Controlled Parents' Choice Program

The school district's nationally recognized Controlled Parents' Choice Program was established by the White Plains Board of Education in May of 1988. A model for parental choice, it governs the placement of students in the system's elementary and middle schools. The Board initiated the choice program because of its belief that balance of the racial and ethnic diversity of the schools' population would promote students' understanding, appreciation, and acceptance  of persons of different racial, ethnic, social, and cultural backgrounds. As a result of it, classes in our schools are of comparable size and represent the fine degree of racial and ethnic balance that the Board had in mind when it established the program in 1988.

Under the Choice Program, a child's school assignment (in kindergarten - fifth grade) is not determined by where she/he lives but by the rules of the program. Parents of incoming kindergartners (who complete the registration process and return their Choice Form during the Formal Kindergarten Registration Period which takes place the winter before the children enter school)  indicate their preference for three schools and rank them in order of preference. Assignments are made based on parental choice, space available in each school, and the Board's racial and ethnic balance policy.

The results of the Controlled Parents' Choice Program are gratifying and are the reason why school districts around the country have sought the district's assistance in setting up the program at their location. In addition to achieving comparable class sizes and the racial and ethnic balancing that was sought by the Board of Education, since the beginning of the program, in the elementary schools, an average of 93% of the parents have received their first choice school, 98% of the parents their first or second choice school and 100% of the parents one of their three choices during the Kindergarten Choice Period.

For additional information, please contact the Family Information Center at (914-422-2038).