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This author continues to suggest that deprioritizing the sibling preference in the DC school lottery system would be an effective policy intervention to help more at-risk kids land spots in higher performing schools. She claims that the sibling preference preserves existing school demographics, disadvantaging at-risk kids.

The author ignores the unintended consequences of removing sibling preference or diluting it to such a point it would not be the decisive factor it is now.

Make no mistake, undoing the sibling preference will send the DCPS into a death spiral. It’s hard enough transporting your kids to and from one school, let alone two, which could be miles apart.

The author’s previous article is focused entirely on transportation equity, so it’s inexplicable as to how the practical and logistical challenges of undoing sibling preference go completely ignored in her analysis.

If this kind of system became the norm, parents would have no choice but to leave the District to at least keep their kids in one school.

We need to find creative ways to further assist at-risk students, but let’s not ignore the benefits the District already offers, including free pre-k and free breakfast and lunch, among other things.

Once families have a child in a school, it’s only sensible that additional siblings also be given preference to attend that school to avoid a situation where parents need to traipse all over the city for pick-up and drop-off duty. 

I’d like to see additional suggestions to help at-risk kids, though, let’s leave out the ill-advised ones that would throw DCPS into chaos.