Videos provide families with information about how students are assigned to schools in conjunction with the opening of the new Family Enrollment Portal
[Newark, NJ – May 30, 2017] Today, Newark Public Schools (NPS) released a series of short videos created to provide Newark families with information about Newark Enrolls, a common enrollment system designed to meet the needs of students and families across Newark. The videos break down the school match process to display how students are assigned to schools throughout the district.
“We are eager to share these new videos as a part of our on-going effort to improve the resources available for Newark students and families about this process,” said NPS Superintendent Christopher D. Cerf. “As Newark Enrolls moves into its fourth year of implementation, we continue to strengthen the enrollment process while also making improvements to the information we are providing to the Newark community. We believe our new video series will enable students and families to better understand the match process as we remain focused on our larger goal – the continued development of excellent public schools across this city.”
Over the last two years, the NPS enrollment team has partnered with community members to collect feedback and work together to make improvements to Newark Enrolls. One key area the district has focused on is improving the information provided about the process. Each of the three videos is specifically designed to explain key pieces of the enrollment process, and will be featured at district events and across various online media platforms in order to provide additional information to more families and community members. The videos encompass the following subjects:
VIDEO 1: BASIC INFORMATION ABOUT NEWARK ENROLLS [VIEW VIDEO]
The first video in the series allows families to learn about the different pieces of information that are used in order to place students in schools and how that information is prioritized throughout the school enrollment process.
VIDEO 2: NEWARK ENROLLS IN ACTION [VIEW VIDEO]
The second video in the series simulates what the school matching process looks like and what information is prioritized when a family applies to multiple schools.
VIDEO 3: MAGNET SCHOOLS AND OTHER DETAILS [VIEW VIDEO]
The third video provides parents with information about how magnet schools select students and how families can access additional resources.
“We are excited to share these new resources with Newark families,” said NPS Executive Director of Enrollment Gabrielle Ramos. “When families are experiencing Newark Enrolls for the first time, we want to make sure we can explain how this process works in a clear and concise way. We believe these videos will be a vital tool in making the enrollment process easier for parents to understand from the outset, so that families are better equipped to make the best choices for their children on their enrollment application.”
Today’s announcement comes at the conclusion of the citywide spring match process for the 2017–2018 academic year, which served over 12,000 families throughout Newark. The videos also follow a series of recent announcements highlighting improvements and milestones for the program. This past spring, the district made a major shift in enrollment policy to ensure that NPS K-8 schools now give 100% priority to students who live in a particular school’s neighborhood or have a sibling in a certain school.
Additionally, as part of the district’s continued efforts to promote transparency and respond to community feedback, NPS recently announced the creation of a Family Enrollment Portal, providing parents with the ability to directly address many of their enrollment needs online without having to travel to the Family Support Center. Furthermore, the district announced the formation of a Transparency Committee comprised of 11 community members who will review and make recommendations in key areas of the enrollment system and its related policies.
Launched in 2014, the Newark enrollment process was designed to make the school selection process easier for families, create a fairer process to determine which students are accepted into schools, especially when they are in high demand, and level the playing field for harder to serve students. Newark Enrolls was also meant to ensure families have access to high quality school options. In the first three years of this new system, students have made significant gains in reading and math proficiency, and the district has witnessed increased graduation rates. This positive progress has helped NPS make a strong case for the return of local control to the City of Newark.
To view a comprehensive version of all three videos, click here.