Berkeley Parents Network: Transferring from/to the Berkeley School District

Berkeley Parents Network

Transferring from/to the Berkeley School District

Berkeley Parents Network > Reviews > K-12 Schools > Berkeley Public Schools > Transferring from/to the Berkeley School District

Questions

Transferring to a Berkeley middle school from another district
Transferring from Berkeley to Albany
Transferring from Berkeley to Albany High
Using the Allen Bill to transfer to Berkeley schools
Transferring from Oakland to Berkeley school district
Transferring from WCC to Berkeley schools

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Transferring to a Berkeley middle school from another district

Nov 2006

I would like to know about the public middle schools in Berkeley, especially King Jr. School. We live in a different school district but are thinking of transferring our 5th grade son. I work in Berkeley, and maybe there is a chance of being accepted (?). If anyone knows something, even just a little bit about schools' curriculum, teachers, students, etc., I would really appreciate if you can share it with me. Thank you.
one mom

If you send your out-of-district child to the Berkeley schools, you should consider making a substantial donation to the PTA. One reason the Berkeley schools are more ''desirable'' is that they are better funded, because of many years of extra taxes, and serious PTA fundraising. This is a separate pot of money than the money that comes from the state for each student. Since it is a property-tax, more students mean that the money needs to be divided more ways. So, when out-of-district parents send their children to the Berkeley schools, if they can, they should help make up this difference. Of course, this would be different if the whole East Bay were funding the Berkeley Schools.

King in Berkeley is considered to be a good middle school. Most folks who have public school elementary kids in the King zone are very glad to send their kids there. My friends who have or have had their children at King like it very much. I hear the principal is great I understand that the classes are strong, that 6th grade starts earlier than other grades, that 6th grade kids go from class to class together in a group, that the food/garden class is amazing, that the math program is very good. Some kids who were in dual immersion in elementary school opt to send their kids to Longfellow Middle School as it has a dual immersion emphasis for a portion of its classes. Folks whose children go there say great things about it, too. I do not know much about Willard. There may be a growing trend in the Berkeley School District to take a closer look at transfers into the district and into verifying addresses, especially as kids enter Middle School and High School. It was a big item during this fall's campaign. So if you want to try to transfer in to BUSD above board, then go ahead and work with your home district and BUSD to try it. I do not recommend trying to sneak a kid in under a false address cuz, as I said above, things are likely to get far more intense very soon with address checks. You may not want to subject your child to that. However, if your child does get in, please make sure you contribute a bunch of money to your school and/or the district since you will not be paying the higher Berkeley taxes. Thanks in advance for doing your share! signed - Berkeley resident, tax payer, BUSD PTA contributer, and ''Yes on A'' campaign contributer.

In response to the question about middle schools in Berkeley; I have taught at two of them and know teachers at all three. In general, the teaching staff at the middle level in Berkeley is exceptional in terms of the level of professionalism, dedication and heart. But, it can be hit or miss with classes because there is a significant percentage of the student population that can be difficult and disruptive. If the teacher is skilled at managing behavior, the class will run smoothly and learning can take place. If the teacher struggles with this, and it can be challenging depending on the mix of students in the class, learning can still take place, but the student will have to work harder at it (to ignore distractions and peer pressure to fit in.) After 10 years in the district, I am thinking of moving on because I am tired of dealing with the negative behaviors and I would send my son to private middle school rather than expose him to some of the more outrageous behaviors that he will inevitably see in some of his classes in public school, Berkeley included. That being said I know lots of students who do well, go on to do well in high school and college. I guess I am just biased because after all of these years, I find the negative behaviors to be pretty discouraging and would rather have my own child surrounded by polite and respectful peers. On the other hand, it is a slice of the real world and I haven't really witnessed anything that would make me feel that a child would be physically unsafe at either King or Longfellow.

There is a misconception that King is the place to be. Check out the other middle schools as well. In my opinion there is not an appreciable difference between King and Longfellow. King MAY have a slightly more cohesive teaching staff, but Longfellow has many dedicated teachers and is smaller which, to me, gives it a more respectful feel amongst the students and teachers really communicate across subject areas there. I don't know as much about Williard but have met many great teachers there. I think King, being in north Berkeley has acquired this great reputation, but in my opinion this is based on either subtle racism or "classism". I just don't see the difference between the schools. King does have a fantastic cooking and garden program, thanks to Alice Waters, but Longfellow has a nice program as well.

The curriculum in the Berkeley schools is great, from what I can see and rivals that of any private school; it may even be better than at some schools ( for example, I visited St. Paul's school and felt the curriculum did not appear to be as dynamic as that in the Berkeley middle schools). So, that is not the issue. For me it is ALL about the social atmosphere, not the academics. And the social atmosphere is mixed.
Hope this is helpful.

Transferring from Berkeley to Albany

Oct 2004

I live in Berkeley but my son is enrolled in Albany preschool. A friend told me that, b/c he's already in a preschool in Albany, it would be possible to enroll him in Albany public schools. I went to Oakland/Berkeley public schools myself, and have mixed feelings about leaving Berkeley, but I've heard great things about Albany public schools. Any thoughts on this, or advice about what I'd need to do exactly to get into Albany rather than Berkeley schools? He will probably start kindergarten next year. Thanks! Katie

We transfered from Berkeley to Albany, and our daughter attended kindergarten in Albany. From our experience, the Albany schools are mediocre, at best. The Berkeley teachers seem much more inspired, have many more resources (the Albany schools are broke and receive little government funding), and more academic. Our daughter literally did not learn anything in kindergarten, and all of her Berkeley friends seemed to learn a lot more in kindergarten. I was not impressed at all. Yes, the Albany schools have high test scores, but this is NOT because of amazing teaching. It is because Albany typically has more middle class students, which is reflected in the test scores. Berkeley schools have a lot of parent involvement, more activities (art, music, and so on), and more resources. Also, it is wonderful for your child to go to the same school as his neighbors. If we could do it over again, I would. We did not send our second child to Albany schools, and transfered our daughter out of Albany in second grade (happily). I know it is scary, but I would at least try Berkeley for a year and see what you think. Also, Albany kindergarten is only three hours, and the aftercare for kindergarten is $500/month. If you are a working parent, this is something to consider. give berkeley a try.

Before you spend too much time worrying about whether to send your child to an Albany school, make sure you even have a choice. Your friend was misinformed: it is no longer the case that a child can get into an Albany elementary school just because he or she was in Albany Preschool. M.M.

Using the Allen Bill to transfer to Berkeley schools

I have called the Berkeley School District re the idea that if one works in Berkeley, one can send one's children to the Berkeley public schools. This is unfortunately not exactly true. There's something called the "Allen Bill" that says people should be able to put their children in school near where they work. However, Berkeley doesn't fall under that since the district feels that any child from anywhere should be able to attend the Berkeley Schools (whether their parents work here or not). However, the catch is that you must get an "interdistrict permit" (which I'm told is easy to get) and then APPLY to the BUSD. For Kindergarden, and maybe some of the lower grades, this would be IMPOSSIBLE since the classes are so full from class-size reduction. (Smaller classes, but a shortage of teachers and classrooms.) It has been several years since they accepted a single out-of-district kindergardener. Leah

Transferring from WCC to Berkeley schools

July 2002

I would like some advice about the ease or dificulty of transferring from one school district to another. My 4 year old who will be attending elementary school in one year, but I would actually like for her to attend school in Berkeley which is closer to work for me. It would be so much easier for me to take her to school and pick her up. Traffic is so bad along I- 80 in the afternoons, I doubt very much that I would make it int time anywhere. I live in Hercules, and would be transferring from the West Contra Cost School District. Does anyone have any suggestions? Is this even possible? Any and all advice would be greatly appreciated. jeannette

To the mom asking for advice on transferring out of district. I currently have my daughter transferred out of WCCUSD into Oakland Unified for the same reason - work is closer and after school care is easier. What you need to do first is contact the Transfer Office in Richmond at (510) 620-2124 to get the necessary forms sent to you. The folks at this number in my experience have been very helpful. Be sure to explain that you need to obtain the forms to be released out of district. For me the realease out has been relatively easy and hassle-free, but it is a little inconvenient to have to renew the request each year. Be sure to contact Berkeley Unified and ask what you will need outside of the transfer request (proof of employment, etc) when you submit your forms. If you already know which school you want to attend, talk to the principal about your plans and see if s/he thinks you have a good chance to get in to that particular school. My advice would be to check out at LEAST 3 schools and rank them so that you have some choices to fall back on. Remember there is no guarantee that you will be allowedd in to BUSD. WCCUSD may be very willing, but BUSD may not. Be prepared. This is where your challenge may be. A transfer mom of 2

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