Case Study: PISOTA and Avela –Driving Equitable and Diverse Enrollment

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As Phoenix International School of the Arts (PISOTA) set out to open its doors in La Plata, Maryland, it aimed to cultivate a diverse and inclusive learning community through intentional enrollment practices.

In its very first year, PISOTA received over 800 applications for just 175 seats—a clear sign of strong community interest. Yet that demand brought new challenges: How could they ensure that every family had an equitable chance to apply, especially across rural and underserved areas? And how could they prevent summer melt and get students from accepted to actually attending?

That’s where Avela came in.

By partnering with Avela and leveraging its parent-friendly digital application platform and Nobel Prize–winning lottery tools, PISOTA:

• Kept the application process under five minutes, fully mobile-friendly and multilingual

• Maintained regular touchpoints post-lottery to keep families engaged

• Achieved a diverse inaugural class with 65% African American students, plus strong representation across white and Latinx communities, rural and urban areas

The result? A model for equitable enrollment that other schools can learn from.

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