Enrollment

Unlike regular public schools, public charter schools have limited seats and do not automatically accept all students interested in attending.  At the EVCA, enrollment for a given school year begins during the second semester prior to that school year. The EVCA begins with a Children of Employees Enrollment Window, then a Sibling Enrollment Window, followed by a number of Open Enrollment Windows.  Once the final Open Enrollment Window ends, enrollment becomes “First-Come, First-Served” for whatever seats remain open after depleting the waiting lists.

During the Open Enrollment Windows, when the number of students interested in attending exceeds the number of seats available, charter schools must hold a Lottery to ensure fairness in enrollment.  If you are new to the EVCA and are interested in attending, you may either submit a Letter of Intent during an Open Enrollment Window, or contact the school during the “First-Come, First-Served” enrollment to see if any seats remain open for your student's grade.  See below for details.

Types of Enrollment

The EVCA has four types of enrollment.

1. Children of Employees

Charter schools are required by the State of New Mexico to give preferential enrollment for the following school year to children of employees.  This happens during the Children of Employees Enrollment Window which opens in January.

2. Sibling Enrollment

Charter schools are required by the State of New Mexico to give preferential enrollment for the following school year to siblings of currently admitted students.  This happens during the Sibling Enrollment Window which opens in mid January. If there are more sibling Letters of Intent than there are available seats, siblings will be accepted into EVCA via a Lottery process (see below).

3. Open Enrollment

If there are seats available after the Sibling Enrollment & Lottery, a number of Open Enrollment Windows will be held throughout the second semester.  During Open Enrollment, any student can apply to attend the school.  If there are more Letters of Intent than there are available seats, then students will be accepted into the EVCA via a Lottery process (see below).

4. “First-Come, First-Served”

After the Open Enrollment Windows have completed, if seats still remain available, then enrollment at the EVCA becomes “First-Come, First-Served.”

Lottery Process

Charter schools have space for only a limited number of students.  If there is enough room in a particular grade to accommodate all the categories of students above, then a Lottery drawing for enrollment is not necessary -- all students desiring admission will be accepted. A Lottery is only required for a particular grade if there are not enough seats to accommodate all categories.

Sibling and Open Enrollment Windows follow a similar process and have similar requirements. These are:

1. Letters of Intent (LOIs)

Parents who desire to have their children enroll in Estancia Valley Classical Academy must fill out a separate Letter of Intent for each child.  You may do this online by clicking here.  If you do not have access to the Internet, or you require assistance, please contact the school office and speak to the Registrar.  All LOIs must be submitted prior to the deadline to be entered into a given lottery. The EVCA shall not be held responsible for technical failures that may disqualify an LOI. You may email registrar@theevca.com with any questions or to confirm receipt of an LOI.

2. Information Meetings

During each Enrollment Window, we typically offer an Information Meeting, which parents are strongly encouraged to attend.  These meetings are a way for parents, relatives, friends, and other community members to learn about the EVCA and classical education.  If you are unsure whether the EVCA is a good fit for your child, we invite you to attend one of these meetings to learn more about the school and talk to parents and volunteers who have already chosen the EVCA.

3. Enrollment Lottery

At the end of an Enrollment Window, a Lottery is held.  Those students whose LOIs were submitted on time will have their names drawn electronically at random .  Once all available seats for the student's grade level are filled, the remaining students will be placed on a waiting list in the order that their names were drawn.  Waiting lists do not carry over from school year to school year.

For more details on EVCA's enrollment, please see our Enrollment Policy, available from our Policies Page.

Legal Notices

As required by federal and state law, the EVCA does not discriminate against any individual because of race, color, national origin, ancestry, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, spousal affiliation, veteran status, disability, physical or mental handicap or serious medical condition, need for special education services, homeless condition, or any other category protected by law in its student enrollment, employment, or other participation or access to school programs and activities.