Enrollment FAQ

There will be three groups of students enrolling for the next school year. They are currently enrolled students, siblings of currently enrolled students that have not yet attended Ranches Academy, and new students. During January, you will receive an email referring you to an Enrollment Form and a Withdrawal Form for the next school year. Complete the enrollment form by keying in the names of your currently enrolled children that are planning to return to Ranches Academy, any siblings not previously enrolled who will be new in the coming year (including kindergarten), and any children who may be enrolling in the future. You will need to complete the Withdrawal Form for any children who will not be returning to Ranches Academy the following school year, with the exception of students being promoted to seventh grade.

There is a deadline for the return of these forms. If we do not receive the Enrollment Form by the deadline, those students currently enrolled may risk losing their place for the next school year. While there is a deadline for return of the Withdrawal Form, it helps school personnel make decisions if the Withdrawal Form is turned in as soon as you know that your children will not be attending the Ranches Academy the following school year. The criteria for enrollment is as follows:

Enrollment for the next school year for students attending Ranches Academy during the current school year is automatically confirmed, although the Enrollment Form is still due at the school office by the given deadline date. If we do not receive the form by the deadline, your children may risk losing their place(s) for the coming year.

Siblings of currently enrolled students have preference over new students applying to the school. However, if space becomes available, and there are more siblings waiting for a particular grade level than there is space, there will be a lottery of all siblings for that grade level to determine enrollment. This includes younger siblings entering Kindergarten.

Those students applying for enrollment at the Ranches Academy for the first time must submit their application to enroll online click here. These students must participate in a lottery process for selection.

THE RANCHES ACADEMY LOTTERY PROCEDURES

Applications received between October 1 and January 31 will be placed in the general lottery pool. Any applications received after January 31 will be placed in our third lottery pool. The Ranches Academy randomly pulls first from the Preference Pool, second from the General Pool and last from the After January 31  Pool. When a vacancy occurs because a student has withdrawn, The Ranches Academy may immediately enroll a new student from its randomly generated lottery list of applicants.

 In accordance with Federal and State law, The Ranches Academy does not discriminate based on race, creed, color, religion, national origin or ability/disability status. Enrollment preference is given in the following order: children of The Ranches Academy founding families; staff and current board member children, siblings of currently enrolled students, siblings of formerly enrolled students (excludes siblings of students who voluntarily exited/withdrew for any reason), and finally, those applicants who applied by the January 31 deadline.

The lottery is held the first Wednesday in February each year using a software program.  

When a student is randomly selected in the lottery for an open spot, the parents are notified by email/text with a reasonable deadline for confirming the spot and completion of the registration process. If the registration process is not completed by the deadline, it is considered to be declined and the spot will be offered to the next student on the lottery results list. 

Notification and Response Deadlines 

Parents will be notified via email and/or text. If the parent cannot be contacted or is non-responsive during the designated time period, the available spot may be offered to the next student on the lottery results list. Response deadlines are calculated from the first attempted contact as follows:

Email notifications are sent out to all parents of students who applied for enrollment to inform them where their student was pulled and their placement on the lottery results list. 

As mandated by law, The Ranches Academy does not maintain waitlists from one school year to the next. To be included in the lottery each school year, you must submit an online application during the October 1-January 31 window. Students (including siblings) who are not admitted  MUST submit a new application each year.