Howard Gardner Multiple Intelligence (MI) Charter School is a tuition-free Public school that is aware of the importance of establishing fair and equitable criteria for student admission that comply with Pennsylvania’s Charter School Law and applicable State and Federal regulations.
Howard Gardner MI Charter School is an equal opportunity educational institution, is a non-sectarian institution in all respects, and does not discriminate against any student, employee, or other people on the basis of race, ethnicity, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, disability, or any other criteria prohibited by law. Admission criteria do not consider intellectual or athletic ability, aptitude, disability, race, creed, national origin, religion, or ancestry.
Howard Gardner Multiple Intelligence Charter School (“Charter School”) adheres to Pennsylvania Charter School Law at 24 PS §17-1723 regarding student Admissions to charter schools.
All resident children in this Commonwealth qualify for admission to a charter school. If more students apply to the charter school than the number of attendance seats available in the school, then students must be selected on a random basis from a pool of qualified applicants meeting the established eligibility criteria and submitting an application by the deadline established by the charter school, except that the charter school may give preference in enrollment to a child of a parent/guardian who has actively participated in the development of the charter school and to siblings of students presently enrolled in the charter school. First preference shall be given to students who reside in the Scranton and Abington Heights school districts.
We are no longer accepting applications for the 2024-2025 School Year.
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Applications for the 2025-2026 School Year will be available on January 2, 2025.
Application for Admission Deadline: Saturday, March 1, 2025*
*Applications received on or by March 1, 2025, WILL be entered into the School's Public Lottery for the 2025-2026 School Year.
*Applications received on or after March 2, 2025, WILL NOT be entered into the School's Public Lottery for the 2025-2026 School Year.
For additional information regarding admissions and enrollment, please email Renee Dougherty at renee.dougherty@myhgsd.com.
The CEO designates Charter School employees to conduct the lottery. Selected employees have no personal interest in the outcome of the lottery. To participate in the lottery, a completed Application for Admission must be submitted via the Charter School’s Student Information System (Sycamore) by the designated deadline.
The lottery selection process occurs as follows:
Each grade level will have a separate lottery, beginning with kindergarten and proceeding through grade 8. The grade level submitted on the student's application must be accurate. Any inaccuracies on the admissions application will result in forfeiture of the lottery selection, and the student will be moved to the end of the waiting list for the 2025-2026 grade level.
The total number of open seats in each grade level is calculated by subtracting the total number of seats already filled in that grade level* from the total number of seats allotted to that grade level.
*A seat is filled prior to the lottery if the student meets any of the requirements below. Students who meet requirement number (1) will receive a seat first, students who meet requirement number (2) will receive a seat after those students who meet requirement number (1), and so on and so forth.
- The student is an existing Howard Gardner Multiple Intelligence Charter School student.
- The student is a sibling of a student(s) currently enrolled at the school.
- Students of those who have contributed to the development of the Charter School (Founding Families and Employees).
- The student resides in the Scranton or Abington Heights School District.
- The student resides outside the Scranton and Abington Heights School Districts but within Pennsylvania.
Lottery Process:
The Public Lottery for the 2025-2026 School Year will be held virtually on Wednesday, March 5, 2025, at 10 a.m. The Lottery will include all applications submitted from the start of the open enrollment period through March 1, 2025. The Lottery will NOT include any applications received after the cut-off date.
- The Charter School only accepts applications submitted through its Student Information System, Sycamore. Applications require at least one proof of residency and must be completed electronically using the Sycamore platform. Students applying for entrance into the Kindergarten class must be five years old by September 1.
- If the enrollment process produces a greater number of students than spaces available in any given grade, the lottery will establish a Wait List. Applications received after the March 1, 2025, deadline will be placed on the Wait List in the order they are received. Applications will be accepted for the Wait List through October of each year.
Within 48 hours after the lottery has been held, the Charter School will send a notification to all applicants. This notification will indicate either that the student has been offered a space or a place on the Wait List. If a space becomes available in a grade, the next applicant on the Wait List will be contacted and offered admission in “number” order for the grade. To the extent space is available, the Charter School will enroll students until the end of their first Trimester of academic study of each year.
Wait List Notification(s):
Applicants on the Wait List will be notified in sequential order through the Charter School’s Student Information System (Sycamore) and via phone if a space becomes available.
The Public Lottery for the 2025-2026 School Year will be held virtually on Wednesday, March 5, 2025, at 10 a.m.
Upon lottery selection, families will be notified within 48 hours through email via the Charter School’s enrollment system.
Within 5 days of being notified of the lottery selection, the following documents must be provided by a parent or guardian:
- Copy of Birth Certificate
- Enrollment Notification Form
- Home Language Survey
- Parental Registration Statement
- Immunizations
- Proof of Residency (2)
- Release of Academic Records
- Copy of Current IEP or Evaluation (If Applicable)
If the enrollment slot is declined, if no response is received, or if accurate student enrollment documents are not received by the school office within 5 days of being notified, the enrollment slot will be forfeited, and the next student on the wait list will be contacted.
For additional admissions and enrollment information, please email Renee Dougherty at renee.dougherty@myhgsd.com or call 570.941.4100.
HGMICS Enrollment Lottery
Frequently Asked Questions
APPLICATION PERIOD
- The lottery includes all applications received from the start of the open enrollment period through March 1. Applications received after March 1 are not included in the lottery.
GRADE LEVEL
- The grade level indicated on the admissions application must be the grade the child will enter in the 2025-2026 school year. It is not the current grade level.
- It is the parent’s responsibility to ensure the application’s accuracy. The school is not responsible for applications submitted under the wrong grade. If a parent indicates the wrong grade on the admissions application, the child will move to the bottom of the waiting list for the correct grade.
- “What if I put the wrong grade level on my child’s application?”
- The spot is forfeited, and the child is placed at the bottom of the waiting list for the correct grade level.
- If the parent communicates the error to the school prior to the application deadline, the grade level can be corrected in time for the lottery.
COMPLETING ENROLLMENT
- If your child is selected in the lottery, families will be notified within 48 hours. Once notified, families have five (5) business days to complete the enrollment application.
- If your child is chosen in the lottery, you will receive an email directing you to complete the enrollment application. You must use the same username and password created when the admissions application was submitted. If you do not remember your username and/or password, please email the Main Office.
- After logging in, click the dots at the top left of the screen to display a menu. Go to Admissions. Click the drop-down next to the first child to display the Enrollment Application box. Click “Start Application”. Upload the required documentation and complete the application. Repeat this process for each child that was accepted.