HUNDREDS OF STUDENTS VIE FOR FEW SPOTS AT SUMMIT AND EVEREST HIGH SCHOOLS ANNUAL LOTTERY DAY

Nearly 500 students applied for only 200 spots at high-performing Redwood City schools

Redwood City, CA – Nearly 500 students in the Sequoia Union High School District have applied for only 200 available ninth grade seats at Summit Preparatory Charter High School and Everest Public High School.  The number of applicants equals approximately one-quarter of incoming freshman students in the district for the fall of 2010 and underscores the overwhelming demand by parents and students for the unique education provided by the two schools.

Because they have five applicants for every two spots available, Summit and Everest must hold admission lotteries where random selection of applicants decides who is able to attend the two schools.  This year’s Lottery Day is on Saturday, March 13 at the Summit campus.

“The incredible demand by parents for a Summit education is the ultimate validation of our work,” said Summit founder Diane Tavenner.  “Having only one seat for every four or five applicants in years past was one of the main reasons we opened Everest in 2010.  We now serve twice as many students as we used to but it is still difficult to see hundreds of kids on a waiting list every year.”

About 300 students are applying to attend both Summit and Everest.  Even though they are different schools, they are both built on the same high-quality Summit model that has led to Summit being recognized as one of the best high schools in the nation.

For this year’s Lottery Day held this Saturday, every applicant will be assigned an identification number, and at 11:00 a.m., Summit and Everest officials will use computer software to randomly select which students get assigned to each school and which have to remain on waiting lists.  Following the random computer drawing at 1:00 p.m., applicants and their parents will attend a commitment session at Summit where the lists of identification numbers will be posted.  Those who have been chosen to attend one of the two schools will have the opportunity to accept an invitation to enroll while those on a waiting list will be counseled by Summit and Everest staff about the classes they should take at the district school they may attend. 

“We are interested in the academic well-being of every student that applies to one of our schools,” said Tavenner.  “Even if we can’t accommodate them at one of our schools – yet – we still want to do everything we can to help them chart a course that will assist them in achieving their goals.”

Tavenner recently announced that Summit will be opening a third school to accommodate the demand from throughout the Bay Area.  The new school will be located in the East Side Union High School District in San Jose and is scheduled to open in 2011.

Summit utilizes several unique tools to ensure that their diverse student body is well-educated and best prepared for college, including a small school environment that provides a personalized experience for each student.  Summit’s highly-qualified, empowered and stable faculty serves as mentors to students throughout their four years of high school, providing a personalized learning plan, or education roadmap, for their high school career. Additionally, the Summit model ensures that every student takes AP courses – regardless of educational background – and is given the support they need to succeed in them. The Summit academic model has led to every Summit student graduating with the requisite California requirements to attend a four-year college.

About Summit Preparatory Charter High School and Everest Public High School

Summit Preparatory Charter High School opened its doors in 2003 in Redwood City and has quickly earned a reputation as one of the best public high schools in the country according to national rankings by Newsweek and US News & World Report.  Summit’s philosophy of small learning environments, personalized learning plan for all students, and commitment to ensuring that every student is qualified to succeed at a four-year college has created overwhelming demand by parents for additional Summit schools.  This parent demand led to the opening of Everest Public High School in the fall of 2009.  Everest currently enrolls a class of 100 freshmen and will add additional grades each year until it is at full enrollment.