A Heritage of Excellence for All Children

We are excited to share that after collaborating with parents and guardians, students, school leaders, educators, and community members, District 15 launched a district-wide plan to increase middle school diversity and equity.  As part of this plan, all district middle schools in District 15 now use an open admissions method, and some applicants have priority for 52% of seats at each school. This means:

• Our schools no longer screen or use applicants’ academic records to evaluate or admit students. If a school has more applicants than available seats, the school will match with applicants by random selection.
• Our schools will give the following applicants an admissions priority for 52% of their seats: students from low-income households (who qualify for the federal free and reduced price lunch program), students in temporary housing, and English Language Learners.

These changes took place for fifth grade students who applied to middle school the fall of 2018. This will not affect 5th grade families' ability to select and rank schools or the way in which they can apply to middle schools.

Sibling Preference Policy

This admissions cycle (admissions for Fall 2020 enrollment) there will be a sibling priority for 5th grade students who have a 6th grade sibling at a D15 middle school; additionally, twins who complete identical applications will receive an offer to the same D15 middle school. Please note, this pilot is for this admissions cycle only, and will be re-evaluated before the next admissions cycle. There is no guarantee there will be a similar priority next year or in any future years. This pilot will not affect the existing District 15 middle school admissions policy: 52 percent of seats in the 6th grade class will continue to be prioritized for students from low-income families, English Language Learners, and students in temporary housing. 

Families who are interested in learning more about this should reach out their elementary school.