Frequently Asked Questions
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Applying to a school can be overwhelming. We've done our best to answer the most commonly asked questions. Click on a category below to learn more.
INDIANAPOLIS SCHOOLS BASICS
It can be confusing to understand the educational landscape when moving to a new city. Our enrollment specialists are happy to help families find the school that is the best fit!
How to get started:
- Explore your school options. Use our Enroll Indy school finder to see schools near you and learn more about the programs they offer.
- Make an Enroll Indy account. Enter all of your demographic information and use this account to apply for schools. Click here to get started.
- Enroll! Use your new Enroll Indy account to enroll in most schools and grade levels. If you need any help, give us a call at 317-426-3234.
You can use the Enroll Indy School Finder to see all the schools that participate in our lottery.
Charter schools are tuition-free, public schools open to any state resident. Charter schools are freed from many of the regulations governing traditional public schools. They control their own curriculum, staffing, organization, and budget. In exchange for this freedom, they are held to rigorous accountability standards for academics, finances, and more by their authorizers. Learn more here.
APPLICATION AND ONEMATCH BASICS
OneMatch is the lottery system that allows families to apply to up to ten schools with one application and one timeline, and to receive one school match for their child. When there are more applications than there are available seats in a program, a lottery determines which students receive seats, based on their randomly assigned lottery number and any applicable priorities. .
● All students new to school in Indianapolis, including incoming pre-K students and Kindergarteners who wish to attend an Enroll Indy participating school.
● All students in terminating grades (the last grade level the student's current school offers) that are not a part of a Feeder Program.
● All students who wish to attend a different participating school in the upcoming school year then they are attending for the current school year.
● Current students who wish to remain at their current school (including PreK to Kindergarten).
● Students in terminating grades that want to continue to the next grade in their feeder program.
● Students who wish to attend a non-participating school.
All applications must be submitted online. There are no paper applications. You can use your computer, a smart phone, or call the Enroll Indy enrollment specialists at 317-426-3234 for assistance filling out an application.
Yes. You must complete an application for any child that needs a school. You will add all children for whom you would like to apply to your family profile and then complete an application for each child.
If a family is applying for more than one student, they can opt-in to Family Match. The purpose of Family Match is to try to keep families together in one school. Below is a list of rules applicable to Family Match:
- If a user chooses to turn on Family Match, they are telling Enroll Indy that keeping their students together is more important than getting their top school choice.
- This means that if one of the students gets his/her top choice, but the other student is unable to get a seat at the same school, the OneMatch lottery will skip the top choice and try to get both students into the second choice to try to keep siblings at the same school.
- Families seeking Family Match must rank the same schools in the same order for all students they wish to keep together, or Family Match will not be recognized.
- If a user turns Family Match off, that user is indicating that their students can attend different schools and each application should be considered separately.
- Families with twins/multiples who want them to remain together, should use Family Match.
Yes. Anyone who wants to attend an Enroll Indy school should apply through OneMatch, although some schools have enrollment specifications. See our School Finder for specific information.
You have until the close of each round to re-order your rankings, or add or delete a school on your list.
If you apply to the incorrect grade, Enroll Indy has the right to revoke the student's seat.The Enroll Indy system may reject an application where a child does not meet an age cut-off such as Pre-k or Kindergarten. Once the lottery is run and a parent notifies the school or Enroll Indy that they mistakenly put the incorrect grade level on the application, there is no guarantee that there will be a seat available for your student in the correct grade at that school.
If you apply to another school at any time –during one of the lottery rounds, during late enrollment or throughout the year – and you receive a seat at another school, YES, you are giving up your seat at your current school. In a nutshell, when you apply to get into another school, you are applying out of your current school (with the Enroll Indy schools; does not apply to non-participating schools).
For the best chance of getting your top choice school, you should apply any time during the first round of the lottery.
No, you should only list the schools on the application that you are willing to attend.
No, schools do not know how you rank them. Schools may request a list of students who have applied to their schools and will only receive your student’s information if you click the button to share with the school. The school will not know, however, what number you ranked them.
You do not need to provide proof of address when you apply, but proof of address will be requested during the registration process which is done at each school level.
LOTTERY RESULTS AND NEXT STEPS
You can apply for the second round or check the Open Seat Portal during Summer Enrollment to find open seats.
Follow the next steps you receive from your Match email sent on results day. Keep in mind that schools are required to give families 30 days to complete their registration. After 30 days, schools may release your student from their roster for incomplete registration.
Enrollment is the process a family goes through with Enroll Indy to apply and receive a seat at a particular school. Registration is the process a family completes at the school level that often includes the submission of records such as the birth certificate, possibly the proof of address, and the completion of forms such as medical forms, emergency contact information and demographics.
ENROLLMENT PRIORITIES AND ELIGIBILITY
Enrollment priorities increase your chance of receiving a seat at the school of your choice, but do not guarantee it. Examples include: geographic priority, sibling priority, and priority for children of school employees.
Schools can choose to prioritize siblings of current students. Siblings are defined as students residing in the same household and/or students sharing the same parent/guardian. Sibling priority can be applied to any sibling of a current student provided that the current student presently attends the school and will attend the school in the future.
All students who turn 5 years old on or before August 1 are eligible to attend Kindergarten. However, schools are allowed to grant waivers to students who turn 5 after August 1, and to set their own policies related to waivers. Enroll Indy’s School Finder has the kindergarten cut-off dates.
TRANSFERS AND SUMMER ENROLLMENT
Over the summer, you can claim a seat through the Open Seat Portal by logging into your OneMatch account. Seats are updated in real-time as they become available. If you need assistance, or wish to claim a seat that is excluded from the portal, please call us. Once the Open Seat Portal closes, you can call us to claim a seat.
Have more questions?
Our Enrollment Specialists are here to answer your questions and help you apply. We are available by phone Monday through Friday, 8am-4:45pm. Se habla español.
Need assistance in another language? Fill out the form and let us know your language needs and we will call you with an interpreter.
317-426-3234
info@enrollindy.org
317-426-3234
info@enrollindy.org
801 Shelby Street
Indianapolis, IN 46203
Mailing address only - No on site services
