Hillside High School -

The committee in charge of designing, revising this document for the year 2024-2025 consists of a multidisciplinary team and HHS staff who represent the interests of the community. This committee and policy will be updated annually.

• Principal - Dr. Joshua Mallory

• Assistant Principal - Ms. Margaletta Reid

• Diploma Programme Coordinator - Dr. Sanders Benkwith

• Middle Years Programme Coordinator - Ms. Keshetta. Henderson

Durham Public Schools’ (DPS) Office of Student Assignment outlines the process of admission to all magnet schools through the Magnet Lottery each year.  As a member of the District Magnet Coordinators PLT, we meet monthly to discuss and implement the process.  The process was developed to promote equity across the district.  The process for our admissions policy is outlined below.

The process for admission begins with a DPS Showcase of Schools which is held on a Saturday in November.  The district Showcase of Schools is widely publicized to Durham and the surrounding communities through television, billboard, email, radio, district and school websites, and by bilingual flyers.  

At the DPS Showcase of Schools, each magnet school or program showcases their school and explains the program to prospective parents and students at the Showcase of Schools.  The IB Diploma Programme Coordinator, MYP Coordinator and school administrators attend the DPS Showcase of Schools to represent the school and IB Program.

Our IB programme, along with our Business & Finance Academy  and the JROTC program, host school tours once a month throughout the months of December thru March.  We offer the tour during the school day so that parents and students can visit IB MYP & DP classrooms.  We use our IB Ambassadors, who are students in grades 9 - 12, to lead the tours and give their perspective of the programmes and the school.

Our IB Programme actively identifies and recruits students within Hillside High School who demonstrate academic curiosity, strong work ethic, and the potential to thrive in a rigorous, inquiry-based learning environment. This process is a collaborative effort involving the IB coordinator, counselors, and teachers, who review student performance, teacher recommendations, and individual student interests.

Once identified, students and their parents are invited to an information session where they learn about the benefits of participating in the IB Programme. These discussions cover academic expectations, skill development, post-secondary advantages, and available support structures. The IB team then provides detailed guidance on the application process, including requirements, deadlines, and next steps to ensure a smooth transition into the program.

The lottery application for DPS is open for the month of January in School Mint.  Any student in Durham County may apply for the MYP (9th & 10th grades) or the Diploma Programme (11th grade).  The district provides transportation to all students selected.  Students at our MYP partner school, Shepard Middle School, will receive priority admission status as long as an application is submitted on their behalf.  Any student who applies before the January deadline has a chance to be selected in the lottery for our IB Program in 9th, 10th or 11th grade.  The application consists of demographic data and a short essay explaining why the applicant wants to be in the IB Program.  The selection is completed randomly by the School Mint program.   Traditionally, Hillside has offered slots to the following number of applications for each grade level: 

During the first week of March, parents and students are notified through School Mint of their acceptance into the IB program.  The deadline to accept is usually about 3 weeks.  In order to accept their seat, a parent of the applicant must do the following: 

1. Accept the seat by the set deadline in School Mint.  If the applicant fails to accept the seat then their selection will automatically be declined and they will lose their seat. 

2. Visit Hillside’s Student Services department to complete Hillside High School’s enrollment packet.  The parent must bring a current lease or deed that matches the address on the application and a photo ID.  Rising 9th graders will complete a course registration form.  Rising 10th & 11th grade students must bring a copy of their high school transcript and meet with the corresponding counselor to complete a course registration form. 

3. Complete Hillside’s Statement of Intent form link that was in the email correspondence with the instructions on how to accept the seat.

Revision: February 2025