New State Rule Gives Inside Track to Students from Minuteman Member Towns

For Release:

January 4, 2016

Contact:

Steven C. Sharek

(781) 861-6500, ext. 7360 ssharek@minuteman.org

New State Rule Gives Inside Track to Students from Minuteman Member Towns

LEXINGTON – It went largely unnoticed at the time it was passed, but a new state regulation gives students who live in the Minuteman High School district an inside track when they apply for enrollment there this year. The new regulations, part of a larger package of changes passed by the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education last February, requires vocational technical schools to accept students from their member towns first, before they accept students from outside their district.

“If you live in one of our district towns, this means that you’re at the head of the line,” said George Clement, Assistant Principal and Director of Admissions at Minuteman. “If you apply and meet the criteria, we’re going to accept you before we accept a student from outside the district.”

The new regulation, 603 CMR 4.03 (6)(a)(1) states: “Resident students who meet the minimum requirements for admission shall be admitted prior to acceptance of any non-resident students seeking the same course of study.”

In making decisions about who to accept, Minuteman follows a state-approved Admissions Policy that considers five (5) factors: a student’s grades, attendance, and disciplinary record; a recommendation from the sending school; and a personal interview.

The new regulations also place some limitations on applications from eighth-graders who live in communities outside the district, Mr. Clement said. However, the limitations do not apply to eighth graders in Watertown, Everett, Wellesley and other communities that don’t already offer vocational exploratory programs to students in the ninth grade.

This year’s priority application date at Minuteman is February 1.

The package of regulatory changes also included a provision allowing vocational schools to add a capital fee to the regular tuition paid by out-of-district students. Minuteman will add that fee to the out-of-district tuition charge when it builds a new state-of-the-art facility on District land adjacent to the current school.

The Minuteman district includes 16 member communities: Acton, Arlington, Belmont, Bolton, Boxborough, Carlisle, Concord, Dover, Lancaster, Lexington, Lincoln, Needham, Stow, Sudbury, Wayland, and Weston.

Minuteman is an accredited member of the New England Association of Schools & Colleges (NEASC).