Pittsburgh Creative and Performing Arts, a Pittsburgh Public Schools magnet, on Thursday, Nov. 30, 2023, in downtown Pittsburgh. (Photo by Stephanie Strasburg/PublicSource)
Dejsha Demus is a 12th grader at Pittsburgh Creative and Performing Arts [CAPA 6-12], a Pittsburgh Public Schools [PPS] magnet, studying musical theater. As a student, she loves her school and believes that she receives leadership opportunities and support that she wouldn’t get elsewhere in the district.
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Demus is one of the many students who chose to attend a magnet school, in her case to pursue her passion for singing. Had she not decided to enroll at CAPA, Demus would have been assigned to Perry High School on the Northside, her neighborhood school.
Demus was concerned about safety issues at Perry and felt the school did not have enough resources or opportunities for her.
“I think that if they did have those kinds of opportunities, then it would be more appealing to go to my home school,” she said.
Demus’ decision has been good for her. But the flow of high-performing students to magnets is driving some of the inequities in the district by concentrating students with economic disadvantages and special needs in neighborhood schools, education advocates believe. The process by which the district rescinds magnet admissions, meanwhile, tends to send many more Black students back to neighborhood schools, worsening racial tilts.
How students get into — and can be booted out of — PPS magnets
“One student got a letter from Obama… to say, ‘You’re at risk.’ It was a student that struggled with anxiety and being stressed about everything. And so the parent contacted me, freaked out, and said, ‘Now she’s going to just give up. She’s like, I can’t. I’m gonna get kicked out anyway, why should I even try?’”
Pam Harbin, PPS board member
Students in PPS are assigned to neighborhood schools based on where they live, but those who seek more ambitious programming can apply to magnet schools or magnet programs within schools.
Magnets, which allow students to pursue special interests or career goals, are not specific to any neighborhood and students who reside anywhere in the district can apply. All magnets, except CAPA, enroll students based on a lottery system. Additional weight is given to students who fulfill criteria based on where they live, family income, attendance and suspensions.
Currently, there are 13 magnet schools and seven neighborhood schools with magnet programs in PPS.
To enroll at CAPA, students must undergo an audition process or provide a portfolio. Other high school magnet admissions require students to have at least 90% attendance in the prior year, a 2.5 GPA and score at least basic on their most recent Pennsylvania System of School Assessment exams.
Admission to the district’s magnet program does not guarantee a permanent spot. Students’ magnet admissions can be rescinded if they fail to meet one or more of these criteria:
- Failure to maintain 90% or higher attendance
- Failure to maintain a 2.0 GPA
- Receiving more than one suspension of four days or longer, or being suspended for a cumulative total of more than six days.
Once a student is determined to be at risk of removal from a magnet program, they are notified and issued a contract with a plan for improvement for the next semester. If the student does not meet the contract goals, their magnet admission is rescinded and they are reassigned to their neighborhood school. A student whose magnet admission has been rescinded cannot reapply to the same magnet school or program.
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