitlist should move…..
Unless SN has a policy to reduce the # of classes for 7th-8. That I do not know.
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FroggieGuest
Hi Rkt24,
I think it really depends on the kid. Mine is an anxious type and a slow worker and so it’s been challenging in that aspect . Academically it’s very strong. My child benefits from the math acceleration, though the reading acceleration is more of a source of stress. Many of the teachers are young and enthusiastic. As someone else said, they have essentials every day which is great. The parent community is very involved. The emphasis on test scores and competitive/punitive environment is not great emotionally but again it depends on the kid.
In terms of getting a spot I think it probably depends on the grade, for example there are usually several spots in 1st, 4th and 7th and a handful in the other grades but that’s just my uninformed perspective-
RKT24Participant
Hi Froggie-thanks for providing this info-its so helpful to hear how you/your kiddo is experiencing some of these dynamics. You said it a couple of times as well, but it is really about the fit and I appreciate you sharing what that has looked like in some ways for you all. Has it been your experience that there is personalized learning, esp in areas of acceleration and those areas that may be more challenging?
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ORS MamaParticipant
@Froggie Are you able to explain how the accelerations work? Is that for children who are already ahead in certain subjects? Thanks in advance!
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FroggieGuest
In our grade the due dates are still weekly. Basically they need to submit weekly a packet for “classwork” (which is partly done in class and partly at home) and another weekly packet for homework.
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2019To2023Participant
Can anyone help me understand rolling waitlist? Can I add a new program into my kid’s choices when the rolling waitlist opens?
I called a school and they told me that rolling waitlist only consider kids who already list the school in the choices.
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cbKeymaster
Yes, you can add a program for the rolling wait list. The only trick is that you cannot continue to hold an accepted offer at the same time.
If you did not receive an offer, all of your original schools would go automatically to the wait list. You should still have the opportunity to edit/add to those schools, though.
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2019To2023Participant
Thank you. Can you clarify? If I applied for 3 schools, say, SN, Edison, bell. In rolling waiting list window, can I add Skinner West? I called and was told that I cannot. I can only add to waitlist that I applied previously.
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cbKeymaster
You should be able to add any new schools you like in the rolling waiting list period. So, in your example you could add Skinner West. You can still only have 6 selective enrollment options total on the wait list, though.
This is a link to the CPS training deck.
https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1vkTEIAruweTkpqgkoo1V2Wtr4WolWnem9y9krxsPvzc/edit#slide=id.g21139d1ddb1_0_1108See slide 18, specifically. Copying the relevant text below:
–An applicant can be waitlisted for up to 20 choice and 6 selective enrollment programs (per category) at a time.
–An applicant can withdraw from waitlists to add themselves to others.
–To participate, applicants can open their existing application and add programs.- This reply was modified 7 months, 3 weeks ago by cb.
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cbKeymaster
I’m re-reading your message and I think maybe I’m getting the school’s point? The wait list numbers today only reflect those students who listed the school in their initial choices. However, once the rolling wait list opens then wait list numbers can change.
This is indicated in that same slide deck: “Because Selective Enrollment waitlists are resorted every night in descending total point order, applicants can move up OR down the waitlist.”
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FroggieGuest
I’m not sure about personalized learning. My impression is that it’s more of an aspiration than a reality but I don’t know for sure. They do have two interventionists to work with kids who are behind (not sure if that will continue as it might be tied to federal covid money). The assignments and exams are the same for all students. But they are also required to complete a certain number of I-ready lessons per week, and that is personalized based on their I-ready (assessment) results.
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WLooperGuest
For those trying to get into 5th—8th grade, I found data on SN applicants of 247 across the 4 grade levels. However, there’s no data on the number of seats offered listed yet. For 7th and 8th, I think they will not be able to offer seats until the kids who got accepted to an AC make their final decision.
But for 5th and 6th, I’m surprised no offers are listed. Perhaps there are no seats available, which is to be expected. -
cbKeymaster
In case this is helpful to others, I converted the cut scores shared by CPS for K entry to standard scores and then percentiles. Note this is based on the documentation I could find from CPS only, and my best approximation only.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1JbIoUtbWH5ZAqsSKIcq-yrd3ziUhFVKfVPVD9nG0dAw/edit?usp=sharing -
chichiGuest
I wonder if this year’s AC exam was more difficult than last year. Last year, cutoff score for Whitney Young was 585 for Tier 4, but it is 557 for Tier 4 this year. Does anyone know if the exam was difficult or different than last year?
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RCGuest
Last year the AC rubric gave 300 points to exam scores of 150+, and this year only scores of 160 earned 300 points. Could be that that had something to do with it?
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LakshmiGuest
Entering Kindergarten
Tier 3
Classical Reading Standard Score: 110
Classical Math Standard Score: 119
Regional Gifted Center Composite Score: 93
RGC- Non-Verbal Score: 53
RGC- Verbal Score: 38Waitlisted #8 for Decatur and #13 for Skinner North.
Should we wait for the waitlist results or look for other options? Please advice.
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cbKeymaster
There is also the option of adding other classical schools to your wait list options once the wait list opens. If I’m reading right, seems like your scores were higher than tier cut scores for Poe and Sor Juana, and on par with McDade, and then Bronzeville was just a couple points higher.
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Chi mamaGuest
Is that wait-list number for Decatur your wait list number (8) in your tier??? Or overall??
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LakshmiGuest
@Chi mama The waitlist number is for our Tier. It says “8 Tier 3” and “13 Tier 3” for Decature and SN respectively
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Chi mamaGuest
Is that wait-list number for Decatur your wait list number (8) in your tier??? Or overall??
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ksGuest
Those two schools do not move very much [think of how many parents would decline it]
Also your WL # is by Tier so you’d need that number of students from your Tier to decline it – not overall.It’s not impossible and the waitlists do move, often late in the summer, but it’s not that likely either, would advise to have a backup plan
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RoxanaGuest
Hi just curious if the waitlist change for you . We just got our test results I put my son on the list for Decatur . And he is 4 tier 2 on the waitlist .
If there even a chance with being 4th?
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LakshmiGuest
@Roxana The waitlist did move for us but we are still waiting at #3, Tier 3. Just curious did you get an offer?
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PopsGuest
Tier 1
Entering Kindergarten
Classical scores
Reading: 75%
Math: 93 %
Offered and accepted #1 – Bronzeville Classical -
TwinmomGuest
Twin 1:
Tier 3
RGC – 115
non-verbal – 107
verbal – 125
EL – 133Accepted Pulaski RGC
#1 Tier 3 waitlist for BeaubienTwin 2:
Tier 3
RGC – 106
non-verbal – 107
verbal – 103
EL – 113Accepted Pulaski RGC
#9 Tier 3 waitlist for BeaubienAnyone know how much the Beaubien RGC waitlists moved last year?
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VanessaGuest
My son’s results Tier 2 applying to 1st grade
RGC Composite Score: 124
RGC- Non-Verbal Score: 124
RGC- Verbal Score: 119
EL Regional Gifted Score: 132
He got offers from Pulaski, Rogers and Interamerican but we declined hoping to get in Hawthorne #7 or Edison #14. Does scone know how likely is he to get in?-
RCGuest
You can accept one of your offers and stay on the waitlists for Hawthorne and Edison.
Did you test for Classical?
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CPSMommmGuest
You will have pretty much zero chance of getting into Hawthorne and Edison.
Edison 1st grade is apparently full. We are #5 on the waitlist but will be entering to McPherson and Beaubien waitlist. We have friends in McPherson RGC and they have been raving about the first grade teacher there.
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VanessaGuest
Thank you! That adjusts my expectations. Does anyone have any feedback on Rogers Magnet or Pulaski gifted program?
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ChiMamaGuest
Another thought would be adding to Beaubien waitlist as it is first grade entry and the scores are above the cut so if someone declines you’d have a good shot. It might be further away then you want though given the other schools you mentioned.
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GGKGuest
@CPSMommm What was your child’s RGC score? I’m curious since you’re pretty high up on the Edison waitlist.
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Hayden SmithGuest
Hi, Chicago Parents! I’m a local high school senior in AP Research conducting research concerning parental school choice in CPS. If you had a student in grades 9-12 in the 2022-2023 school year, I would greatly appreciate you filling out this completely anonymous short survey – https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScCVqRyhQ4AqEijmnK6gTuI-TTPI8AX_xRvBAIfediJAbO_2g/viewform?usp=sf_link. Thank you for your help!
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ORS MamaParticipant
Are any parents of incoming kindergartners that accepted Bronzeville Classical interested in meeting up before the school year starts? We do not know any families that are starting there and I think it would be nice if my son knew at least one person on his first day!
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jazzmanGuest
Check with Bronzeville Classical School about new incoming students they have a strong parent committee to welcome new families.
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FroggieGuest
@ORSMama, regarding “acceleration” I just meant that all the work is 1 grade ahead— I think this is true for all classical schools. So for example, in 3rd grade everyone is doing a 4th grade math and reading curriculum. There’s not any differentiation as far as I’m aware, except for the content of the I-ready lessons.
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BportmomGuest
Some anecdata about my kid’s school (NTA). For their non-entry year (3rd grade) around 3-4 students left the program between 2nd and 3rd grade. So, that opened 2-3 spots for new kids. Additionally, I know the grade adds 2 spots for 4th grade so I’d expect similar attrition plus the 2 new spots = ~ 5 new students next year for 4th. I would expect the numbers are similar for other grades — except 7th, as I think around half the students (not just, but heavily biased by the, RGC students ) in 6th go on to ACs for 7th.
My guess would be that if you have a non entry year waitlist number of 10/12 or under your odds are pretty good.
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KingHParticipant
Beaubien post!
We were offered a 1st grade seat to the Beaubien RGC. Does anyone here have experience with this program? Seeking info on how long Beaubien has had the program, if the RGC classes feel supported by admin/school as a RGC community, as well as how students are integrated within the whole school. Does 1st grade start with the grade 1 curriculum then accelerate from there? Does 1st grade RGC have a history of taking field trips? What is the overall “feel” for this school for students and families?
Thank you in advance!
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KingHParticipant
note: we’ve already looked into the usual interwebs rabbitholes and FB groups, etc. Just hoping to see what anyone here has experienced!
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ChiMamaGuest
My child was also offered a spot. Did you go to the open house Tuesday? The slide deck on the RCG site has lots of info. I also spoke with a parent of a current student who has really loved it. Good community feel per them. I know there is still some differentiation within a classroom. The options class is split in half for specials and mix with the half of a neighborhood class so they really try to have integration between neighborhood and options and those I talked to thought this went well. Not sure about recent field trips but looks like that something they promote. Not sure year it was established but it’s been around awhile. At bear minimum graduated 8th grade class since 2018 given the info on slides. Our current K teacher has heard good things from students who went there.
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cpsgo2024Guest
Could someone please help me understand how waitlists for selective schools work? Specifically, for a classical school, is there a separate waitlist for each tier? If so, does this mean that a child in tier 4 on the waitlist would not move up if a child from a different tier declines their offer? I remember that in the second round and subsequent rounds, tier placement was not considered. Has this policy been updated? Thank you!
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cpsgo2024Guest
Could someone help me understand how waitlists work? Specifically, for a classical school, is there a separate waitlist for each tier? If so, does this mean that a child in tier 4 on the waitlist would not move up if a child from a different tier declines their offer? My understanding from previous years is that in the second round and subsequent rounds, tier placement was not considered. Has this policy been updated?
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cbGuest
The training deck has this info on Slide 15– “Wait list for entry grade- TIER (1-4) – All eligible applicants who do not receive an initial offer will be placed in the queue for their assigned Tier”
This indicates tier should still be in effect during the wait list stage for entry grade. Imagine this gets complicated quickly with the combination of tier and wait list re-sorting nightly to know a child’s true position. Hopefully that helps a bit.
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MinteyGuest
Not sure if you still need an answer here but for some extra insight, we’re Tier 1 and we’re #1 on the wait list at a couple places (#1 Tier 1) and when I spoke to the schools directly they told me that meant we are first in line over all. I assume this means they go through tier 1’s waitlist and then onto waitlists 2, 3 and 4.
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RCGuest
Schools may offer to Tier 1 first if there are seats available in Tier 1 (or they may see Tier 1 applicants first on their waitlist), but there is no “overall” when it comes to tiered waitlists. Example: If Lenart had 8 rank acceptances and 5 acceptances from Tier 1 and Tier 3, but only 4 acceptances from Tier 2 and Tier 4, they would not be able to make any T1 or T3 offers.
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MinteyGuest
Oh, interesting! And confusing, haha. She must just be a lucky rank/tier combo.
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AnonchimomGuest
Does anyone know how Hawthorne is with homework?
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ZGuest
My daughter is in 7th grade applying to 8th taking the classical exam in a week. Do you guys have any suggestions of what she should study to prepare for the classical exam? I would really appreciate it so any ideas would be great, Thank you.
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Mama2016_2019Guest
Can someone give me insight into what we can reasonably expect? I have a 2nd grader w/ IEP, the youngest kid in his grade (i.e. CPS forcibly promoted him), and I am looking to switch to a different school (currently at neighborhood Onahan). We tested for SEES and selected 20 choice schools.
RGC Composite: 117
Non-Verbal: 118
Verbal: 113He has offers from 5 Choice schools:
Sayre
Rogers
Lorca
Camras
Belmont-CraginNo offers from SEES, waitlisted at our #1 Beaubien (25 General) and the other 3 are too high on the waitlist/too far away (McPherson 27, Bell 76, Edison 83).
Little sister is entering K next year, and both kids were offered Sayre and Camras, and she was separately offered Murphy.
This is my first time doing this, and I have no idea what to expect from the waitlist period.
Our top choice schools that he is waitlisted for with rankings (general) listed before are:
25: Thorp-O
15: Wildwood
18: Disney II
11: Ebinger
5: Norwood Park
1: Prussing
3: Canty
9: Portage ParkEssentially, at this point, I don’t know enough about the schools he has been offered to accept a spot, and the waitlist system is so confusing so I don’t know if he would even stand a chance of getting a spot.
Questions:
1) What does ‘General’ mean next to the Waitlist number? My son’s are all General but my daughter’s are a mix of General and Tier 4.
2) Do you think my 2nd grader (entering 3rd grade 2024/2025) has any chance of being offered a spot at our top choice schools given his current waitlist number?
3) Seeing both kids have been offered a spot at Sayre and Camras, does anyone have input on either of these schools?-
ksGuest
In non entry years, magnet schools use a “general” waitlist – everyone who applied for that grade is on the list. Tier would be for an entry year, and it means that your kid is that Waitlist # only among the other kids of your tier, and lists move separately. There also can be a General list for entry years instead of Tiers, depending on the type of school – for instance if it’s a neighborhood school that you don’t live in boundary for but not a magnet. CPS publishes slides about this, so I’d recommend to refer to those.
How much it’ll move depends on the school, the grade, and the overall demand. At some more popular schools, even a very low waitlist number won’t move, especially in upper grades as people have to leave to vacate those spots. At most schools, the number of kids moving in 2nd grade would only be a couple in each class. However, when schools are making those offers to fill any empty seats, especially at the last minute, people will turn it down, so there can be more significant movement and if it happens, it often occurs in August. Seats can even be offered in the first weeks of school.
Getting siblings into schools together [other than your assigned neighborhood school] in non entry years can be hard. Magnets give sibling preference but only for next year’s application after you’ve got one child enrolled – so this can be a multi year process to get them together. You are right to focus on the schools where you already have offers together, if you want them together.
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CCGuest
Can someone help me understand these scores and the process for academic centers?
Regional Gifted Center Composite Score: 138
RGC- Non-Verbal Score: 138
RGC- Verbal Score: 130
Academic Center Point Total: 545
Tier 4How is the AC point total calculated? Is it weighted a certain way depending on tiers? Or tier just determine the cutoff score?
My child mentioned there was no math and I’ve heard several others report the same thing. How in the world does a selective enrollment test not include math?
Thanks for any help.
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ksGuest
Non verbal score includes Math.
The score is 50% 5th grade report card [300 points is straight A’s in core subjects] and 50% test score. It is the test score x 2 + 300 points as a maximum but if they got grades lower than A’s then there would be a deduction for each one. Did your child get a “B” in something? It appears from the score that perhaps this may have been the case.
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ksGuest
Sorry – update – I was just reading about the new points ruberic and my previous post was wrong
Score was 138 which is worth 245 points. The max points [300] is for a 160 and it interpolates down from there. The straight A’s are worth 300 points.
So 545 is the correct score for a student with all A’s. It has changed formulas since a couple of years ago, as some of the other people posting had stated. The new scoring point totals are posted on CPS website.
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LakshmiGuest
@Chi mama The waitlist number is for our Tier. It says “8 Tier 3” and “13 Tier 3” for Decature and SN respectively.
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Chimama123Guest
I am so new at this, I can’t see where scores are in GoCPS – can someone share where it is? We didn’t get any offers first round and are waitlisted but I can’t find scores – this is for Kindergarten.
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ORS MamaParticipant
@Chimama123 You need to click on Student Details
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Chimom5Participant
If I accepted offer to Selective enrollment for middle school but then decide I want to stay at my child’s magnet school, can I stay at the magnet school or do I need to do gocps all over again?
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RCGuest
If you accept an offer elsewhere, your student forfeits their magnet seat. If you change your mind, you’ll have to join their waitlist and hope for an offer You’ll get placed at the end of the waitlist, so you’ll likely only be able to get back into your current magnet if they have low demand and/or your middle school student has a sibling there.
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chicagoschooloptionsKeymaster
I believe simply accepting an offer in the portal will not put the wheels in motion to unenroll you from your current seat and enroll you in your accepted seat. I do not think you are pulled from a spot until you register your child at the new school and then that starts the process to withdraw from their current school.
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RCGuest
GoCPS is connected to Aspen. If a student accepts a seat at a different school, the system will automatically project them there. There is an affirmation statement that you must agree to when you accept an offer. It says that once your decision is submitted and final, it cannot be changed unless you accept a waitlist offer or decide to enroll at your neighborhood school. Sometimes magnets will try to be flexible and let people change their mind after the fact, but sometimes they can’t (if they fill your seat before you change your mind), and sometimes they won’t.
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chisoccerparentParticipant
Please forgive my ignorance. My 5th grader(applying to 6th) was given General #1 in a waitlist from an RGC and some less promising spots from a few other classical schools and RGC. As of today, they all got disappeared on GoCPS and it just says RW will open 5/1. Here are my questions.
1. Is the waitlist position only going better or at worst staying the same? Or is it ever possibe that new students cut in front of him?
2. What is the purpose of waitlists until yesterday? They never moved since they were announced and it directly moved to RW that is currently hidden. Is the purpose just to give parents the sense of reality and help them set the expection from RW?
Thank you!
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RosieGuest
1. Since you’re #1 on the RGC waitlist (congrats I hope!), it’s unlikely that someone will jump ahead of you since your kid scored so high. But technically, the only way to go is down from #1 (or stay the same). As for the other less promising spots, there is definitely a chance those spots will get worse as there may be a combination of late testers, or those who decide to add their names to the other schools’ rolling waitlists. May also get better if kids withdraw from their waitlists.
2. I’d love to hear if any parents received a SEES offer if they were on the initial waitlist. I feel like you do that it just gives you a sense of where you stand after the first round of testing.
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chisoccerparentParticipant
I see. Thank you for sharing. Hope the late takers wouldn’t impact in the initial RW. He was actually a late taker last year and the test scores were not even published until mid-June as far as I recall. If the timeline remains consistent, probably his positions will only get better until late takers’ test scores are announced.
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ChiMamaGuest
The waitlist position can move down. I believe late test takers are added (even if scores aren’t announced) but even if not people who didn’t initially select that school can add to that waitlist if they took the test in the fall. I hope for you that it doesn’t move down, but it could. I believe the concern and ambiguity since it can move down is why CPS hadn’t published them for SES in prior years.
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chisoccerparentParticipant
Ugh. I see. Now I have a better understanding of how it works. Thank you for the clarification.
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GruffaloGuest
Just curious – is there a way to delete or edit posts here if you didn’t register?
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SEES ParentGuest
The site admin seem pretty helpful, you could maybe contact them and ask, especially if there are personal details you’d like removed.
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SEES ParentGuest
Curious if the waitlist has moved at all, particularly for Academic Centers?
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SmithGuest
We’re currently at a private school (2nd grade) and were looking to have some assessments for our kiddo since their school only has limited assessments (aimsweb) through second grade. Also figured it would be good to see if he would qualify for any SEES or RGC programs. He took the SEES and RGC tests at the end of March/early April and was curious if anyone knew when the scores would be released? the OAE contact said that results would be released before the rolling waitlists open on 5/1.
curious if anyone has details on timing of results for tests taken in the spring.
thanks.
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AnnGuest
I do not know when results for spring will be released, but I am curious how your child was able to take the test after the deadline in the fall. My understanding was that spring SEES/Classical exams are only for those who moved to Chicago after the deadline.
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SmithGuest
not sure how – there was an option when we signed up in the spring to be able to take the test, understanding that the best case would only be the opportunity to join a waitlist.
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SmithGuest
not sure how – there was an option when we signed up in the spring to be able to take the test, understanding that the best case would only be the opportunity to join a waitlist.
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cbGuest
I thought I had read that they changed the process this year to offer very limited testing slots in April for those who did not test in the fall (for any reason).
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chisoccerparentParticipant
Based on my experience last year, the late taker exam result was published after the RW opened and therefore we had to miss the chance to enroll my kid in RW as soon as it opened.
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chisoccerparentParticipant
Hi, finally it is 5/1 and I see something changed as of 10AM like previously grayed-out Rolling Waitlists are now activated and the View Results link that has been disappeared re-appeared. However, View Results shows just the exact same information as what was shown before 4/19 (that is, no movement in my student’s waitlist position). Does it mean that there has really been no change? Or probably it is temporary?
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BportmomGuest
No movement here either for SEES lists… and I think for the choice lists too.
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LakshmiGuest
Yeah, same for me. I was expecting the number to have moved based on accepts/rejects.
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chisoccerparentParticipant
Thank you for checking. Hope it starts moving soon.
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AnnGuest
There will be no changes until tomorrow. In order for waitlists to move (old and new ones), the CPS administrator needs to refresh the page, and based on CPS website guidance, it will be done for the first time on May 2 and then nightly, so stay tuned 🙂
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chisoccerparentParticipant
Thank you for the clarification. Still learning the process. 😀
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RoxanaGuest
Does anyone know when will we get the results from the April selective enrolment test?
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Gabrielle WilliamsGuest
Wondering the same. My daughter tested April 17th. The woman in the testing center told me it takes a month!
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AnneGuest
Waitlists results have been updated as of 10 pm Central.
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chisoccerparentParticipant
I see the waitlist has been updated and my student’s position (non-entering year) did not move much. They have been General #1 on the waitlist for Beaubien RGC (Initial Selection) and I added Pritzker RGC today (Rolling Waitlist) which was just updated as General #1. Do you know which one will be priority? We have thought to accept the Beaubien offer (I know they have an opening based on the email communication) but if Pritzker has an opening, which one do we receive? Also, any comparison between the two schools? We have to suffer from traffic either way and so a school with better/competitive curriculum would be ideal.
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RCGuest
If both schools have openings, then you’ll get an offer to whichever school makes the offer first. All waitlist offers are made directly by schools, so if you can be made an offer to multiple selective programs at once, which offer you get is entirely determined by which school went in to make the offer first.
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chisoccerparentParticipant
Oh, I see. Thank you so much for the explanation!
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cbKeymaster
I’m almost certain all offers will need to come from Office of Access and Enrollment (OAE) even during the wait list period. And, for selective enrollment, the same rules will apply were you can only receive one offer at a time. The individual school absolutely may also get involved as far as sending a welcome email and offering to answer questions, but the offer itself needs to come from OAE.
As for order of offers, it is going to be the first school that you match with, so makes sense to put schools in your order of preference.
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RCGuest
This is incorrect. All waitlist offers are made by schools. OAE only puts out initial offers.
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RosieGuest
I remember my daughter received a waitlist offer from a Choice school directly from the school back in Kindergarten. Though, the offer to accept still officially went through the gocpsresults.cps.edu website after I received the informal offer from the school.
However, for her current RGC program, this is what the RGC coordinator replied back when I had a similar question last year:
“Thank you for inquiring about the Regional Gifted Center. All placement for RGC is completed through the Office of Enrollment through the Chicago Public Schools.”
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cbKeymaster
Thank you, this aligns with what I understand. All selective enrollment offers HAVE to come from OAE, whether regular or wait list. The school never sees individual student test scores by design, so the school would not have the ability to make SEES offers.
For the RGC my child attends, this centralized admission is actually helpful. It takes the pressure off the principal and the RGC Coordinator, and takes away any consideration of preferential treatment. So I’m grateful for the role OAE plays here!
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RCGuest
OAE maintains the waitlists themselves and you’re correct that schools don’t see scores, but schools do actually extend all waitlist offers themselves. This has only been the case since they moved from “Round 2” to a rolling waitlist process, though.
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RosieGuest
Looking through my emails last year with the RGC school and the OAE, this might technically be correct. The school did extend the offer through the OAE. This was the unofficial email sent by OAE when we received the offer:
“We just wanted to follow up to let you know that the RGC program did extend an offer for their Gifted program this morning. The offer is now available in your account, and it will expire in 2 business days.”
We never received an email directly from the RGC school; all communication for the offer was done through the OAE. I assume that the SEES school tells the OAE to offer a spot to the next student on top of the waitlist when they’re ready to fill the next spot.
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cbKeymaster
That makes sense. I think the key thing going back to the original poster’s question is that you can only “hold” one SEES offer at once. So, best to rank your wait list schools in your order of preference.
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RCGuest
There’s no option to rank programs via the rolling waitlist though. You can join a waitlist, but you can’t rank it. You can only rank programs in the initial round.
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RCGuest
I think the offers are still put out by the schools, but not all schools directly notify families when a waitlist offer is made. Telling OAE to make the offer would unnecessarily complicate the process.
Plus before the waitlist opened, GoCPS had a banner up that said something like “ES admin will be able to make offers beginning on 5/2” and that language suggests waitlist offers are extended by schools, not OAE.
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CammyGuest
Hi! Anyone seeing any movement on Skinner West’s classical program waitlist? We were initially waitlisted #2, Tier 4 (no change yet). We removed our daughter from Skinner North waitlist (she was also #2, tier 4 there), so people should see movement there.
Reading: 93%
Math: 99%-
AnnGuest
What grade is this for? We do not see any change in SN waitlist, and I have just enlisted my son to SW waitlist 2 grade entry and it says “pending”.
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CammyGuest
I should have mentioned this is for kindergarten! 🙂
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LakshmiGuest
What tier are you in? My daughters number moved 2 up for skinner and 1 up for SN. We are Tier 3, applying for Kindergarten.
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CammyGuest
We’re Tier 4.
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RosalinaGuest
Hi,
Has there been any movement in waitlist for skinner north, skinner west and Edison for first grade?
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DaddyGuest
Hi,
Can someone share the possibility of my son getting into Skinner North (Waitlist: 4) and Skinner West(Waitlist: 1)
Tier: Tier 4
Classical Reading Percentile: 97
Classical Reading Standard Score: 230
Classical Math Percentile: 99
Classical Math Standard Score: 240Thanks
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DaddyGuest
He is applying for 4th grade
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AnnGuest
Tiers do not matter in non-entry grades. Your son will have a good chance with SW but unlikely with SN. But who knows – good luck!
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EveGuest
I called SN today to inquiry any available spot for the upcoming 4th grade, they said there’s none. My kiddo is waitlisted on the 10th. I guess there’s no chance for us.
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RajGuest
Yes, last year we had two non-entry year kids and they both tested 99/97 and 99/98 and I called SN even in September again and no offers were made. Lesson learned – if you are waitlisted there even in top 5, most likely you will not get an offer and it is better to accept an alternative classical offer. Program is identical everywhere. We are now waiting for Bronzeville as it is a truly remarkable program and it is getting harder to get spots there. Decatur is like SN is completely full we were told 😒
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EveGuest
That is very helpful. Thanks for sharing your experience. We are hoping to get into either Beaubien or Pritzker, both of which are ranked less than #10 on the waitlist, with a 143 RGC score. Let’s keep our fingers crossed!
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RCGuest
Schools usually offer at least 3 spots for 4th grade because the class size cap increases from 28 to 31 that year. It’s possible that whoever you talked to isn’t involved in making offers and may have provided incorrect information. I’d keep an eye on your waitlist number and see if it moves.
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ESGuest
That was in the past. Per CTU contract class size is limited at 30 which is easy to control at SEES. SEES no longer offer spots beyond 30 in higher grades and the number is at 26-28 in lower grades.
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RCGuest
I have a kid at one of the Gifted SEES and their class size for grades K-3 is 28 and for grades 4+ is 31 (sometimes 7th/8th is a little smaller if they can’t recoup all the kids they lose to ACs, but they usually do).
CTU class size limits here: https://www.ctulocal1.org/rights/concerns/class-size/
Obviously I can’t speak for all SEES — maybe some only let their class sizes go up to 30 — but even if SN is only going from 28 to 30 kids in 4th, since they run 2 classrooms per grade, that should be at least 4 open seats.
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RannyGuest
My kid tested 99/99 last year and did not get a seat and we regret we did not accept other classical school offers. We called SN and SW and soecifically asked about class sizes since we also thought additional seats will be opened for 4+ grades. They were clear that they do not increase their class sizes due to various reasons, including funding. One of our friends at SN said that now if there is extra seat they like to use that budget allocation for extra specials such as music, Spanish etc. because many parents are complaining about strong academics, but lack of or bad quality of other specials.
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RCGuest
I’d still advise anyone on here to gauge things based on their waitlist number, not anything else. To the poster whose child is #4 on the SN waitlist, I’m curious if that was his initial waitlist number, or if it’s changed at all since 5/1.
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LspGuest
Our position dropped from 12th (Friday) to 10th (today, 05/06) on waitlist for 2nd Grade.
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AnnGuest
What was your kiddo’s score if you do not mind me asking? We were waitlisted 6th, but did not move closer yet… And this is with 99/98… I was told they are full, so we waitlisted our kiddo to Decatur and he is waitlisted 4th there.
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BportmomGuest
My kid’s SEES for sure adds two spots for 4th grade; not sure what the total number ends up becoming. Perhaps there are no spots because they were already accepted back in April.
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DaddyGuest
Grade applying: 4th
Here is an update to share as of today:
Skinner North : 1st preference , Initial waitlist (8th), Rolling waitlist dropped from 4th > 3rd
Skinner West : 2nd preference, Initial waitlist (1st), Rolling waiting 1st , offered yesterdayGood luck everyone.
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LMomGuest
Are there any parents here with a child in the current Bell RGC 1st grade program? We are #1 on the 2nd grade entry waitlist for the Bell RGC program, but we were just offered a spot in the Edison RGC program. Our heart was set on Bell, but we know that Edison is a great program too. We know that one spot was already offered and accepted at Bell. If there are any current 1st grade Bell RGC parents on here, do you have any insider information if anyone else might be leaving the class? Thanks for any advice!
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RajGuest
Congrats on being offered Edison spot! This is amazing! I would not even hesitate… Do you mind sharing what your kiddo’s RGC score is to be waitlisted so high? Thanks and congrats again!
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LMomGuest
Thanks! My kid’s RGC score was 153.
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RebeccaGuest
Not sure if you took the spot but my son is a second grader at Edison and we love it there! It is a hike for us and we are so missing his bus from K and 1st grade, but we won’t move him. He has learned so so so much there! The families are great in his class. The small school size makes it such a close knit group, even with kids spread out. Our daughter started at our neighborhood school this year which has 3 classes/grade and it has been so much harder to meet other parents, even though we all live close to one another. We are very happy with Edison overall, and the K-2 teachers thus far. 🙂
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BrightGuest
Based on past postings, I’ve learned that Lane and Whitney typically don’t extend offers from the waitlist. However, I’m curious if the process is the same this year. Has anyone received an offer after the initial round?
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BrightGuest
I meant the Academic center.
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CPSFamGuest
The Coonley SEES waitlist is now moving.
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AnneGuest
We applied to Decatur for 6th grade. We moved on the waitlist from 12th, to 9th to 8th.
Is there a lot of movement in 6th grade?
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RajGuest
I heard that some kids from other classical schools are just taking tests to see where they are and whether they are staying competitive and can get offers from other classical schools. That being said, once they get good results, they either remove themselves from waitlists or just decline offers since not many kids and their parents want to transfer in middle school or even beyond 1 grade.
We have not seen much movement in K-2 grades in the past, but we definitely see more movement in 3+ grade entry. Also, if before everyone was raving about SN, SW and Decatur only, now other schools such as Bronzeville are getting ranked high, there is more funding per student there, and many students want to go there. Same with RGCs – look at Keller and Lenart ratings now, amazing! And other programs such as McPherson, Pritzker, Morton and Beaubien are well ranked and kids/parents love it there.
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RajGuest
What is your kid’s score for classical entry if you do not mind me asking?
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AnneGuest
Tier 3
Reading 96
Math 94
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RKT24Participant
Hello! For those who have gotten offers (Both SEES and Choice), are you finding Go CPS is getting down to #1 or are you getting offers/notifications from schools when your Wl # is above 1? In past years, we have gotten offers when our number was above 1 (sometimes far above it) and wondering if it will be the same this year. Thanks!
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RCGuest
That can happen if schools are making lots of offers at once. Schools usually have more than 1 seat to fill, at least to start with. If a school is putting out something like 20 offers in a single day, you may see your waitlist number only get as low as 20 before an offer is made.
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RoxanaGuest
Hi
My kid is entering Kinder, We did a test in early April, but not sure when we will get the results.
We didn’t get a chance to register in fall, so we used the rolling waiting list.
So far we received Lorca offer ( 15 general on waitlist) refused
North river (2 general ) offer , refused
Stone ( 1 tier 2) accepted for now.
I’m trying to figure out if he will have any chance on the other waitlists that we are on.
Haugan 12 general, Henry 1 general. Hibbard 32 General, Jamieson 36 general. Palmer 37 General, Solomon 35 general. thorp 14 tier 2.
the rest I’m pretty sure there are way to high to even be considered, Beaubien 158 general. Disney 46 tier 2, gray 48 general, Hawthorne 42 tier 2 Peterson 87 general.
If anyone would also have any info on Stone would be greatly appreciated. -
DaddyGuest
Hello,
Is it possible to receive an offer from a higher-preferred school after accepting an offer from a lower-preferred school? For example, if Skinner North is your first preference (waiting list) and Skinner West is your second preference (offered and accepted).
Please share the CPS policy if anyone knows.
Thanks
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RCGuest
If you have accepted a Gifted/Classical offer, you cannot receive an offer to a different Gifted/Classical program.
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RCGuest
Adding that if you have an open or accepted SW Classical offer, you are no longer on SN’s waitlist. You would have to decline the SW offer and manually rejoin the SN waitlist if you wanted a chance at an offer there.
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ChicagoDadGuest
Looks like rolling waitlist no longer moves. Maybe all spots are filled now.
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LakshmiGuest
Yeah it hasn’t moved for my daughter after Day 2 of the process. I don’t really know what to expect and if it is worth waiting.
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RannyGuest
Based on our experience and experience of friends, better to take what is available now as there is no guarantee a spot will be opened and also no guarantee your kiddo will do better on a test next year. All classical schools are based on the same program so you will not lose anyway.
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MinteyGuest
We are currently #1 on the kindergarten waitlist at both Lenart and Poe, what do you think our chances of getting an offer before next year are?
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RannyGuest
You have good chances for those schools! We are waiting for Lenart and Keller as well. These schools are much better in many ways than Edison, and we have friends who just transferred to Keller from Edison.
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MinteyGuest
We were offered Edison but said no thank you and decided to wait instead. I hope it works out!
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KMGuest
Hello, we applied for 2nd grade, wait-list at SW from #3 to #1.
Do they open more seats or are people removing themselves from the wait-list?
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KMGuest
Hello, we applied for 2nd grade, wait-list at SW from #3 to #1.
Do they open more seats or are people removing themselves from the wait-list?
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Gabrielle WilliamsGuest
Does anyone know how long it takes to get results back? My daughter took her test April 17th, 2024. No one can tell us even an idea of when they will need posted
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RCGuest
Last year spring test scores were posted around the middle of June. This year I think the testing window was slightly earlier, so maybe around the end of the end of the month or early June?
It’s been less than a month since you tested, so not surprising not to have scores yet.
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ChicagoDadGuest
Will you get call from school if you are waitlist #1? Or when the school call you, you no longer on the waitlist?
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CPSFamGuest
We accepted a spot for Coonley’s RGC. CPS called and we received an email to check the Go CPS website to accept or decline. We’ve not had any contact with the school. It all came through CPS.
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LamomGuest
We accepted an upper year spot at Bell and it was the same, no contact with the school.
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ChicagoDadGuest
Understood. But when you receive the call, what’s your status on the CPS website? Is it showing you are on waitlist #1? Or something else?
I am thinking about if we are going to recieve call very soon since we are currently #1 on the waitlist.
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CPSFamGuest
We dropped to #2 and that’s where it continues to stay even as we have accepted the spot.
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LamomGuest
We are still showing as general wait list #2 after accepting.
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JRosenGuest
We applied for 2nd grade and waitlist number has gone up for Skinner RGC from 2 to 3…is that because it’s a general waitlist? Anyone else encountered something similar?
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LMKGuest
Hello. Can you please clarify? Are you talking about SN Classical or SW Classical? What was your child’s score?
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ShellGuest
@JRosen so are you saying you were waitlisted #2 and now is #3? It could possibly be someone with a higher test score than yours joined the waitlist for 2nd grade at Skinner
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LMKGuest
Yes, this is right. Some people are just trying to see where they are and they are adding themselves to see where they are on the waitlist with higher scores. We have been playing this game as well, but I must say that usually movement stops by the end of May and it is better to take whatever is available rather than waiting for something that may not come your way. It is very rare that spots open in the summer, and so if you have an opportunity (if you are #1-2 on the waitlist), better take that chance and accept whatever is available! Spring results will be released soon and you may also be lower on the list in a week or two… We made this mistake with two kids and now regret it because we thought the summer could give us a miracle, but it did not. We should have taken spots that were available in May.
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CPLGuest
For those who have accepted a waitlist offer from a SEES school for a non-entry year, has the school directly contacted you for any registration instructions? Or do we wait until the end of the school year. Thanks!
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Bill_G9910Guest
Skinner North is a great place with a really good community. Your kids will have exceptional classmates and families that care about academics. There are exceptions as you would expect since most kids test in as Kindergarteners and things can change.
The classical school curriculum is probably similar across schools. I would think the big differences are the classmates and families. I am always so pleasantly surprised when I interact with my kid’s friends while carpooling or chaperoning field trips. When my daughter tested in, she had 99/98 and 160 rgc. The school requires consistent effort on academics, so fit is something you must consider for your child. My child is exceptionally bright and still had an adjustment period, which was about the consistent effort rather than anything conceptually challenging. Even then, I’m so very glad we moved her from the neighborhood school, which was good. But SN is a collection of some of the most gifted grade school students from a big US city…there’s only so many schools like that in this country.
One big downside is the lack of athletic teams due to insufficient student commitment. Unclear if this is driven by lack of student interest or logistical issues for families commuting from all over the city. It is a missed opportunity to further develop school pride.
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FirstRodeoParticipant
I didn’t receive a call or email, but last night when I checked my GoCPS account, it showed my kiddo moved from the waitlist to offered for McPherson’s RGC for K. We are also #4 tier 4 on waitlist for Bell RGC, but in reading this forum, it sounds like the best thing to do is accept the McPherson offer? Seems like too much of a gamble to decline at wait to see how the chips fall for Bell, though in their most recent LSC notes, it does say that they had not confirmed all of their GoCps spots (school wide). Any recommendations based on previous experience in a similar scenario?
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CPLGuest
Congrats! We were in a similar situation last year with my child for 1st grade entry. We were #1 on the Bell waitlist for the entire summer, but no movement at all. Luckily, McPherson had a spot open up just as school was starting, so we accepted it. Kindergarten waitlist might move slightly different than non-entry years, but #4 Tier 4 at Bell might be a very low percentage in my opinion. I can’t give a review of the McPherson K program since we didn’t go there, but the 1st grade teacher is amazing. My child has thrived with the accelerated program. Hope that helps!
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First RodeoGuest
Thank you and thank you for the insight on McPherson. I have been surprised by how much the Bell waitlist has moved (we were originally number 8) as there are so many accounts of how it does not usually have much movement. But I have also heard many stories like yours where people are #1 on a waitlist for a school and never get an offer. We feel pretty excited that we were able to get an offer to a gifted program that is within a reasonable distance from us so pretty sure we will go for it!
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RCGuest
The waitlist movement at Bell could have less to do with *Bell* making offers and more to do with kids who are high up on Bell’s waitlist receiving offers to other SEES programs they’re waitlisted for and consequently/simultaneously getting withdrawn from Bell’s waitlist.
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cbGuest
Agree with CPL– #4 Tier X is going to be a very low chance with Bell. The reason is that there are also wait lists for each other tier. It’s an assumption, but assuming they already let in the same number of students per tier, that means there are at least 3 students in each tier on the wait list ahead of you, so fair to guess about 12 students on the wait list ahead of you in a 28 seat class. Bell is a popular school, and last year about 80% of offered seats were accepted before the rolling wait list started. Assuming this year is similar, there are likely not that many seat that will be offering in the rolling wait list. The only other option would be to call the school to try to find out how many open seats they expect.
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Pops312Guest
Being #4 on Tier 4 waitlist means 4 students within Tier 4 have to decline the seat. The others tiers have no impact.
Information from the K-8 GoCPS Training
FAQs below:Tier must distribute seats evenly among the four Tiers. A selective enrollment program may have 5 seats each to fill at Tier 1, Tier 2, Tier 3, and Tier 4. 5 initial offers will be made to applicants in each of the 4 Tiers. If all applicants in Tiers 1, 2, and 3 accept their offers, then there will not be any more seats available for waitlisted students in those Tiers. If only 3 applicants in Tier 4 accept their offers, then the school will have 2 more Tier 4 seats it needs to fill, and will only make offers from the Tier 4 waitlist to fill those seats.
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cbGuest
That’s a cleaner way to look at it, thanks!
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ChicagoDadGuest
What’s the likelihood of being tier 4 waitlist #2 at this moment? Not sure if worth waiting
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RannyGuest
We had friends with 99/99 and RGC 150 waiting for SN, Decatur, Bell or Edison and they did not get in last year, so they recommend to take whatever is available as once initial movement of waitlists stops and new spring scores are added, there is a very rare chance for even #1 on waitlists with perfect scores to get in. Our friends went to Keller RGC which is ranked #1 now and they are very happy. It is a decent drive but they organized a car pool with other school parents where they drive from Old Town only once week.
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ESGuest
Received 6th grade offer to Pritzker which we will decline. In case someone is waiting for it, there should be movement.
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RCGuest
Not to pry, but I re-read last year’s rolling waitlist thread recently and noticed you mentioned you received Decatur and Keller offers last year but declined. Is there a particular school you’re interested in? You can withdraw from waitlists if you wouldn’t accept an offer from that program.
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CLGuest
Has anyone been offered a spot to either skinner north or skinner west from the rolling waitlist ?
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RayGuest
We called SN and SW and they said they are full and do not anticipate offers in 1-4 grades. Very rare they would have 1-2 spots open at the end of the summer but no guaranty and they emphasized it happens very rare, so we are hopeful for Decatur, but they are also full as of now… if no offer until June, we probably will consider Bronzeville as well as their ratings and funding have been improving lately.
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CammyGuest
What about for kindergarten?
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RoxanaGuest
Was hoping that someone can provide some inside. We tested late April for both , I just received yesterday classical Scores but no RGC non verbal or verbal or composite or el Regional Gifted scores. Do those come out later? Or due to result he wasn’t tested out?
His result are Reading 58%(103) Math 87%(117) For kindergarten.
Can someone help?
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cbGuest
I’ve never done April testing, so this information may not be accurate. However, for regular fall testing at the kindergarten level, kids are given both the RGC and Classical tests. However, results are only shown for each test if a parent selects at least one RGC and one Classical school from the six schools they choose from.
I’m not familiar with April testing, so unsure if parents even pick six schools with that testing window? If you didn’t pick any schools, imagine the RGC test results are just not available yet.
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RoxanaGuest
CB.
We didn’t participate in fall, so we only got on a rolling waiting listing, got a few offers before the scores were released from the choice. I didn’t have the six school to chose, we just had all schools I believe.
But I don’t know if I can apply to selective enrolment gifted center in order to see the scores? Or just wait a few more days to see those scores?
Cause he was indeed tested for both Registration for Classical School Testing- Selective Enrollment Elementary School, Registration for Regional Gifted Center Testing- Selective Enrollment Elementary Schools as far the cps website is showing me.
But again I’m not sure if maybe the scores were to low to test for gifted? that’s why I put the scores and percentage. Since I’m so new to this I really have no idea how to interpret the scores, I grew up outside the US , where the system is totally different.
I just wanted my son to get tested since a lot of people kept saying that he’s really good at math( doing 2nd grade math). I didn’t prepper him for the test, so everything was new for him.-
cbGuest
Hi Roxana,
Are you able to add yourself to the wait list now? That may be the easiest way to do this.
There are two tests: 1) Classical and 2) Regional Gifted Center (RGC) and the scores for one test don’t influence eligibility for the other.
For Classical, students must score 75 points or greater on both the math and reading portions to be eligible to join a wait list. Your child is eligible for classical wait lists based on scores. However, please note that most seats were given out in March/April, so it is harder to get a seat at the wait list stage.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1jqth5h7r0XaB9KOa5GJ0UlirWVQ-ISfC/viewFor RGC, it’s a totally different test than Classical and 150 points on that test are needed to be eligible for wait list.
Hope that helps clarify. It can be a confusing process.
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RoxanaGuest
CB,
I was able to put myself on waiting list even before. Like I said he got 3 offers, 1 accepted and waiting for O. A Thorpe ( 3 on the waiting list down from 19) before the scores even uploaded. I don’t think the scores that he got from classics influenced anything since there hasn’t been movement at all.
So wait for the RGC test? maybe it’s a few more days? since like I said, I was told that both were on the same time.Thank you for your help.
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cbGuest
Most schools are not selective enrollment. These are called “choice” schools in the system. You can apply for up to 20 and all offers are via lottery. They are not dependent on either of the selective enrollment tests.
That is why you were able to get offers there ahead of the test results being released. Thorpe is a choice school that has a gifted component, but is not considered a selective enrollment school. If you search the forums, people have had positive things to say about the school.
The list of selective enrollment elementary schools is here, FYI:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1MdbEs9BEe8ZL24hEYp4vRu9uw0B-zAnBenVkdgOpvYk/view#gid=2034817099 -
ChiMamaGuest
My friend whose child did spring testing (for first grade not kindergarten) has received both sets of test scores (classical and RGC). So it might make sense to reach out to OAE to see what the situation is regarding your RGC scores. mailto:[email protected]
You can also see the cut scores for each SES program this year to get a sense of what scores got initial offers. I think the links are above earlier in the forum
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LakshmiGuest
Has anyone been offered a spot to either Decatur from the rolling waitlist ? My daughter is 4th in Tier 3. This is our first time in this process, so we aren’t sure if we should wait since it is still May or if we should go with our back up plan.
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LakshmiGuest
Just to be clear, this is for Kindergarten
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LMKGuest
From what we heard and know with our experience with older kids and kids of friends, better to take whatever opportunity is available now. Once spring test results are released and rolling waitlist process movement stops (usually end of May), there is a very slight chance that 1-2 spots will become available throughout the summer. Usually people want to settle and want to know before the summer what their kid is going to do, where they will live, etc. Sometimes people get offers last minute (like last week of August or even first week of September), but of course this is not what families need and want when they plan their life. So I would just suggest to take whatever you have available now and you can always test next year and transfer, but the bottom line is that once results are out and spring results are posted, there is almost no movement in waitlists throughout the summer (we have been following the process for a few years now).
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LakshmiGuest
Thanks for the response. Yeah we definitely don’t want to wait until last minute. We don’t have any offers available at this moment in the schools we want. So I guess we’ll continue to keep an eye; if anything opens up until mid-June which is our personal cut-off for waiting.
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RoxanaGuest
Thank you so much!. Yes i’m hoping he will get in. Thank you again for all your explanations and help.
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SummerGuest
Hey Y’all,
Can you please help me and share how your kids prepared for the kindergarten classical and gifted tests? My niece took the kindergarten test this year and unfortunately scored ineligible for both. My son takes the test next year and I would love to get some tips on how to prepare him at home. Any advice, I would greatly appreciate. Thank you in advance 🙂
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RayGuest
To be honest, you cannot prepare much. You can just teach them abc, numbers, etc. We bought some books from Amazon but we do not think it really made any difference. For RGC they say kids have to like puzzles.
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First RodeoGuest
For what it is worth, we didn’t do anything special to prepare. However, I know some parents do workbooks and that there are specific tutors who you can hire to work with your child. Our mindset was that if our kiddo wasn’t able to score well enough for admittance, then an RGC or classical program might not be the best fit for them long term. In addition to the SEES schools we researched, we also applied to a few choice schools with programs/offerings/resources that we felt good about. That was our alternate plan if our scores were not high enough.
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CPLGuest
That’s a tough question to answer since no one really knows what’s on the tests year after year. I bet 99% of the parents here would say, when they asked their child what was on the test, the child would say “I don’t know”. I secretly think that the test proctors tell the kids to not tell their parents what they tested.
But as for the Classical test, I think you can just read to/with your child, and try to teach them numbers and basic math. For the RGC, I’ve heard various topics like logic questions that mimic the CogAT or NNAT tests; if your child can draw; if your child can count coins or tell time; if your child can remember what the test proctor says… but my child said none of these, and he didn’t remember anything specific. Hope that helps!
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RKT24Participant
I would be curious to hear how/if others Go CPS numbers (both choice and SEES) have moved in the last couple of days. It’s been our experience that at times, Go CPS hasn’t updated regularly and trying to get a sense of how accurate current numbers are.
Thanks in advance.
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FirstRodeoParticipant
If it is helpful for anyone still strategizing about waitlists, the following information was included in the Edison PTO meeting minutes from May 15, 2024.
“K, 2, 3, 4, 5 grade are all full; 1 seat open in 1; half the open seats have been filled in 7th grade; 3 open 8th grade seats.”
Link: https://docs.google.com/document/d/11Ko7yz1KI92YOBz-X72ls-J4Rn3oRppVW7uuyFRod5Y/edit
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ChiSchoolDadGuest
Can someone speak to the value of accepting an RGC offer in a school ranked lower than our current magnet school? We were pre-K at Disney Magnet which our kiddo loves and we were planning to continue there (he was accepted for Kindergarten starting in the fall), but today we received an offer from McPherson RGC. I know Disney is generally considered superior to McPherson, but that’s based on rankings of the general elementary program. How does the RGC there change the equation? Does it mean we should we make the jump?
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CPLGuest
Congrats ChiSchoolDad! That’s a good problem to have. The RGC program at McPherson is much different than the general program, so I wouldn’t make that comparison at all. From what I know of Disney, they have a more rigorous program than nearby neighborhood schools like Blaine or Nettelhorst, but I honestly don’t know if their goal is to teach 1-2 years ahead like a SEES school. If I remember correctly, Disney has accelerated pods for those students who are ahead in Math or Reading, that they may have those students work with the grade above. Disney also has good funding I believe because of their Disney endowment, so they may not be affected by the new CPS funding model (not sure exactly). Other things to consider is distance from your home, school start/end times, afterschool programs if needed, and your kid’s friends and overall happiness, just to name a few. I don’t think there’s a clear winner either way, but you’re definitely in a win-win situation 🙂
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EveGuest
McPherson gifted offers the accelerated class only for reading and math. We declined the offer (above K) because, aside from those two subjects, the gifted class is combined with the neighborhood class.
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BlahbGuest
Just a note that this info about McPherson isn’t correct. For core classes the RGC kids are together. For exploratories or specials, like music and art etc. and lunch and recess, they are in grade level groups with other classes. This is similar to the practice at other schools with both neighborhood and rgcs, like Bell. It allows the kids to have the core classes w rgc kids but also be part of the broader community at the school and make friends outside the same group of kids.
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LMKGuest
Does anyone know when existing students in CPS have to submit their documents to confirm their next year attendance at that school? I am just trying to understand what to expect from the summer waitlist movement because if there is no such deadline to commit, then it is a totally different story and we will expect no movement, but if there is a deadline to commit (e.g. by August 1 everyone has to submit all documents), then I assume if there is no commitment from an existing student, a spot can open and the school has to fill it in based on the rolling waitlist? Not sure if CPS is handling it differently, but I am curious what is the process re: Classical and RGCs here for non-entry grades.
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Pops312Guest
I believe if a seat is accepted, the school cannot release the seat until after school starts. I don’t know how many days the student can be absent before the administration releases the seat and then pulls from the waitlist. However, I have heard of students from previous years being accepted after the first week of school.
Information from the K-8 GoCPS Training
FAQs below:Waitlists will close by the 20th day of school for Selective Enrollment programs, and they will remain open through January 2025 for Choice programs.
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LMKGuest
Thank you. This is exactly my question as to WHEN the seat has to be accepted for non-entry grades. In other words, if someone is finishing a Classical/RGC 2 grade now, when does this student have to submit all applicable forms to be guaranteed a spot in 2024-2025? Does it happen in the summer when the 2023-2024 academic year is over or does it happen while school is still in session (now or some time in May)?
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RCGuest
There’s no paperwork required to retain your seat in a Classical/RGC program. Current students are guaranteed their seat unless they voluntarily withdraw. There’s paperwork required for a school to release a current student, but not the other way around.
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LMKGuest
Thank you, that makes sense now.
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First RodeoGuest
6/5/24 Principal’s Report from Bell has some information about spots offered in both neighborhood and options for 1st grade and up. Sharing in case it is helpful:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/11vF_7EBjMoW1OOZ9txnmTDA9MCoXiOZK/view
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CPLGuest
Thanks First Rodeo! Do you know if the Principal’s Report is usually a monthly report, or end of year report?
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First RodeoGuest
For Bell it looks like one is created for each LSC meeting.
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ChicagoDadGuest
What if I missed the call? Or can there be a case that CPS not call? Will the website show we got an offer anyway? Or we have to go through the call system?
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CPLGuest
I believe you will actually see the offer on the website first. Then CPS will send an automated email and phone call later that day or most likely the next day, giving you 2 business days to respond. You will enter your decision (Accept or Decline) through the website, not through the phone or school directly. Hope that helps!
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ChicagoDadGuest
Thank you so much!
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TRPGuest
So it looks like SEES waitlists stopped moving for us about a month ago. Just for the future, I assume the real movement can happen either right after waitlist process started (and movement continues for 1-2 weeks until people settle on a school) or right before school starts (end of August-early September since some people may take their documents from current schools to transfer to another school). Otherwise seems like waitlists for schools that are high in demand do not move at all in the summer (thinking SN, SW, Decatur, Bell, Edison and Keller).
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LakshmiGuest
Yeah, I agree. I have the same observation for my daughter. Her waitlist hasn’t moved one bit for the last 3-4 weeks.
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ATGuest
Does anyone have experience with Morton School of Excellence? My kid is waitlisted #6 Tier 4 at skinner west, and I just found out that there’s a regional gifted program at Morton. Does anyone know if it’s any good? Is it in a safe enough area? It’s so much closer than any other options (outside of Skinner West) that I’m considering it.
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cbGuest
I posted this last year so wanted to share it again. You can also search for Morton to get a few additional comments.
We are at Morton RGC for 1st grade this year and have been really happy. Small class sizes and really committed and engaged teachers. Incredibly diverse RGC classes, all races represented. Our daughter’s class has a great group of kids and they really encourage each other. Happy to answer more questions.
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ATGuest
Thanks! Super helpful. The area seems like it would be borderline for safety, given it’s on the border of east Garfield park. How has your experience been?
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RCGuest
I don’t have a student at Morton, but I don’t live too far away (West Town) and am semi-familiar with the area. The school is right by the corner of Sacramento, and it covers a stretch that imo has a very “industrial corridor” feeling. It’s right by the Metra railyard and also has Metra tracks right behind it, which basically cut it off from anywhere directly south. Because it’s not a very residential area, there’s not really any action whenever I’ve been around there. I imagine things are busier around drop-off/pick-up, especially considering the proximity to Westinghouse, and to be clear I have no real day-to-day experience when it comes to safety. But on a regular sort of passing by level (both driving and walking) it’s an area that I personally don’t have any safety concerns with.
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cbGuest
Agree with RC. The immediate neighborhood has a pretty industrial feel, especially if you are coming to the school from Sacramento. It is worth driving by the school to assess your comfort level and to get a feel for it. We did have some similar concerns on safety when considering the school, given crime rates in areas near the school. We have not had any issues and the school generally feels like a safe and welcoming place to be. Westinghouse has an earlier dismissal time, so that separates things to some extent. There were a couple times this past year that police were at Westinghouse for different reasons and we would see them there during the Morton dismissal (the schools are just a little over a block apart).
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ATGuest
How does everyone get their kids to their regional gifted or classical schools? Do any of the regional gifted schools have bus transportation?
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cbGuest
CPS used to provide bus transportation, but last year it was not offered due to the bus driver shortage and general budget constraints, as I understand it. There is discussion around bus transportation being available in the upcoming school year, but it has not been guaranteed by CPS. Some schools help in sharing family contact information so carpools can be formed, etc. Otherwise it is a rather imperfect system at the moment, to be honest.
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RKT24Participant
Hello! Are there any McPherson RGC parents that are willing to chat offline? I can post a temporary email address here so we can exchange info. Thanks in advance!
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First RodeoGuest
Not a current McPherson RGC parent but accepted a spot for the incoming kindergarten class. Happy to chat but not sure if I will be able to answer the questions you have.
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RKT24Participant
Thanks for the offer to chat! If it still stands and you feel comfortable, feel free to email me at [email protected] (it’s a generated email address so I don’t have to post my info here).
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MSGuest
Has anyone ever seen this precedent happen? Where Student A is #1 on the waitlist at Skinner North and Decatur, and Student B is #2 on the waitlist at Skinner North and Decatur (random school entries just for the story, same grade levels). Student A gets an offer and accepts a spot at Skinner North, but really wants to go to Decatur because their sibling goes there. And then later, Student B gets an offer and accepts a spot at Decatur, but really wants to go to Skinner North because their sibling goes there. Can Student A and B contact CPS and somehow “trade” their enrollments? (Assuming there was no other student that jumped ahead of Student B during the rolling waitlist period).
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AT. WEST LOOPGuest
Hi –
My child is waitlisted at Skinner West for kindergarten #6 Tier 4. His reading was 95, math 98.
Does anyone have a sense of how likely it is for the waitlist at skinner west to clear up to #6? I ask, because he’s also been accepted at Morton RGC. I’d prefer skinner west, but have to make the decision on Morton now. Any thoughts?
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LP MomGuest
In my experience, it is highly unlikely you will get a spot at this point. It might move 1-2 spots on a waitlist at the most. Also, I recommend calling the school and inquiring with them. They are usually very straight forward with you.
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AT. WEST LOOPGuest
Ok that’s what I was thinking too. I’ll call and check but will probably go with Morton.
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cbGuest
In case you move forward with Morton, sharing the Friends of Morton instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/friendsofmorton/
There are a couple summer play dates coming up. It can be a good way to meet other families new to the school. Best of luck with the decision, I know it is a tough one!
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CammyGuest
Hi! My daughter is waitlist #1 (tier 4) and we haven’t moved all summer unfortunately. Curious what the school said when you called? I’m not too hopeful at this point.
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SriGuest
Same here. #1 for last 3 months. Not too hopeful now.
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yyGuest
We just declined SN 4th grade offer. It should open up to next one on the waitlist.
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TRPGuest
Can you please let us know what original WL# you had at SN and how it changed for you over the summer?
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AlexGuest
Hi, we are at the top of the waiting list for a few classical and gifted schools. We currently reside in the suburbs, but if an offer comes in, we will plan to move to Chicago. The process says you need proof of residency by July 1, but we won’t be moving to the city if we don’t get an offer. If an offer were to come in next week, do we have to move immediately? Or do we have any grace period to find a place and move?
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TRPGuest
I do not think you could do it. Our friends had to show proof of residence as of July 1, and anything coming after that did not count. They ended up staying in suburbs. But it is better to call the CPS office of enrollment and reconfirm.
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AT.WEST LOOPGuest
Alex – I’m surprised to hear that you will move downtown if you get the right school offer. Are you wanting to move downtown but it’s contingent upon getting the right school? Or are you moving downtown specifically for the school?
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TeaGuest
Hello everyone. Curious to know how schools decide if they make offers between the start of the academic year and until Sept 20 for classical and RGC programs. How many days does a kid have to be absent in order for a spot to be available?
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MomofoneGuest
I would think the sept 20th date will be pushed to an additional week since cos started a week late due to the DNC.
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AliaLaliaParticipant
Yeah, it showed us as 3rd on wait list for Edison and 4th for Bell. I guess we’ll see!
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2019To2023Participant
What is your first choice?
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DaniGuest
Hi AliaLalia – curious if you got into Bell or Edison? My kid is just behind yours on the waitlist and wondering if we still have a shot at getting off the waitlist heading towards the end of May.
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RKT24Participant
Hi Froggie-thanks for posting this about Bronzeville. We are wondering if it will be an option for our kiddo (non entry year and 96/96) and so trying to talk with other current parents. Open to sharing how you/your kid(s) have experienced the emphasis on test scores and culture there? Thanks in advance.
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Happymomof1Guest
Hi! Do you know at what grade they go from weekly choice boards to daily homework? My 2nd grader waits until Sunday to do homework, but now I am thinking I need to transition them to working on some every night. Knowing the grade would help me prepare them. Thanks!
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chichiGuest
I wonder if this year’s AC exam was more difficult than last year. Last year, cutoff score for Whitney Young was 585 for Tier 4, but it is 557 for Tier 4 this year. Does anyone know if the exam was difficult or different than last year?
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WSGuest
I noticed the same. Whitney’s rank cutoff score last year was 600. This year the rank cutoff is 572.5. I don’t know where those missing 25+ points went – maybe the missing math sections?
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chichiGuest
Hi WS, I am new to this. Can you please teach me what was the missing math section? (I also do not know what sections were included in the previous years).
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RCGuest
This year the rubric gives 300 points to scores of 160 only, and an exam score of 150 gets 275 points. That’s a 25 point difference. Last year’s rubric gave 300 points to exam scores of 150+ points.
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