2. How does a student get into the program?
The parent or guardian must fill out a Choice student application form and submit it to the school during the open application period(s) the school is accepting applications for the program. Parents can contact the Choice school or DPI to get an application form and find out the school’s open application period(s). Parents will have to prove the child's residency in Milwaukee and their income status. Choice schools must inform parents (a) how many Choice program slots are open by grade level; (b) the date, if necessary, of a lottery to select Choice students if more applications are received than there are Choice slots available; and (c) within 60 days of receiving the student's completed application, whether the child has been accepted into the Choice program. A student can apply to the Choice program at any time during a school’s open application periods.
 
 
3. When are the Choice schools’ open application periods?
Each Choice school decides which of the months listed below it will accept Choice student applications. Applicants are required to submit the Choice application and proof of eligibility only during the open application period(s). An application received outside a school’s designated open application period(s) or not completed (including failure to provide income verification) by the end of the specific application period will be considered as ineligible. Parents are encouraged to apply during the school’s earliest open application period. For a listing of which open application period(s) each school is participating in, please see the list of schools intending to participate in the program which is available on the website at www.dpi.state.wi.us/dpi/dfm/sms/choice.html or can be requested by phone (toll free 888-245-2732).
 
Optional Choice Open Application Periods
Each Choice school decides which of the following months it will accept
Choice student applications.
 
February 1 – February 20
March 1 – March 20
April 1 – April 20
May 1 – May 20
June 1 – June 20
July 1 – July 20
August 1 – August 20
September 1 – September 14
October 1 – October 20
(for 2nd semester participation only)
November 1 – November 20
(for 2nd semester participation only)
December 1 – January 7
(for 2nd semester participation only)
 
4. What information can the private schools use in admitting or denying admission to students into the Choice program?
The only information private schools can use to determine eligibility for the Choice program is the eligibility criteria on the Choice student application form, which is limited to household income and residency. Information about an applicant that a school may not use in the admission process for the Choice program includes but is not limited to an applicant's race, ethnic background, religion, prior test scores, grades or membership in the church parish. Choice schools must accept all eligible Choice applications during each open application period the school is participating in for the 2006-07 school year. The school must, at the end of the application period, have a random drawing to pick the Choice students if there are more eligible Choice applications submitted than slots available.
 
5. What fees are the schools allowed to charge Choice students?
The private school cannot charge Choice program students tuition for instructional purposes. A student in the Choice program can be charged reasonable fees for personal items such as towels, gym clothes or uniforms, or social and extracurricular activities if the activity is not a part of the required curriculum. A Choice student cannot be charged fees for instruction, registration, tuition, books, teacher salaries, buildings, maintenance, equipment, computers, courses credited for graduation, or transportation if required to be provided or reimbursed by MPS.
 
6. Can a school require parents to raise funds or volunteer time?
A school may ask a parent to raise funds for or contribute volunteer time to the school, but cannot require it as a condition of admission or impose any penalties on a parent or child in the Choice program for failure to do that fundraising or volunteer time.
 
7. How does the parent and private school receive state aid payments?
The state issues checks payable to the parent or guardian of a Choice student and sends the checks to the school where the child is enrolled in the Choice program, based on two count dates during the school year. The first two checks (in September and November) are sent to the school where the child is enrolled on the 3rd Friday in September. The second two checks (in February and May) are sent to the school where the child is enrolled on the 2nd Friday in January. The parent or guardian must sign the checks over to the school. The parent or guardian cannot cash the checks.
 
8. How much is the state aid per student in the Choice program and what can the school spend that state aid on?
In the 2006-2007 school year, the state aid for a student enrolled full-time in the Choice program at a particular school (defined as enrolled in the Choice program on both the 3rd Friday in September and the 2nd Friday in January) is estimated to be $6,501 or the private school's operating and debt service cost per student, whichever is less. The private school is required to hire an independent financial auditor to determine the operating and debt service cost per student at the school. (For example, if a school is spending $3,000 per student, after adjustments the school will in the end receive $3,000 per Choice student, but the state aid amount will be $6,501 per student if the school is spending $7,000 per student.) The private school may spend the state aid for any purpose.
 
9. Is transportation available for students in the Choice program?
A private Choice school is not required to provide transportation to Choice students. If a private school notifies MPS of the school's attendance area and the names and addresses of its students for the following school year, in some cases MPS will provide transportation or reimburse parents' transportation costs in part. If MPS is not required to provide transportation for the Choice pupil, and the Choice school chooses to provide transportation, the Choice school may charge the parent or guardian a fee for the service. Parents should check with the Choice school where their child hopes to attend and with MPS to determine what transportation options are available at the school and the cost, if any.
 
10. Is a child in the Choice program at a private religious school required to participate in religious activities or instruction?
No. If a Choice student's parent or guardian submits to the student's teacher or the school's principal a written request that the student be excused from any religious activity, the teacher and school must honor that request.
 
11. Is a private Choice school required to enroll a child with special needs in the Choice program, and to provide the child with whatever services are required to allow the child to learn?
A private school may not discriminate against a child with special educational needs in the admission process for the Choice program. However, as a private school, a Choice school is required to offer only those services to assist students with special needs that it can provide with minor adjustments. Parents should contact the Choice school during the admission process about the services the school is able to provide for their child. Parents should also contact MPS for more information on the services the school district provides to children with special needs who are enrolled in the public schools and the lesser services that MPS provides children with special needs who are enrolled in private schools.
 
12. Are there statutory procedures regarding student suspensions and expulsions that a private Choice school is required to follow?
No. State law does not require private Choice schools to have any procedures in place regarding student suspensions or expulsions. Parents should check with the Choice school they are considering for their child, regarding procedures the school has in place for imposition of or appeal of suspensions or expulsions. Wisconsin public schools, including MPS, must have such procedures in place under Wisconsin Statute sec. 120.13(1). That state law describes actions punishable by suspension or expulsion and allows a pupil or the parent or guardian to appeal a suspension to the school administrator. In addition, expulsions are determined by the school board and may be appealed to the State Superintendent and Circuit Court. Private schools are not required to have such procedures in place. There is no state law prohibiting a public school from enrolling a child who has been expelled from a private Choice school.
 
13. Can a child transfer from the Choice program at one school to the Choice program at another school at any time?
No. A child can transfer from the Choice program at one school to another only during a school’s open application periods and only if the second school has a Choice seat available. If a student transfers during the school year the state aid for the student will be sent to the school where the child is enrolled on the two count dates (3rd Friday in September and 2nd Friday in January). A Choice-eligible child can transfer from the Choice program at one school to the Choice program at another school between school years during open application periods if the second school has a Choice seat available. If there are more applications than available seats, the Choice transfer is not guaranteed a seat at the new Choice school.
 
14. What are the requirements a private Choice school must follow regarding transfer of Choice pupil records to the parent or guardian or to another private or public school?
There is no state law requiring a private school to send pupil records (for any pupil, whether in the Choice program or not) to another public or private school where the pupil may be transferring. There is also no state law requiring a private Choice school to release pupil records to the pupil or the pupil's parent or guardian. If a private school is receiving federal financial assistance, which means federal dollars under the federal pupil records law, the student's parent or guardian (or the student if at least 18 years of age) has the right to inspect and review the student's educational records. On the other hand, under state law all public schools, including MPS, are required to send pupil records to another school district or school (including private Choice schools) within 5 working days of receiving written notice from the pupil or the parent or guardian that the pupil intends to enroll in the other school. The pupil's parent or guardian should check with the private Choice school they are considering for their child to see what procedures the school has in place for transfer and review of pupil records.
 
If you have any questions that are not included here, please call, write or e-mail them to Tricia Collins or Lisa Geraghty, P.O. Box 7841, Madison, WI 53707-7841, 608-266-2853 or toll free 1-888-245-2732 ext. 3, or tricia.collins@dpi.state.wi.us or elisabeth.geraghty@dpi.state.wi.us