How
to Apply | Board
Policy Open Enrollment | Open
Enrollment Procedures
We recognize the desire of some parents/guardians
to enroll their children in a school other than their
neighborhood school, from either within or outside
of the Boise School District. If you are interested
in applying for admission to a school in our District,
please follow these Open Enrollment application procedures.
- Read the Board Policy Manual section
on Open Enrollment.
- Print and fill out the Open Enrollment
form.
- Return the completed form to the
appropriate school:
- If you are a resident of the Boise School
District, please take the form to your home
neighborhood school's principal.
- If you live outside the Boise School District's
attendance boundaries, please take the form
to the principal of the Boise school you would
like your student to attend.
- Your application will be reviewed
by the appropriate principal and District area director
and a decision to approve or deny will be made.
- Open enrollment applications will
be accepted at any time throughout the year. However,
those applications submitted by the dates indicated
below will receive first consideration for open enrollment
in the indicated grade.
| Applications For: |
Deadline: |
| Elementary |
May 15th of the preceding school year. |
| Seventh grade |
May 15th of the fifth grade year. |
| Eighth and Ninth grade |
May 15th of the preceding school year. |
| Tenth grade |
May 15th of the eighth grade year |
| Eleventh and Twelfth grade |
May 15th of the preceding school year. |
Applicants meeting the above deadlines will generally
receive notification of their open enrollment status
by June 15.
- Questions? Please contact the
Boise school you would like your student to attend.
Open Enrollment
Application & Contract (English)
Solicitud
de Matrícula Abierta y Contrato (Application
in Spanish)
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Open Enrollment Board Policy
The Board recognizes the desire of some parents/guardians
to enroll their children in a school which is other
than their residence school either within or outside
the District. In addition, the Board believes that
the needs of neighborhood school students should be
considered along with the needs of those requesting
the transfer. To the extent possible, the Superintendent
or designee will attempt to balance these desires and
needs.
Transportation
Parents/guardians are responsible for transporting
students accepted under open enrollment. If bus space
is available, open enrollment students may be transported
from an appropriate, established bus stop within the
District’s boundaries.
IHSAA Varsity Sports/Activities
A student who plans to participate in a varsity sport
and/or activity governed by the Idaho High School Activities
Association (IHSAA) should review IHSAA rules prior
to submitting an open enrollment application form.
Certain school transfers will lead to a student being
ineligible to participate at the varsity level for
one year.
Application/Approval Process
Open enrollment applications will be available and
may be submitted at any time throughout the year. However,
those applications submitted by the dates indicated
in the procedure will receive first consideration for
open enrollment in the indicated grade.
In situations where openings are limited and applicants
have met the prescribed deadlines, the Superintendent
or designee may give priority to certain students.
Priorities include, but are not limited to the following:
- Students residing in the District
boundary, but outside the attendance area, whose
siblings attend the school
- Students residing in the District boundary, but
outside the attendance area.
- Students whose parents are employed by the District.
- Students residing outside of the District boundary,
whose siblings attend the school.
- Students residing outside of the District boundary.
The Superintendent or designee may deviate from the
above priorities in order to take into consideration
unique circumstances or extraordinary factors.
The priorities listed above are in order of consideration
for openings in space-limited schools. Vacancies will
be filled until there are more applications than available
vacancies in a category, then a transparent lottery
will be held for the applications in that category
in order to fill remaining vacancies.
Applications received after the deadlines will be
considered based on space availability at the receiving
school.
The Superintendent or designee may deny an open enrollment
request when such enrollment would have a negative
impact on the efficient use of District resources.
The Superintendent or designee may set numerical limits
defining hardship for schools, grade levels, or programs
to provide for appropriate and efficient use of facilities
and staff. The student to teacher ratios shall not
exceed the class/teacher limits outlined in the Class
Size policy #2331.
Revocation of a Transfer
The Board reserves the right to remove a transfer
student at any time because of unacceptable behavior,
false or misleading information on the open enrollment
application, lack of academic progress, or poor attendance.
The Superintendent, principal, or designee shall inform
the parent/guardian of behavior that jeopardizes the
student’s status at the transfer school. If a
student’s open enrollment is revoked, the parent/guardian
may request an administrative review by the Council
of Directors. The decision of the Council of Directors
is final.
Student Rights and Responsibilities
Due process for all students remains the same regardless
of what school they attend within the District and
regardless of where the student resides once accepted
under the open enrollment policy.
Preventing or Recruiting Potential Open Enrollment
Students
District employees will take no action to prohibit
or prevent application by its students to attend school
in another school district or to attend another school
within the District. In no case is an employee of the
District to recruit students outside of their attendance
area. Discipline for violation of this policy may involve
actions up to and including dismissal.
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Open Enrollment Procedures
Submitting the Form
- Varsity Sport/Activity Participation
- A student who plans to participate in a varsity
sport or activity governed by the Idaho High School
Activities Association (IHSAA) should review IHSSA
rules prior to submitting an Open Enrollment Application.
Certain school transfers will lead to a student being
ineligible to participate at the varsity level for
one year.
- Open Enrollment Application forms
are available at any Boise District school or web
site. Open Enrollment Applications may be submitted
at any time throughout the school year.
- Students who reside in the District
and move out of their school attendance zone during
the school year must initiate an Open Enrollment
request to stay in their school.
- For students who reside in the
Boise District, the parent/guardian completes the
Open Enrollment Application form and submits it to
either the principal of their attendance area school
(home school) or the principal of the requested school.
The principals will follow the process outlined under
Review Approval Process. A.
- For students who reside outside the Boise District
boundary, the parent/guardian completes the Open
Enrollment Application form and submits it to the
principal of the school they wish to attend (receiving
school). The principal will follow the process outlined
under Review Approval Process. B.
- . Current open enrolled students moving from elementary
to junior high or from junior high to high school
must complete an Open Enrollment Application and
submit to the school they wish to attend.
- Open enrolled students within a given school grade
span (K-6, 7-9, 10-12) are not required to reapply
on an annual basis for open enrollment.
Application Deadlines
Open enrollment applications will be accepted at
any time throughout the year. However, those applications
submitted by the dates indicated below will receive
first consideration for open enrollment in the indicated
grade.
| Applications For: |
Deadline: |
| Elementary |
May 15th of the preceding school year. |
| Seventh grade |
May 15th of the fifth grade year. |
| Eighth and Ninth grade |
May 15th of the preceding school year. |
| Tenth grade |
May 15th of the eighth grade year |
| Eleventh and Twelfth grade |
May 15th of the preceding school year. |
Applicants meeting the above deadlines will generally
receive notification of their open enrollment status
by June 15.
Enrollment Priorities
In situations where openings are limited, the Superintendent
or designee may give priority to certain students.
Priorities may include, but are not limited to the
following:
- Students residing in the District boundary, but
outside the attendance area whose siblings attend
the school
- Students residing in the District boundary, but
outside the attendance area
- Students whose parents are employed by the District
- Students residing outside of the District boundary,
whose siblings attend the school
- Students residing outside of the District boundary
The Superintendent or designee may deviate from the
above priorities in order to take into consideration
unique circumstances or extraordinary factors
The priorities listed above are in order of consideration
for openings in space-limited schools. Vacancies will
be filled until there are more applications than available
vacancies in a category then a transparent lottery
will be held for the applications in that category
in order to fill remaining vacancies.
Applications received after the deadline will be considered
based on space availability at the receiving school.
Restrictions
Factors which may cause an Open Enrollment Application
to be denied include:
- a school, grade, or program(s) has lack of available
space and/or staff;
- the current enrollment is at or above the following:
| Grade |
Class/Teacher Load
Size |
| K-1 |
21 |
| 2-3 |
24 |
| 4 |
26 |
| 5-6 |
29 |
| 7-12 |
150 students per teacher
per day |
| Special Education Self-Contained |
An average of 6 students
per classroom |
| English Language Learners |
20 per full-time ELL teacher |
| Alternative School |
12 students per classroom |
- the student has been suspended or expelled from
school;
- the student has a history of documented disciplinary
infractions within the past 3 years; or
- information on the Open Enrollment Application
has been misrepresented or was incomplete.
In-district approval process:
- Parent/guardian completes the open enrollment
application form and submits it to either the home
school or requested school principal.
- The principal who initially receives the open
enrollment application form completes the appropriate
section and sends the form to the other principal.
The principals of both the home school and requested
school make a recommendation regarding the application.
- After both principals (home school and requested
school) complete the appropriate section of the Open
Enrollment application form, the form is sent to
the Director of the receiving school.
- The Director approves or denies the Open Enrollment
request by completing the appropriate section of
the Open Enrollment Application form.
- If approved, the applicants sign the Open Enrollment
Contract.
Out-of-district approval process:
- A receiving school principal makes a recommendation
to approve or deny the transfer by completing the
appropriate section of the Open Enrollment Application
form.
- The receiving school principal sends the form to
his/her director.
- The Director approves or denies the Open Enrollment
request by completing the appropriate section of
the Open Enrollment Application form.
- If approved, the applicants sign the Open Enrollment
Contract.
Parent Notification
- The letter approving the request will inform the
parents of the following:
- Parents must provide transportation or get
student to nearest District bus stop, providing
space is available on the bus;
- Inappropriate behavior, lack of academic
progress, or poor attendance, may be grounds
for removing the student from the school to
which he/she is open enrolled during the school
year.
- Special Education students, English Language
Learners (ELL) alternative school students
and students in other special programs must
meet the requirements and the procedures established
for those programs.
- If the request for open enrollment is denied, the
denial will include a written explanation. If the
application is denied because open enrollment capacity
has been reached at the school of choice, the denial
may include information about other schools that
are below capacity.
Revocation of a Transfer
- The Board reserves the right to remove an open-enrolled
student at any time because of unacceptable behavior,
false or misleading information on the open enrollment
application, lack of academic progress, or poor attendance,
- The principal or designee shall inform the parent/guardian
of the circumstances which jeopardize the student’s
status at the transfer school.
- If a student’s open enrollment is revoked,
the parent/guardian may request an administrative
review by the Council of Directors. The parent/guardian
must request the review within five (5) school days
of receiving notice that their child’s transfer
has been revoked.
- The Council of Directors must render the decision
to the parent/guardian within five (5) school days
of the request for review. This decision of the Council
of Directors is final.
- Except in extenuating circumstances, the student
may remain in the open enrollment school during the
review process.
DEFINITION
School Days: include only those days when school
is in session.
Updated: 4/30/09
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