- Santa Clara Unified School District
- Open Enrollment
Open Enrollment
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Please review all of the information below to make sure that you are following the correct procedure.
The Board of Trustees for Santa Clara Unified School District has established a policy of limited Open Enrollment in our District. Although some of our schools are already at capacity, this policy allows families who reside within our district boundaries to request enrollment for their children at any school within our District, when/where space is available. Admittance to the school of your choice under Open Enrollment is done by an annual random lottery system. If you applied last year and were not admitted, you will need to reapply again this year if you want to be considered for your school of choice.
The first round of Open Enrollment for grades Kindergarten - 12 will take place between 9 a.m. on January 10, 2022, and 4:30 p.m. on February 4, 2022. Prior to applying for Open Enrollment, students not attending SCUSD for the 2021-2022 school year must register at their school of residence through our centralized Enrollment Center.
If you do not know your school of residence, please refer to the district's School Locator webpage. You can visit the Enrollment Instructions webpage for more information about the registration process. Please direct any enrollment questions to your school of residence or our Enrollment Center at (408) 423-3596 or enrollment@scusd.net.
Families with children previously placed at their school of choice through Open Enrollment need only reapply if the child will be changing schools (moving from elementary to middle school or middle school to high school), requesting a different school of choice, or enrolling an additional child (sibling).
More Information and Enrollment
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1st Round of Open Enrollment: January 10, 2022, 9 a.m. to February 4, 2022, at 4 p.m.
The first round of Open Enrollment for grades Kindergarten through 12 includes one school choice. For families with a student already attending an SCUSD school or a student who will be entering Santa Clara Unified for the 2022-2023 school year desiring to attend a school within the district, that is NOT your school of residence, this is the time to enter your request of Open Enrollment.
Although the date of your application does not affect your chances in the lottery, we encourage you to begin the application process as early as possible as you may have questions or need assistance. Only one application per student will be accepted.
Deadline for First Round of Open Enrollment
The deadline for accepting or declining First Round Open Enrollment Placements is to be determined.
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2nd Round of Open Enrollment: March 21, 2022, 9 a.m. to April 22, 2022, at 4 p.m.
The second round of Open Enrollment allows families a second opportunity to apply. Students who did not get accepted to their school of choice through the first round of Open Enrollment or who missed the deadline can apply during this window. Only one application per student will be accepted.
Listed below are the schools that have availability for Open Enrollment in the 2022-2023 school year:
Elementary Schools
- Bowers Elementary School
- Bracher Elementary School
- Braly Elementary School
- Mayne Elementary School
- Hughes Elementary School
- Montague Elementary School
- Pomeroy Elementary School
- Scott Lane Elementary School
- Scott Lane Elementary School - Dual Language Immersion Program
- Washington Open Elementary School (Kindergarten only)
- Westwood Elementary School
Middle Schools
- Huerta Middle School (7th Grade only)
High Schools
- MacDonald High School
Deadline for Second Round of Open Enrollment
The deadline for accepting or declining Second Round Open Enrollment Placements is to be determined.
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After the Open Enrollment Deadline
Students requesting a change of school after the second round window is closed need to apply at the Enrollment Center through the Intradistrict Transfer Request process for schools that may have space available. Students accepted to attend a school on an Intradistrict Transfer must apply for the opportunity to continue at that school for the following school year through the Open Enrollment process. Only students accepted to a school through the Open Enrollment process are guaranteed placement for the following year. Please call the Enrollment Center at 408-423-3596 for more information.
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Dual Language Immersion Program
Give your child the gift of a second language!
SCUSD launched its first Dual Language Immersion (DLI) Program at Scott Lane Elementary in the fall of 2020. In a DLI program, native English-speaking students, native Spanish-speaking students, and Bilingual students learn together in the same classroom, interacting and developing language skills together. Please visit the Scott Lane DLI webpage for more information.
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If You Received an Open Enrollment Acceptance Letter
Please respond to the Open Enrollment Offer on the online enrollment system. Please do this by 4 p.m. on the date indicated on your acceptance letter, for First Round Open Enrollment and for Second Round Open Enrollment.
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If You Received an Open Enrollment Waitlist Letter
Please contact your school of residence by March 25, 2022, if your child will not be attending Santa Clara Unified School, so they may plan for the coming year. Please do this by 4 p.m. on the date indicated on the decline, for First Round Open Enrollment and Second Round Open Enrollment.
In your email, please include the following information:
- Student name
- Student grade
- Student permanent ID number (this was used during your open enrollment application)
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Open Enrollment Priorities Clarified
Elementary schools receiving requests for admission shall give priority for attendance to:
- Siblings* of students who are enrolled at the school at the time of open enrollment.
- Students currently attending the school through the overload process and who apply for Open Enrollment during designated Open Enrollment windows.
- The children of employees who work at the school.
- The children of other employees.
Secondary schools receiving requests for admission shall give priority for attendance to:
- Siblings* of students who are enrolled at the school at the time of open enrollment.
- The children of employees who work at the school.
- The children of other employees.
- Siblings of graduates of the school, as long as the family continues to live within the SCUSD boundaries.
As long as the employee privilege remains in place, siblings of employees’ children attending district schools will be afforded the same priority status as resident siblings.
Note: Twins applying to the same school must be entered separately and will each receive a lottery number. When applying, also check the "Twins" box and enter the Permanent Student Number of the sibling twin.
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Peterson+
Peterson Middle School has a 6th grade program, Peterson+, that serves as a one-year transition from a Basics approach to the eventual heterogeneous format found in Santa Clara Unified’s other middle and high schools. For the 2021-2022 school year, 135 students will be assigned to the four Peterson+ classes through a fair and random lottery process. For more information about the program, please visit Peterson Middle School Open Enrollment and Peterson + Program webpage.
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Spanish Bilingual Program
Both Scott Lane (grades 3 through 5) and George Mayne Elementary (grades 3 through 5) schools offer a Spanish Bilingual Program that focuses on helping children develop their English language skills while providing instruction in their home language. Students must be Spanish speakers to enroll. Families interested in having their students participate in this program should apply through Open Enrollment.
Families with children in grades K-2 can apply to our Spanish Dual Language Immersion Program housed at Scott Lane Elementary School.
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Step-By-Step Guidelines for Open Enrollment
You must register the student through the Enrollment Center to obtain an assigned permanent student number before initiating the online Open Enrollment process. For more information about how to register a student please visit the Enrollment Instructions webpage.
If your child is currently enrolled and attending SCUSD, you will only need to complete Steps 4 through 8.- Determine your school of residence using the School Locator
- Register online through our online registration system to obtain your permanent student number
- Enrollment for the 2022-2023 school year opens December 1, 2021
- Wait to receive your permanent student number from the Enrollment Center.
- This can take up to two days from the date you submit your child’s registration form
- Families of students already attending school in Santa Clara Unified will need to obtain their child's permanent student number from the school their child is currently attending.
- Open the Open Enrollment Application 2022-2023
- The username will be your email address or mobile number.
- If you forget your username or password use the “Forgot Username” or “Forgot Password” link on the login page.
- If you are experiencing difficulties logging in contact the Enrollment Center at enrollment@scusd.net or 408-423-3596.
- On your Student Dashboard click “Edit New Student Application” or "Add New Student Application" next to the name of the student you will be completing the application for
- Select “2022-2023”, choose your student’s name, enter the student’s information, and click “Next”
- Select “Open Enrollment”, and click “Next”
- Select the school you wish to apply to, and click “Next” (Note: Schools may not be listed alphabetically)
- Complete the Open Enrollment Application, and click “Next”
- Review your Open Enrollment Application, and click “Submit”
Once you submit the Open Enrollment Application, you will see the status of your application as “submitted” on your Student Dashboard.
Elementary and middle school families will be notified of the status of your Round One application no later than March 14, 2022, by 5:00 p.m. High school families will be notified no later than March 16, 2022, by 5:00 p.m. Round Two notification will be shared no later than May 2, 2022.
If your round one application was denied, you need to reapply for an alternate school during the round two window. Your application will not affect your enrollment at your home school until you decline or accept an offer to open enroll.
*Note: When applying for Open Enrollment and reporting "sibling status" (i.e. a sibling is already enrolled at the school of choice; or in the case of high school, is or was enrolled at the school of choice) please be advised that the connecting link in the database to establish sibling status is the "siblings permanent identification number." If you are unsure of the sibling's permanent identification number, please contact the school office where the sibling is currently attending.
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Students Attending School on an Intradistrict Transfer During the 2020-2021 School Year
Students attending a school, other than their school of residence, on an Intradistrict Transfer must apply for the opportunity to continue at that school for the 2022-2023 school year through the Open Enrollment process. Only students accepted to a school through the Open Enrollment process are guaranteed placement for the following year. Once a student is accepted through Open Enrollment, the choice school becomes the student’s permanent placement through the grade span served at that school.
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Transitional Kindergarten (TK) Enrollment
Open Enrollment does not apply to Transitional Kindergarten as our Open Enrollment policy applies to K-12 students only. For more information please visit the TK webpage.
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Washington Open & Millikin Basics+
Families wishing to enroll their child at Washington Open are encouraged to attend a parent information tour.
Please review the "Open Enrollment Priorities Clarified" section on the Open Enrollment webpage so that you are aware of the different priority levels for Open Enrollment.