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Hoisington open-enrollment policy fine tuned
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The Hoisington Board of Education met Monday night. Clayton Jackson, visitor, asked the board about Middle School wrestling coaching positions and what is the procedure used to fill the open positions. The Board thanked Jackson for bringing his questions to them. (Courtesy Photo)

Hoisington USD 431 began its evening Monday with a special meeting to discuss the policy to set the procedure for the enrollment of nonresident students. The question remaining for the board is grandfathering non-resident students currently enrolled at USD 431. Non-resident students attending USD 431 during the 2023-2024 academic year will be calculated into the capacity numbers for 2024-2025 academic year.

The school board will finalize the policy at its December meeting, Superintendent Patrick Crowdis said.

“This is state law,” he said. The new policy needs approved by Jan. 1, 2024.

The Kansas public school transfer student policy is currently in a state of flux. Board President Dean Stoskopf anticipates changes to the State Open Enrollment law and the USD 431 policy will also change. In May, Governor Laura Kelly signed House Bill 2567, which included funding for Kansas public schools and an open enrollment policy that will be put into place in the 2024-25 school year. This policy will allow students in grades K-12 to attend any school within Kansas, regardless of their home district.

Until the open enrollment policy takes effect on Jan. 1, 2024, students who wish to transfer to a school outside of their home district must apply for a transfer. Each school district has its own transfer policy, but most districts require students to be in good standing academically and behaviorally in order to be eligible for a transfer. Some districts also have other criteria for approving transfers, such as space availability or the need to balance enrollment across schools. To apply for a transfer, students and their families should contact the school district that they wish to transfer to. The district will provide them with an application form and any other required documentation. Once the application is complete, the district will review it and make a decision. If the application is approved, the student will be able to enroll in the new school at the start of the next school year.

Additional things to keep in mind about the Kansas public school transfer student policy:

• Students who are approved for a transfer are responsible for their own transportation to and from the new school.

• Students who transfer to a new school may be subject to different academic and extracurricular eligibility requirements. For example, students who transfer to a new school in the middle of the year may not be eligible to participate in extracurricular activities for the remainder of the year.

• Students who transfer to a new school may also be subject to different school fees and other costs.