Admissions Policies & Procedures

As a public charter school, Salt Lake Arts Academy is bound by a strict admissions policy: Salt Lake Arts Academy shall enroll an eligible student who submits a timely application, unless the number of applications exceeds the capacity of a class, grade level or the school.  Applications may be submitted online beginning in October through the third Friday in February for the following school year.

If the number of applications exceeds the capacity of a class, grade level or the school, then students shall be selected on a random basis except that the school may give preference to:

• • Children or grandchildren of a founding member of Salt Lake Arts Academy
  • Siblings of students currently enrolled in the school
  • Children of current Governing Board members.
  • Siblings of Salt Lake Arts Academy alumni
  • Children of Faculty

After the above preferences have been admitted, the following procedure will be used: An admissions lottery shall be held to fill all of the spaces in those grades or age groups from among the applicants. The lottery process will continue until all applicants have been assigned a number. Applicants who are not admitted will be placed on a wait list, in the order in which they were selected in the lottery. A new lottery is conducted each year. The wait list expires at the end of the academic year for which the application was submitted. No wait-list positions roll over.

For the 2024-25 School Year Admissions Lottery, applications are due by Friday, February 16, 2024,  at midnight.  The Lottery will be run the following Tuesday. Notification Letters will be emailed to families the last week of February.  Parents must return their Notification of Acceptance to Salt Lake Arts Academy within the timeframe described in their acceptance letter in order to for the school to hold their spot.

Salt Lake Arts Academy prohibits discrimination based on race, creed, color, gender, religion, ancestry, disability or need for special education service. We want to encourage a diverse student population and will target additional recruitment efforts toward groups that might otherwise have limited opportunities to participate in SLArts’ program.

Students with prior behavior problems may be accepted with certain provisions. Conditions under which enrollment would be permitted or continued may be established in a written agreement. We expect prospective students and parents to understand and commit to the school’s mission and educational philosophy.

A student’s enrollment in Salt Lake Arts Academy may be rejected or revoked based on: Student’s serious infractions of law or school rules, chronic misbehavior that would, if it were to continue, endanger persons or property, cause serious disruption in the school, or place unreasonable burdens on the school’s staff.

ADMISSIONS PROCEDURES

Applications – All applications to Salt Lake Arts Academy are submitted online.  Applications for the following school year are available October 1  Current students do not need to submit applications, but siblings entering SLArts DO need to submit an application.  Applications are accepted until the lottery deadline the following February (usually the third Friday.)

Lottery – The Admissions Lottery is conducted by randomization program, and the Lottery results are returned to SLArts with a number assigned to each student.  Preference in the lottery is granted to siblings of students currently enrolled at SLArts, to children of founding parents, to children of current Governing Board members and siblings of SLArts alumni.

 Accepting a Place at SLArts – After the lottery is conducted we will send an email to the email addresses you listed on your application letting you know if you have been accepted and offered a spot at SLArts, or if you are on the wait list, and if so, which "tier" your student is in on the wait list.  The first "tier" includes the first 10 students, the second "tier" is the next 30 students, the third "tier" is everyone else.

In the Spring, after the Lottery is run, admitted students will have an opportunity to attend a “shadow day” at SLArts prior to making your final decision about accepting the spot you were offered.  Because we always maintain a long wait list for every grade, it is very important that you let us know whether your student will be accepting their spot at SLArts within the time frame specified in your acceptance letter.  Because we have many students hoping for a spot at SLArts we must be clear that if we don’t hear from you within the specified time frame to accept your offered spot, your spot will be released to the next student on the wait list.

The Wait List —  During the school year , we may have openings due to students’ moving or other changes.  When this happens, we try to replace a withdrawing student with a student in the same grade, pulled from the wait list.  We will contact you by email and telephone if a spot opens up. If we do not hear back from you within 24 hours expressing interest in accepting the opening, your student will be moved to the bottom of the wait list. 

Accepting and Declining Offers —  Because we usually have a long waiting list, we ask you to please consider whether or not SLArts is a good fit for your student when you are applying. If you are offered a spot after school has started, we ask that you and your student decide whether or not to accept the offer within 24 hours. Depending on the time of year, we may be able to make arrangements for your student to shadow at SLArts to help with your decision-making process, but it is not always possible. You are welcome to come do a short tour of the school while you make your decision. If your student declines an offer but would like to remain on the wait list, he/she will be moved to the bottom of the wait list.

Withdrawing from SLArts After Accepting a Spot – We know that circumstances change, and sometimes a family decides not to attend SLArts after accepting a spot.  Please let us know right away if this happens – we have many students on our waiting list that would love your spot.  Thank you for your consideration!