Sussex Academy lottery invites 146 new families to public charter

Sussex Academy, a tuition-free, K-12 public charter school in Georgetown, announced the results of its Jan. 16 lottery, with 146 families recently sent invitations to enroll.

“We embrace the fact that families in Delaware have a choice and are grateful for the community support that we have from families that are applying to be a part of an accelerated educational program in a small-school setting,” said Kyle Bentley, head of school.

Families may complete a choice application via SchoolChoiceDE.org to enroll their children in any Delaware public, charter or vocational-technical school in the state, regardless of their home address. Children must first be enrolled in their school of residence before submitting a choice application.

To inform families about the opportunity for students, Sussex Academy advertised information about its educational programming and school choice, including application opening and closing dates, and hosted open houses at its elementary and secondary campuses.

Enrollment at Sussex Academy is limited by the State of Delaware based on the school charter. If applications outnumber open spots, a lottery is conducted in January to select students who will be invited to enroll.

“As a public charter school, we conduct a true lottery,” Bentley said. “We use a third-party vendor in the Data Service Center to process applications and conduct the lottery for families that believe in our school mission.”

This year, 1,350 applications were received for 146 openings: 40 in kindergarten, 80 in sixth grade, five in seventh, 20 in ninth and one in 11th grade, he said. Waiting list information is provided to families who are not selected. In accordance with Delaware Code, the wait list will remain in effect until Tuesday, Sept. 30.

“Like many surrounding public school districts, we give enrollment preference to children of staff and siblings,” Bentley said. “We will continue to have more than 1,000 families on the wait list, which speaks to the demand for a different choice in education.”

Currently, Bentley said, there are more than 300 families on the waiting list for kindergarten and sixth grade. A total of 665 families are on the waiting list for elementary spots, 314 families are on the middle school waiting list and 198 are on the high school waiting list, he said.

The mission of Sussex Academy is to foster academic achievement and social responsibility in a small-school environment. Its highly accelerated college preparatory program prepares students for the technological and global mindedness needed for the 21st century, and instills ethical conduct and service to others in students’ day-to-day lives.