Students are selected for admission randomly by lottery.

The admissions Lottery for School Year 2025-2026 will be held on Monday, April 7, 2025 at 2pm.

When a child is selected, Parents/Guardians have 3 days to accept or decline the seat. If Parents/Guardians do not reply by the deadline, the child will be moved to the bottom of the waiting list and the seat offered to the next child on the waiting list.

Families wishing to apply after the lottery has been run should contact the Admissions Department.

• OWNCS uses a lottery application called Lotterease to ensure a fair and transparent admissions process. In Lotterease, parents create one account and add all children they would like to enter into the OWNCS lottery.

Click on the Lotterease Parent Handbook​ for additional information.

Preferences

Priority for available seats is based on the following:

• Current sibling at the OWNCS school to which you are applying
• Parent/Guardian employed by OWNCS
• Resident of School District 30 (if applying to OWN 1-Astoria)
• Resident of School District 27 (if applying to OWN 2-Howard Beach)

• Resident of School District 24 (if applying to OWN 3-Corona)

Notification

Lotterease notifies Parents/Guardians of the lottery results by email. When a child is selected, Parents/Guardians have 3 days to accept or decline the seat. If Parents/Guardians do not reply by the deadline, the child will be moved to the bottom of the waiting list and the seat offered to the next child on the waiting list. Lotterease notifies families when there is a change in applicant status.

Acceptance & Enrollment

Students protected under the McKinney-Vento Act are entitled to immediate enrollment in school and may also be entitled to free transportation and other services. Contact the Admissions Coordinator.

Parents/Guardians who accept an offer of admission for their child receive an email from Lotterease with a link to Enrollease (the Enrollment Package). The Enrollment Package must be submitted within 3 days. If OWNCS does not receive the Enrollment Package by the deadline, the offer of admission may be forfeited and passed to a child on the waiting list.

The following documents must be submitted prior to enrollment

• Copy of child's proof of age

• Copy of proof of address (1 of the documents listed below)

The following are acceptable proofs of address

Lease Agreement, Deed, or Mortgage Statement for the residence

NYC Housing Rent Receipt, Cable/Satellite Bill, Electric/Con Edison Bill (dated within the last 60 days)

Water Bill (dated within the last 90 days)

If the Parent/Guardian does not have a bill in his/her name, a notarized letter must be submitted stating that the Parent/Guardian and Applicant live at the address stated on the address on the application. Only applications with notarized letters will be accepted.

Example: If a guardian and child reside at the grandparents’ home, then the grandparents must submit a notarized letter stating that the guardian and child live with them.

In addition to the notarized letter, one of the acceptable proofs of address listed above must be submitted with the application.

It is the responsibility of the Parent/Guardian to ensure that OWNCS receives the Enrollment Package by the due date.

Waiting List

After all available seats have been filled in each grade, a waiting list is created for the remaining applicants. If a seat becomes available, the next student on the waiting list will receive an offer. The waiting list expires on December 31st of the year applied for.