How long do you need to live at current address

Omg. The things you people who spawned have to worry about. There must be 100s of things like this that little monkeys need that suck all the time from your days. If they are almost school age they're getting a little long in the tooth to sell for top dollar, but you still have time--just think about the apartment you could upgrade to with the money!

you have no idea!

1 day. As of now, you could move into any school zone on the Upper West Side, even PS199 & 87 and be placed in your grade. Although parents try to get their children registered in the spring (each school has diff. procedures, most walk-in, some not), this has not been strictly necessary. Look on the DOE website for annual registration period - there is no "minimum" period, you just have to produce proof of residence (lease, etc.). People have been registering for K in late August, and people moving into the zone mid-year have all been placed. I have not heard of any exceptions. However, this fall is shaping up to be the year that everything changes. The parent bodies of P.S. 199 and 87 have convinced the DOE that there will not be enough space. So for in-zone non-siblings, supposedly, they're going to allocate spaces based on a lottery. I don't think they're changing the amount of time you have to be resident in a zone to qualify, however, you will want your name entered in the initial lottery, so I presume that as long as you can get your name in the lottery (hasn't happened yet for the fall) you're fine.

I've heard that at least one public elementary school in Manhattan has a documentation dominatrix who will take parents by their ankles, turn them upside down, and shake until not only a lease or deed falls out, but car registration, driver's license, etc. etc. etc. ad nauseum ... legal or not, that's the way they do it.

But uwsmom, take a good look at your local PS (by which I mean spend half a day there) ... it might be much better than you've heard.

wow, what leniency. yes, i definitely need to read up on all of this. my head has been spinning about schools this week (and we're still a couple of years away). i've been mentally preparing plans a-z. i have this sense that nothing is a given - public, private and anything in between. a lot can change in 3 years. i'll be interestd to see how the overcrowding shakes out in 199/87. As for eligibility, i assume you have to prove primary residence (rather than renting the cheapest studio you can find in better school zone).

ah - you're absolutely right. most of my freneticism is based on informal hearsay. i will absolutely do my homework.

Alanhart: I came prepared with reams of documentation. I think just a lease/ownership doc. + utility bill will do. If you've just signed the lease, I'm sure you can tell the school secretary that a bill is forthcoming.

uws: yes, they're lenient with the 1-day thing. As far as I know, once you're in, you're in. You could move right after enrollment. Based on the docs listed on DOE website, there is nothing in the list that proves or disproves primary residence. And since you can move the very day after you're enrolled, I'm not sure how they could bust you for renting a studio. BTW, if you're interested in the school, ask for volunteering opportunities (reading, lunchtime monitoring). While there is a lot of talk about people renting studios to qualify, I am happy to report that I have not met anyone in real life who has actually done this. People live where they say they live.

You can show up on the first day of school with a copy of your lease, a Coned bill and your child's birth certificate, and by law they'd have to give you a seat. All the pre-registration info is really for the DOE's convenience, a way to assess just how badly they have miscalculated how many seats they need. Some over-subscribed schools, like 234 and 41, have already asked neighboring schools if they'll have room for overflow in the fall. The problem is that there is intense pressure from the parents to maintain small classrooms, intense pressure from the DOE to work with smaller budgets, and no way to respond in 6 months to a problem 5 years in the making. I'm pretty sure the only way will be to live with larger classes.

Nyc10023, I know of kids in my daughter's school who live in Queens or Brooklyn. They use friends' or family members' address to qualify. It's not uncommon. Also, when you sign the registration, you are asked to let the school know if you move. Finally, I have heard of schools in Brooklyn who do home visits to check on registrations, but I've never heard of this in Manhattan.

I'm not saying that people don't use other addresses, maly - it's just not a widespread practice in ours. Our zone is so small that everyone just walks home, it would be easy to see who doesn't live in the zone. No home checks. If you move once enrolled, you are still entitled to stay.

The DOE has consistently passed up space when offered space for new schools in D3 (south). In the northern part of D3, public schools have been forced to shut to make space for charter schools. It's a mess. The DOE is hoping that parents will just move to the burbs so status quo can be maintained. In the central part of D3, schools aren't overcrowded but the schools are constantly trying to woo in-zone children.

For all the talk about committed parents, even in the schools with the most active parent body, it's only a fraction of people who speak up and go to CEC meetings, etc.

In our area, all the primary schools are at full capacity, so no wooing here! There is a need for an extra school in the NYU area to relieve the pressure on PS 41. I know NYU had offered a space to the DOE (after all, they could use a school to help attract post-grads and professors), but there seems to be little interest from the DOE. I don't think they want parents to move to the suburbs, they like the tax dollars, they're just hoping we'll pay for private schools, leaving public schools for the truly needy.

"You can show up on the first day of school with a copy of your lease, a Coned bill and your child's birth certificate, and by law they'd have to give you a seat."

That's correct, but they don't have to give you a seat in THAT school. They just have to give you a seat in the district. Showing up at a school that has already sent zoned, non-sibling, not-lucky-in-the-lottery kids to other schools, will not get you a seat. No chance. If you are planning on faking it, the deadline for spring registration is now. Better hurry.

JDS: So far (academic year 09-10), on the UWS, I have NOT heard of anyone who was turned away by the school. In fact, I know quite a few people in real life who enrolled mid-year. If you show up TODAY to P.S. 199 because you moved yesterday with your K-aged kid, you will most likely get in for this current academic year. As I've said a million times, all bets are off for academic year '10-11 in District 3 (southern part). Do I have to resort to yelling?

JDS: and I will add that, on the UWS, zoned non-sibs have SO FAR, been able to enroll. Rumor has it that non-zoned sibs have been able to enroll for '09-'10 even in P.S. 87 & 199. For the millionth time, all bets off for this fall.

what if i move with kids in school already - can i stay in that school?

Just call the school parent coordinator. At PS 199 her name is Carmen. Also their websites give you all the rules. For K 2012-13 the sign up period is now..call your school or visit if you're nervous. For 1st grade it happens around March. I just went through this after sending three kids to private school and paying those prices public seemed like something I should really consider. I applied too late last year not knowing, and missed the cut off..enrolled late..ds got into K three weeks into the school year after we already paid for private. Doing research is good. With three kids we have now decided to move instead of going public as it's almost a second job along with three kids after school activities then worrying about middle school and high school. I finally said it's too much. Figured after 20 years in the city and three kids I'm ready to give up my 3 bedroom co-op very very sadly. Plus we have a 900 sq. foot play room downstairs I bought originally to combine and as they are getting older I really don't want this for them. Different strokes for different folks. Other friends of mine love it, have hung in there and would never leave. Good luck to all :) Leslie

Here you go UWSMom...a start and join the Parents League

The 2012-2013 Elementary School Directory is available online here. This new resource for families includes information about the kindergarten application process and a list of elementary school choices by district.

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Kindergarten Application Process
You can submit applications through Friday March 2, 2012. We recommend that you call schools of interest to schedule time for a visit. You can find school contact information in the Elementary School Directory.

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I guess when you don't earn a 2nd income squatting in a home.... The choice is easy to move to the burbs.

And believe me, you and I know wo the helocs your income would have never allowed a 3kid in nyc private school and carrying 2k sq ft coop in nyc wo eating dog food.

The bubble allowed you to stay in manhattan. Now the defaulting of that bubble is kicking you out. 2007 would've been a fine year to monetize the bubble. Oh well. There'll be another one in 150 yrs.

Does anybody know if it's the same with HS?

Mimi: yes. Also, most high schools are city-wide (not zoned), so it doesn't matter where you live.

Leslie: it is a second job. Don't know if I'm brave or foolish.

W67: pick on me!

All I know is I'm tired. Good luck Mama :)

W67th get a life...you know zilch..every family is different. It's a choice not a right. Yeesh...one person asked a question and many people gave lots of answers. Yours included..thank G-d we live in a country of free speech...be grateful...fyi I live on W. 67th we could be neighbors..hmmmm...

By the way W67th worked for 20 years and still do but for our business....
so don't be so quick to judge without knowing all the facts...