MJUSD
DIVISION 5000
STUDENTS

INTRADISTRICT OPEN ENROLLMENT

The Governing Board desires to provide enrollment options that meet the diverse needs and interests of District students. The Superintendent or designee shall establish procedures for the selection and transfer of students among District schools in accordance with law, Board policy, and administrative regulation.

The parents/guardians of any student who resides within District boundaries may apply to enroll their child in any District school, regardless of the location of residence within the District. (Education Code 35160.5)

The Board shall annually review this policy. (Education Code 35160.5, 48980)

Enrollment Priorities

Priority for attendance outside a student's attendance area shall be given as follows:

1. If a District school receiving Title I funds is identified for program improvement, corrective action, or restructuring, all students enrolled in that school shall be provided an option to transfer to another District school or charter school. (20 USC 6316)
2. If while on school grounds a student becomes the victim of a violent criminal offense, he/she shall be provided an option to transfer to another District school or charter school. (20 USC 7912)
3. If a student attends a school designated by the California Department of Education as "persistently dangerous," he/she shall be provided an option to transfer to another District school or charter school. (20 USC 7912; 5 CCR 11992)
4. The Superintendent or designee may approve a student's transfer to a District school that is at capacity and otherwise closed to transfers upon finding that special circumstances exist that might be harmful or dangerous to the student in the current attendance area, including, but not limited to, threats of bodily harm or threats to the emotional stability of the student. To grant priority under these circumstances, the Superintendent or designee must have received either: (Education Code 35160.5)
   a. a written statement from a representative of an appropriate state or local agency, such as a law enforcement official, social worker, or a properly licensed or registered professional, such as a psychiatrist, psychologist, or marriage and family therapist; or
   b. a court order, including a temporary restraining order and injunction.
5. Priority may be given to siblings of students already in attendance in that school.
6. Priority may be given to any student whose parent/guardian is assigned to that school as his/her primary place of employment.

For all other applications for enrollment from outside a school's attendance area, the Superintendent or designee shall use a random, unbiased selection process to determine who shall be admitted whenever the school receives admission requests that are in excess of the school's capacity. A school's capacity shall be calculated in a nonarbitrary manner using student enrollment and available space. (Education Code 35160.5)

Enrollment decisions shall not be based on a student's academic or athletic performance, except that existing entrance criteria for specialized schools or programs may be used provided that the criteria are uniformly applied to all applicants. Academic performance may be used to determine eligibility for, or placement in, programs for gifted and talented students. (Education Code 35160.5)

No student currently residing within a school's attendance area shall be displaced by another student transferring from outside the attendance area. (Education Code 35160.5)

Transportation

Except as required by 20 USC 6316 for transfers out of Title I program improvement schools, the District shall not be obligated to provide transportation for students who attend school outside their attendance area.

Legal Reference:

Education Code
35160.5 District policies; rules and regulations
35291 Rules
35351 Assignment of students to particular schools
48980 Notice at beginning of term

Code of Regulations, Title 5
11992-11994 Definition of persistently dangerous schools

United States Code, Title 20
6316 Transfers from program improvement schools
7912 Transfers from persistently dangerous schools

Code of Federal Regulations, Title 34
200.36 Dissemination of information
200.37 Notice of program improvement status, option to transfer
200.39 Program improvement, transfer option
200.42 Corrective action, transfer option
200.43 Restructuring, transfer option
200.44 Public school choice, program improvement schools
200.48 Transportation funding for public school choice

Court Decisions
Crawford v. Huntington Beach Union High School District, (2002) 98 Cal.App.4th 1275

Attorney General Opinions
85 Ops.Cal.Atty.Gen. 95 (2002)

Management Resources:

U.S. Department of Education Guidance
Unsafe School Choice Option, May 2004
Public School Choice, February 2004

Web Sites
CSBA: http://www.csba.org
California Department of Education, Unsafe School Choice Option: http://www.cde.ca.gov/ls/ss/se/usco.asp
U.S. Department of Education, No Child Left Behind:: http://www.nclb.gov

First Reading: 2/11/09

Governing Board Adoption: 3/18/09