Open Enrollment for the 2020-2021 School Year Opens at 9 a.m. on January 8, 2020

As of the 2019-2020 school year, the Open Enrollment process for Santa Clara Unified changed. Please review all of the information below to make sure that you are following the correct procedure.

Open Enrollment for Santa Clara Unified schools is currently closed. The first round of Open Enrollment for grades Kindergarten - 12 will take place between 9:00 a.m. on January 8, 2020, and 4:30 p.m. on February 5, 2020. 

Prior to applying for Open Enrollment, you must register at your school of residence. If you do not know your school of residence, please refer to the District's School Finder. You can visit the registration forms and process webpage for more information about the registration process. Please direct any enrollment questions to your school of residence or the District mainline at (408) 423-2000.

The Santa Clara Unified Board of Trustees has established a policy of limited Open Enrollment. Although some of our schools are already at capacity, this policy allows families who reside within the boundaries of the district to request enrollment of their children at "any District school which may have space available for additional students." Admittance to the school of your choice under the Open Enrollment process 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.

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).

First Round of Open Enrollment: 9 a.m. on January 8, 2020, through 4:30 p.m. on February 5, 2020. 

The first round of Open Enrollment for grades Kindergarten through 12 will take place between January 8, 2020, and February 5, 2020, and will include 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 2020-2021 school year desiring to attend a school within the district that is NOT your school of residence, January 8, 2020, through February 5, 2020, is the time to enter your request of Open Enrollment. We encourage all Open Enrollment applicants to attend one of our parent information tours (dates pending).

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. First-round applications will not be accepted after 4:30 p.m. on February 5, 2020. Only one application per student will be accepted.

Second Round of Open Enrollment: 9 a.m. on March 18, 2020, through 4:30 p.m. on May 1, 2020. 

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 and students who missed the deadline can apply during this window.

After the Deadline

Students requesting a change in school after the second round window is closed need to apply at the District Office (1889 Lawrence Road, Santa Clara) 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 2020-2021 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 Attendance and Discipline department at 408-423-2110 for more information.

Washington Open & Millikin Basics+

Families wishing to enroll their child at Washington Open or Millikin Basics+ are encouraged to attend parent information tours (dates pending) to visit the schools and observe classrooms. Each of these schools has a very different educational philosophy.

Please review the "Open Enrollment Priorities Clarified" section below so that you are aware of the different priority levels for Open Enrollment.

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 2020-2021 school year, 140 students will be assigned to the four Peterson+ classes through a fair and random lottery process. Equal opportunity for enrollment will be provided to students residing outside the Peterson attendance areas (through the Open Enrollment Application) as well as to students residing within Peterson’s attendance area (through the completion of an application at Peterson Middle School while registering for 6th grade during the Open Enrollment window). Families of students residing within the Peterson attendance area must bring proof of residency at the time they come to Peterson to apply for Peterson+. Students applying through the Open Enrollment process as well as Peterson attendance area students applying through the registration process at Peterson Middle School must apply between January 8, 2020, and February 5, 2020. Due to the large number of applicants for this school, there will be no second round of Open Enrollment for Peterson+.

A parent meeting will be held at Peterson Middle School after registration has ended. Families of students who have been accepted to the Peterson+ program will be advised of the date and are strongly encouraged to attend.

Spanish Bilingual Program

Both Scott Lane and George Mayne Elementary 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 student participate in this program should apply through Open Enrollment. For further information, call (408) 423-2117.

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.

Open Enrollment Priorities Clarified

Elementary schools receiving requests for admission shall give priority for attendance to:

1. Siblings* of students who are enrolled at the school at the time of open enrollment.
2. Students currently attending the school through overload process and who apply for Open Enrollment during designated Open Enrollment windows.
3. The children of employees who work at the school.
4. The children of other employees.

Secondary schools receiving requests for admission shall give priority for attendance to:

1. Siblings* of students who are enrolled at the school at the time of open enrollment.
2. The children of employees who work at the school.
3. The children of other employees.
4. 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.

Permanent Student Number Required

You must register the student at your school of residence 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 registration forms and process webpage.

Obtaining a permanent student number may take up to two business days. The final day to obtain a permanent student number for open enrollment purposes is January 31, 2020. 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.

Students Attending School on an Intradistrict Transfer During the 2019-2020 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 2020-2021 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.

Step-By-Step Guidelines for Open Enrollment

1. Determine your school of residence using the District School Finder.
2. Register online or at your school of residence to obtain your permanent student number.
   • If you register online, print out two copies of your final application as verification for the school and for your records.
3. Wait to receive your permanent student number from your school of residence. This can take up to two days.
4. Register for Open Enrollment using your permanent student number during one of the windows listed above.

Applying for Open Enrollment

Open Enrollment applications must be submitted online by clicking the "Open Enroll Now" link below beginning January 8, 2020, at 9 a.m. and concluding February 5, 2020, at 4:30 p.m. You may access the website from anywhere — the District Office (1889 Lawrence Avenue, Santa Clara), home, the public library, etc. If you require assistance in the application process, you can receive help at your school of residence or from the district office receptionist.

*Please 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 "primary phone number." It is therefore imperative that families verify the phone number provided to the school for the currently enrolled sibling, inform the school of any change to this phone number, and use the same phone number when applying for 2020-2021 Open Enrollment. If you are unsure of the phone number you have listed as your "primary phone number," please contact the school office where the sibling is currently attending.

OPEN ENROLL NOW