Lottery Policy

Selection & Lottery Process
If the number of applications for enrollment received exceeds the openings in a given grade level, applications will enter a random selection process based upon Florida Statute 1002.33, subsection (10), article (b). Our guidelines for lottery selection are as follows:

1. All applications that are turned in between August 1st through December 1st are logged and assigned a confirmation number.
2. After the December 1st deadline, SSA+S will assess how many applicants turned in completed applications as compared to openings in that particular grade level.
3. If the number of applications exceeds enrollment capacity, SSA+S will hold a random draw (lottery) to fill the available vacancies. If the number of applications received is less than the number of openings, then all eligible students are admitted.
4. The random draw, or lottery process, starts with putting all confirmation numbers of eligible applicants into a container.
5. A designee, who is not an employee of SSA+S nor a current governing SSA+S Board member, will draw one confirmation number at a time out of the container, starting with the lowest grade level for which there are openings (sixth grade). This confirmation number is then checked against the application list for sibling applicants to allow older sibling applicants an automatic position, if there are openings at that other grade level.
6. After all vacant seats have been filled at each grade level, SSA+S will then continue the lottery process by drawing from the remaining confirmation numbers of applicants who submitted their applications during the priority window of August 1st to December 1st. These applicants will be assigned a waiting list number in the order that they are drawn. If openings occur during the summer or the school year for which the applicants applied, these applicants will be offered a position in the order of their lottery assigned waiting list number.
7. Any application received after the December 1st deadline will be accepted but will not be considered unless all applicants from the first lottery have either filled vacancies or turned down offers of enrollment. After that time, SSA+S will put all applications received after the December 1st deadline into a lottery system to fill openings at that grade level. It is not first come, first served, but an additional lottery for all applicants who turned in an application after December 1st.
8. Students drawn for the first round of admissions (and their siblings, if applicable) will be notified by the second week in January. If offers of enrollment are turned down or there is a vacancy identified for some other reason, additional applicants will be notified in the order of their lottery assigned waiting list number.
9. Students not offered admission may reapply for the subsequent school year during the next enrollment window beginning August 1st. Applications and all associated confirmation numbers and waiting list positions expire after one school year.
10. If any information on the application is false or not openly disclosed, it will be grounds for immediate withdrawal.