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Littleton Public Schools Regulation |
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Policy Code JFBA-R Policy Name Intradistrict Choice/Open Enrollment and Transfers Adoption June 21, 1994 Revised June 18, 2009 |
Attendance Area
Students will attend the district school determined by their residence unless a request to attend another school or program is approved. No student will be enrolled in a school or program outside his/her attendance area without prior approval in accordance with Board policy and these regulations. The principal of each school will be responsible for checking student enrollment records to determine that each student is a legal resident of that school’s attendance area or has an approved authorization for open enrollment or transfer.
If students have a request pending for open enrollment or transfer, registration in the requested school will not be permitted until the student has received written approval for open enrollment or transfer.
School Program Descriptions
By Labor Day, each school principal will send the school master schedule to the Superintendent or designee. The master schedule will provide a synopsis of school program offerings and be available for parent/guardian review. The same master schedule will be referenced by the principal when discussing minimum enrollment levels.
Open Enrollment Application Procedures, Timelines, and Decision-Making Criteria
Requests for open enrollment must be initiated by the parents/guardians or emancipated students by filing the approved form with the principal of the school which the student wishes to attend (receiving school), who shall determine if the request can be approved, using criteria established in Board policy and these regulations. Applications may be filed at any time; priority will be given to applications filed between October 1 and January 31. Applicants will be notified by February 15 if the request is approved or not approved. Following the January 31 deadline, all enrollment requests, including those from nonresidents, will be considered on a first-come, first-served basis.
For students seeking to return to the school of their attendance area once the school year has begun, their parent or guardian, unless the student is 18, must make the request in writing to the principal of the school the student is currently attending as well as to the principal of the school of their attendance area. This request must be made no later than the second Friday following the first day of instruction for the school year.
The receiving school principal will notify the principal of the current school and the parent/guardian of the disposition of the requests.
Forms and procedures will be available in every school building and in the central administration office. Forms and procedures will be produced by the appropriate administrator’s office so that any changes in the law or Board policy will be adhered to and so the forms and procedures remain consistent throughout the District. Each principal will notify parents/guardians through the school newsletter and other means of the availability of the forms and deadline for applying, in time frames specified in Board policy.
If more requests are received for open enrollment than can be accommodated within criteria established by Board policy, applications will be prioritized based on:
The length of residence of the student or his/her parent/guardian, whichever is longer, with priority given to those applicants who have a longer period of residency;
The presence of a sibling at the requested school, when two applicants have the same length of residence.
Students who apply for open enrollment and cannot be accepted at the time of application will be placed on a waiting list based on the priority criteria above and will be considered for approval at a later date if space becomes available. The waiting list will be maintained until September 30 of each school year after which a new waiting list will be developed for the next 12 months.
Transfer Application Procedures, Timelines, and Decision-Making Criteria
Requests for transfers must be initiated by the parents/guardians or emancipated students by filing the approved form with the principal of the school which the student wishes to attend (receiving school). The principal shall determine if the request can be approved, using criteria established in Board policy and these regulations. The receiving school principal will notify the principal of the current school and the parents/guardians or emancipated students of the disposition of the request.
Forms and procedures will be available in every school building and in the central administration office. The principal is responsible for explaining to parents/guardians or emancipated students the procedures used to process transfer requests.
Forms and procedures will be produced by the appropriate administrator’s office so that any changes in the law or Board policy will be adhered to and so the forms and procedures remain consistent throughout the District. Each principal will notify parents/guardians or emancipated students through the school newsletter and with other means of the availability of the forms and deadline for applying, in time frames specified in Board policy.
Transfer requests for elementary and middle schools may be made and approved at any time during the school year beginning with the first day of school and through March 31. Transfer requests for high schools may be made and approved any time beginning with the first day of school and through September 30 and also during the first ten days of the second semester.
If more transfer requests are received than can be accepted, requests are given priority order as indicated below:
All pending open enrollment applications from resident students will be acted upon before transfer requests are considered;
Date of application, with earlier transfer applications considered first; and
The presence of a sibling at the requested school when two transfer applications are submitted on the same date.
A student who has been granted a transfer and wishes to make another transfer to a different school or return to the home school must reapply. This transfer will be given the same consideration as all other transfer requests.
Annual Reporting on Disposition of Requests
At the end of each school year, the Superintendent shall present to the Board of Education a report on student open enrollment and transfer requests. This report shall detail the impact of approved requests on the enrollment and programs of each school and shall include information on the open enrollments and transfers:
Taking effect during the current year;
Made but denied for the current year;
Approved which will take effect during the next school year;
Requested but denied for the next school year;
Received for the next school year but not yet acted upon;
Placed on a waiting list during the school year.
The Superintendent shall also provide information on students who have left the District and their reasons for leaving.
Each principal will maintain a file of all transfer and open enrollment requests to his/her building, including those requests placed on a waiting list. A copy will be forwarded to the appropriate administrator at the Education Services Center for Districtwide data collection purposes and reporting to the Board of Education. A copy will also be stored in central files for a period of time recommended by the State Archives.
Criteria to Establish Maximum and Minimum Enrollment Limits
The Superintendent shall determine and present for Board of Education approval maximum and minimum enrollment limits for each school. Board of Education approval is also required for any revisions to these limits.
The maximum enrollment limit is the level of enrollment at which the receiving school may deny an open enrollment or transfer request based on lack of space within the building. In establishing each school’s maximum enrollment limit, the Superintendent shall take into account the square footage of the building, the number of classrooms, and the enrollment history of the school. The maximum enrollment limit may be lower than would be indicated by these factors if one or more of the following considerations apply:
Modifications have been made in the physical structure of the building which permanently restrict capacity;
Space within the building has been allocated to programs which cannot be relocated without detriment to those programs or without incurring significant cost;
Growth is anticipated in the student population within the school’s attendance area and the Board of Education has deemed it to be within the best interest of the District to leave space available within the school;
New demands for building space are anticipated for the purpose of accommodating increased enrollment by special education students or new programs to be implemented for special education students.
The minimum enrollment limit is the level of enrollment at which important instructional programs offered by the sending school would be jeopardized by further enrollment losses or at which cost efficient use of facilities would no longer be possible.
Responding to Maximum and Minimum Enrollment Limits
If the receiving school principal believes acceptance of an open enrollment or transfer request would exceed maximum enrollment limits in the receiving school, or exceed class size limits in a program, or demand added or reallocation of resources, the principal shall not accept the request and shall concurrently notify the Superintendent, who shall advise the Board of Education and notify the public that the building or program may be closed to further open enrollment and transfer applications.
If the sending principal believes acceptance of open enrollment or transfer requests from his/her student body would result in dropping below minimum enrollment limits, the sending principal shall notify the Superintendent. The Superintendent shall advise the Board of Education that students may be denied open enrollment/transfer to another school and will take appropriate action to notify students, the public, and other District staff.