Delay for Aspiring Interdistrict Public School Choice Families and Schools

There’s a problem in paradise. Okay, maybe not, but there’s at least an inconvenient delay at  the NJ’s Interdistrict Public School Choice Program, which allows students to cross district boundaries and attend neighboring schools. The DOE was supposed to release a list of new Choice Schools early in August so both schools and parents could make plans for the 2014-2015 school year.  After all, parents who want their children to enroll are required to submit a Notice of Intent to Participate by December 2nd, a mere two months from now, and they're waiting for a complete list of participating schools.

In addition, aspiring choice schools are waiting to hear whether or not they've received DOE approval.

Currently, 107 schools in New Jersey accept 3,356 students from outside traditional district boundaries.

Instead, this is up on the IPSCP website:

INFORMATION FOR 2014-2015 CHOICE DISTRICTS IS COMING SOON. CURRENT INFORMATION ON CHOICE DISTRICTS IS FOR THE 2013-14 SCHOOL YEAR AND HAS NOT BEEN UPDATED YET.

And last week this email went out to public school administrators who oversee the program in the and  those who hope to join that list:

From: pschoice
Sent: Tuesday, August 20, 2013 11:34 AM
To: pschoice
Subject: Choice 2013-14 information session to be rescheduled

Dear Interdistrict School Choice Administrators,
Due to a delay in the approvals of the new 2014-15 choice districts, we must reschedule the technical assistance/information session scheduled for Aug. 23. As soon we have a new date, we will send out an email announcement.
Regarding the revised student application process, we have done our best to simplify it for families and districts. However, the statute and administrative code have specific requirements with which participants must comply. Parents are required to notify their resident districts if they intend to apply to a choice district. Therefore, those who are registered with their resident district must submit an Intent to Participate form as NOTIFICATION. No confirmation/verification is required. Please note this change on the revised timeline (see attachment).
We appreciate your patience as we prepare for the upcoming application cycle.
Best regards,
Jessani

Jessani Gordon
New Jersey Department of Education
Innovation Office
100 River View Plaza

The reasons for the delay are unclear. Maybe it’s the usual bureaucratic bumps. Maybe it’s budgetary. Maybe it’s political. Parents probably don’t care: they’d just like the list of newly-approved schools.