44 Spots Up For Grabs At Independence Charter School's Admission Lottery
By Mike Dougherty
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Independence Charter School in Center City held it's annual admission lottery Friday evening.
With just 44 open slots and more than 1,000 applicants, it was going to be a disappointing night for most of the parents packed into the school's cafeteria.
Lucky for Chara Jackson, her son's name was called.
"It's great, it's sad at the same time because I know that there's so many people that are trying to get into a school and that we have to go through these kind of measures just to get a great education for our children. So it's kind of bitter sweet."
Sabrina Canty's son was put on the waitlist, and there's a small chance he will get in at a later date. To hedge her bet, she sent applications to several other charter schools.
"I'm hoping that if he doesn't get in here, I still have those other three options."
This is a tough pill to swallow for Anna-Marie Russell of South Philly. Her daughter didn't get in and she's running out of options.
"Keep chasing down charter schools, hoping that the public school system get better. But to me, it seems like it's getting worse."
Russell, who is a lifelong city resident, says the public schools must improve to stop people from moving out.
"There are no good public schools to send my daughter to, and the school she currently goes to now is gonna close."
Many parents say they are interested in Independence Charter School because it a tremendous reputation and is known for a bi-lingual Spanish language program.
