Parents Frustrated By Chatham's Kindergarten Lottery System

CHATHAM, NJ — Every year, prospective kindergarten students at Chatham's elementary schools have to enter a lottery to earn a space in their neighborhood school. Not all of them won.

Chatham, which provides half-day kindergarten to all students, launched its full-day kindergarten lottery system in 2019.

This year, the lottery system had slots available in each of the three elementary schools: Southern Boulevard, Washington Avenue, and Milton Avenue.

Two parents spoke out at the April 24 Board of Education meeting about their frustrations with the system and the alleged lack of communication between the school and the parents.

One parent, Kara Firth, spoke on behalf of her child, who is entering the school district this year as a kindergarten student at Washington Avenue School. "Today was very disappointing from a mom's standpoint. The lack of communication and consideration that is given to kindergarten families is really disheartening."

Firth expressed her frustration with the Washington Avenue School, saying that they have not communicated anything with her regarding her child's status.

"I understand you're letting people in off the waitlists, but to not tell the remaining people who are on waitlists that a second class is opening, it makes us feel like complete second-class citizens," Firth said.

The school allegedly told Firth that she would not be able to find out whether her child was in the a.m. or p.m. section of the district's half-day kindergarten program. "If you can't provide full-day kindergarten for our kids, I at least should be able to plan my year to give my child a 'full-day experience,'" she added.

Board member Michelle Clark agreed that the school district needed to do better at informing families. "I do think it is fair to those half-day families to know whether they are a.m. or p.m. because they do need to make other arrangements... I think we can do better and I think we need to do better."

Chatham Superintendent Michael LaSusa stated that historically, the district has not released the a.m., p.m. split list until June. The reason for that timeline stems from the need to keep the classes balanced on both sides, meaning that as people leave the kindergarten program, the spots need to be shifted.

"They don't like to tell people, 'You're in the a.m.,' and then have to backtrack three weeks later and say, 'Sorry we made a mistake; we only have 14 kids in the a.m. and now have 26 in the p.m.' I will speak with them and see when they are comfortable," LaSusa said.

"I think that we are in a unique situation this year, where we are not talking about the majority anymore… So, if you wouldn't mind reaching out to your administrative teams, I think we can do our best to try to balance that a.m., p.m. so that they can make plans," Clark said.

LaSusa noted that these issues would be solved if the district was able to implement a full-day kindergarten program for all district children.

Last fall, a possible reconfiguration plan was presented that would allow for the future implementation of a full-day kindergarten program. Beginning with the 2025-26 school year, the potential plan would change grade configurations, adding an extra grade to the middle school.

The plan would be to separate fifth graders from the elementary level and place them within the middle school, making the new configuration: kindergarten to fourth; fifth to eighth; and the final four grades still in high school.

"The reason we are undertaking this change is to implement a full-day kindergarten program for all students," LaSusa said. "We are fortunate that so many of our parents round out the experience of our kindergarten students and provide them with enriching experiences outside of school. However, a full-day program provides much greater learning opportunities within school… Instituting a full-day program here in Chatham for all students will ensure a strong foundation for all students as they enter the district."