Admissions Procedures for Howe Montessori – Sibling Preference Plus Random Lottery Procedures
Open Enrollment Period
Applicants who wish to be enrolled in the Howe School Montessori Program for the following school year must complete the Montessori Application Forms and submit them to the Howe School Office before the application deadline of 4:00 p.m. on April 1.
Dearborn Public Schools strives to allow siblings to attend the same school. Enrollment preference will go to sibling applicants over other applicants as described in the policy below. Sibling applicants are those applicants who have at least one sibling who is enrolled in Howe School for the current school year. For the purpose of enrollment priority, a parent’s children, step-children, adopted children, and foster children are all considered to be each other’s siblings.
The enrollment process for kindergarten is conducted first, and then the enrollment process for grades 1-5. To apply please complete the following forms and return to Howe School Main office by 4:00 p.m. on Monday, April 1, 2024.
This year, if needed, the drawing will be held on April 4. Families will be notified following the drawing and receive information about Kindergarten Round-up and/or Parent Informational Meetings. Late applications will not be accepted until after the initial drawing takes place.
Kindergarten Enrollment
Applicants may complete and submit an Enrollment Application Form during the Open Enrollment period if they will meet the minimum age requirements for kindergarten. If there are fewer applicants than spaces available in the kindergarten, all applicants will be admitted. If not, sibling applicants will be enrolled before other applicants. If there are not enough spaces available in the kindergarten to accommodate all the sibling applicants, a random lottery will resolve conflicts. If there are not enough spaces available in the kindergarten to accommodate all the other applicants, a random lottery will resolve conflicts. Applicants who are not admitted due to space limitations will be placed on a Wait List in the order identified by the lottery.
GRADES 1-5
All current students in grades K thru 4 are permitted to continue in the Montessori program. Any new students would need to submit an application. If there are fewer applicants than spaces available in a grade, all applicants will be admitted. If not, then sibling applicants will be enrolled first and then other applicants. If there are not enough spaces available in a grade to accommodate all the sibling applicants, a random lottery will be used to resolve conflicts. If there are not enough spaces available in a grade to accommodate all the other applicants, a random lottery will be used to resolve conflicts.
When all spaces in a grade are filled, the applicants who were not enrolled are placed on a Wait List in the same order as they were selected in the lottery.
After the Close of Open Enrollment (all grades)
For any grade K thru 5 that has space available after the April drawing, applicants who submit completed Enrollment Application Forms to the Howe School Office will be enrolled on a first-come, first-served basis until the grade is full. Applicants to grades that are full will be added to the bottom of the Wait List for that grade. The Wait List is maintained throughout the school year in case any spaces become available. Openings are offered to applicants on the Wait List in the order they appear on the Wait List. The Wait List is only valid for the following school year. It does not have any influence on the subsequent years’ admissions.