Dogwood Charter School is a public charter school that serves all K-6 students in Pennsylvania.

DCS is a public charter school located in Bethel Park and is open to all students regardless of race, ethnic background, gender, religion, and/or ability. 

To join Kinder for the upcoming school year, your child must be five years old on or before September 1.

Open enrollment is the period during which applications may be submitted and are eligible for a public lottery.

Our open enrollment period typically runs from January through February. However, for the 2026–2027 school year, open enrollment will run from May 6 through May 31.

Yes! We continue to accept applications post-enrollment on a rolling basis.

If there are no seats available, the student will be added to our post-lottery waitlist.

After open enrollment closes, if applications exceed available seats, a public lottery is held for all applicable grades to determine which students will fill our available seats and our waitlist order. If there are fewer applications than seats, all students will be accepted.

Yes, Dogwood Charter School gives preference to the following groups of students:

1. Residents of Bethel Park School District

2. Current DCS Students

3. Children of Founding Coalition Members, Board of Trustees, and DCS Employees

4. Siblings of Current DCS Students

5. Residents of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

This preference applies to open and post enrollment applications as well as our waitlist.

After the open enrollment lottery, selected families will have a 72-hour window to accept their child's seat(s).

For post-enrollment applications, families will have a 48-hour window to claim.

If you do not claim your seat, your offer will expire and be offered to the next student on the waitlist. You may have a chance to reclaim your seat if a spot remains available.

To apply for a seat, you must complete an online application for each student.

If your child is offered a seat and you accept it, you will then complete our enrollment forms, which include a home language survey and a parental registration statement. You will also be asked to provide one proof of your child’s age, one proof of residency, and up-to-date immunization records. These documents must be submitted within 14 days to finalize enrollment. If the required documentation is not received within this timeframe, the seat may be forfeited and offered to the next student on the waitlist.

If you need assistance or prefer to complete a paper form, please contact our enrollment department at enrollment@dogwoodcharterschool.org.

Transportation to and from Dogwood Charter School is provided by your home school district. The type of transportation (bus, van, etc.) and eligibility for transportation are determined by your home school district. Please note that districts may choose not to provide transportation for students who live more than 10 miles from the school.

Dogwood Charter School plans to add a grade level each year.