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Enrollment Caps
Many schools have reached the maximum number of students they can effectively teach. When that happens, the Board of Education may place an enrollment cap on the school.If you recently moved to your home and are assigned to a capped school, your child may be assigned to an overflow school. (Type in your address to confirm your base school.) However, you should still start by contacting the data manager at your base school. There may be available seats in certain grades at a capped school. In the case of magnet schools, the enrollment cap does not affect the number of magnet seats available during the selection process. Learn more about enrollment caps.Feeder Pattern CapsA feeder pattern cap is currently in place for Mills Park Middle School and Apex Friendship High School.
Feeder pattern caps are different from other school caps. Middle schools with a feeder pattern cap have cap waitlists for students who are currently attending a feeder elementary school. High schools with a feeder pattern cap have cap waitlists for students who are currently attending a feeder elementary or middle school.
For schools with a feeder pattern cap, students can be added to a feeder pattern cap waitlist as early as kindergarten. To be placed on a feeder pattern cap waitlist, a family must first establish that they are living in the base attendance area for the capped middle or high school and register their student in the Wake County Public School System. Students who meet the residency requirements in the attendance areas for a school with a feeder pattern cap and who register/ enroll in a WCPSS school will be added to the feeder pattern cap waitlist.
NOTE: If a student is withdrawn from WCPSS or moves outside the base attendance area for the capped school, they will be removed from the feeder pattern cap waitlist. Students not currently registered/ enrolled in WCPSS will NOT be added to the feeder pattern cap waitlist.
For more information on capping, review section B of Board Policy 4150: Temporary Membership Caps and section B of the R&P for policy 4150: Temporary Membership Cap.
The Board of Education maintained or instituted an enrollment cap for the following schools on Jan. 7, 2025:
- Capped Elementary Schools: Abbotts Creek, Alston Ridge, Apex Friendship, Beaverdam, Cedar Fork, Holly Grove, Holly Ridge, Hortons Creek, Northwoods, Oakview, Olive Chapel, Parkside, River Bend, Rogers Lane, Scotts Ridge, White Oak, Weatherstone
- Capped Middle Schools: Apex Friendship, Mills Park
- Capped High Schools: Apex Friendship, Heritage, Panther Creek
Enrollment Caps
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My base school has an enrollment cap. What does that mean?
Schools with enrollment caps are schools that are experiencing both excessive crowding and high residential growth in their attendance area.These schools are so crowded that every available space at the school is serving a student, and there is no room for any additional students. The Board of Education reviews school utilization annually and sets enrollment caps at schools that have the most crowding.A total enrollment cap number is set for each grade at the school with an enrollment cap. Once a school reaches this total enrollment number, any new families who move into the base attendance area may be assigned to an overflow school. The enrollment process will still take place at your base school, and it is possible seats are available at certain grade levels.Transportation will be provided to and from the overflow school.Students assigned to an overflow school are also placed on a numbered wait list and could be called back to their base school if a seat becomes available. -
Who may attend a capped school?
Students who:
- Rising 6th or 9th grade students currently live in the school’s base attendance area and established residence in the base attendance area before the date the enrollment cap was placed. They must register prior to March 1 in order to avoid being capped out and assigned to an overflow school.
- Rising kindergarten students who pre-register for the upcoming school year who have established residency before the cap date. They must register prior to March 1 in order to avoid being capped out and assigned to an overflow school.
- Children of full-time school district employees who work at the capped school.
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What if I move into the base attendance area of a school after enrollment has been capped?
If a student’s base school has an enrollment cap, he or she may be assigned to an overflow school. (A capped school still may have a few available seats, depending on the grade level.)Transportation is provided to the overflow school. -
Where do I enroll if my base school has an enrollment cap?
Families should begin the enrollment process at their base schools, even if that school has an enrollment cap. This allows staff to determine if there is a seat available at the capped school or if your student will be assigned to an overflow school and placed on the wait list.
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How do I prove residency (domicile) when enrolling?
Families must be living in their homes at the time of enrollment. Families may bring current utility bills (gas, water, or electric), closing papers on a new home purchase, or a lease to show how long they have lived at their address and to establish your initial date of domicile. Offers to purchase a home, or contracts/leases that show the family is not yet domiciled at the home, will not be accepted as proof of residency.
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Will I be contacted if a seat opens up at my base school?
Families may also be contacted at the end of the second quarter for a mid-year placement if a seat becomes available during the first half of the year. Those contacted mid-year can request to continue at their current school to finish the year and remain on the waitlist. If a seat becomes available over the summer, the capped school will reach out to the family.
