MaST Community Charter School reveals admission lottery winners

NORTHEAST PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- There was disappointment for some parents and relief for others Tuesday at the lottery for a coveted seat at MaST Community Charter School.

More than 11,500 applicants from 41 zip codes across the city vied for roughly 150 spots at MaST's K through 12 MaST One school.

Schanell Jones' youngest daughter will now go to Kindergarten, her sister is already a student at the school.

"I was really, really nervous because they had us waiting for so long. The knots were just like building up," she said. "I'm just really excited because this school is really, really good and I wanted my daughter to get in here."

For those students whose names were not called, the next best option is the coveted waitlist.

"She's number one so that's pretty good, right?" said Collen Foster, whose daughter Gabriella was waitlisted. "Keep your fingers crossed."

The lottery is random. Siblings of current MaST students have priority.

Many who left defeated say they will try again.

"I applied for 4th grade for my middle son, and there were over 900 applications and no seats, so..." said Kelly Comitalo of Somerton.

CEO John Swoyer thinks the demand to attend the Blue Ribbon School is a mix of the school's curriculum of math, science and technology and state of the art campuses. He says he wishes everyone could study at the school.

"It's exciting to see the demand for the charter in Philadelphia, but it's also a shame we couldn't let more people into the school," said Swoyer. "Every year it's a tough process to run."

The lottery for MaST Two, which will have K through 5th grade in the coming year is next week. MaST Three is in the works, slated to open in 2019 or 2020.

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