Information on Enrollment Caps
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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. It is possible there are 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.
Capped Schools as of Feb. 4, 2020
- Capped Elementary Schools: Abbotts Creek, Alston Ridge, Beaverdam, Cedar Fork, Combs, Highcroft Drive, Holly Grove, Hortons Creek, Lead Mine, Mills Park, Oakview, Olive Chapel, Rogers Lane, Scotts Ridge, Sycamore Creek, White Oak, Weatherstone
- Capped Middle Schools: Mills Park
- Capped High Schools: Heritage, Panther Creek
Frequently Asked Questions
Enrollment Caps
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My base school is capped. What does that mean for my child?
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 will be assigned to an overflow school.Overflow seats offered to parents are based on seat availability.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 the base school if a seat becomes available. -
Who may attend a capped school?
Students who:- 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 present themselves prior to April 1 in order to avoid being capped out and assigned to an overflow school.
- Rising kindergarten students and others who pre-register for the upcoming school year who have established residency before the cap date. They must present themselves prior to April 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.
Enrollment caps begin on different dates for different schools. Families should contact the school’s data manager to find out the effective date of the enrollment cap. -
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. -
How do I prove residency 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. 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. -
Will I be contacted if a seat opens up at my base school?
Students who are capped out of their base schools remain on a waitlist and will be contacted if seats open. Families may be contacted during the summer before school starts if a seat has become available for their student.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 be assigned to their base school for the following school year.If the student is called back to the base school over the summer and declines the seat, school district transportation will no longer be provided to and from the overflow school unless the overflow school is the calendar option school for the family’s address. -
How do modular units affect crowding?
This will depend on the crowding situation at the school.They may be used to make more room for additional base students to attend, or the population will remain the same and the extra space will be used to ease crowding.
