Nevada school districts, including Clark and Washoe, provide students with the opportunity to attend a school they are not zoned for if there are available seats — a policy commonly known as open enrollment.
Last year, lawmakers passed a bill (AB533) that creates a standardized open enrollment process statewide. The law will be fully implemented in July, meaning most of the changes won’t begin until the 2027-28 school year.
The policy won’t apply to magnet schools, career and technical academies and dual enrollment schools.
Last school year, the Clark County School District (CCSD) received more than 16,000 applications for open enrollment, and the majority were granted. In 2024, more than 1,000 Washoe County School District (WCSD) students were offered a new school placement out of the 1,550 families that applied during the first round of selections.
But the Nevada Department of Education has asked CCSD and WCSD to implement at least one of the bill’s provisions ahead of the full implementation — prioritizing applications from students zoned for one- or two-star schools.
Here’s more information on how open enrollment works at Nevada’s two largest school districts.
How do I apply for open enrollment?
CCSD’s application opens in October and closes on Jan. 13. The district will reopen applications for any remaining seats on the Monday after spring break, which lands on March 23, through the 10th day of the 2026-27 school year. The application and which schools have availability can be found on CCSD’s website.
Washoe County has two application windows for the district’s School of Choice program — in the fall and in the spring. The fall application window closed prior to publication, but the spring window will be open from March 9-20. Find more information on the district’s School of Choice page.
Both districts allow students to apply at up to three schools.
The process is open to all students, but beginning this school year, CCSD and WCSD are going to prioritize students from one- or two-star schools, something that was pushed for by Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo during the 2025 legislative session. (School ratings can be found on the Nevada Department of Education’s online dashboard, Nevada Report Card.)
CCSD’s Assistant Superintendent for College and Career Readiness Gia Moore said the district’s data shows students from those schools aren’t typically applying for open seats at any higher-rated school. Rather, they are looking at school culture or whether a school’s location is more convenient for them.
WCSD’s Director of Student Enrollment and Records Desiree Mandeville said at her district, the change means students from schools with lower star ratings will now get first dibs on the seats available at the school(s) they apply to.
Mandeville said in the event that there are more applicants than available seats, students from one- and two-star schools will automatically get seats, and the rest of the applicants will be entered into a lottery for the remaining seats.
Students who have a sibling attending their desired school at the same time will be given priority in CCSD and WCSD’s lottery processes.
CCSD defines a sibling as a brother, sister, stepbrother or stepsister living in the same household.
WCSD also gives priority to children of district employees.
CCSD students can apply simultaneously for open enrollment and magnet schools/career and technical academy.
Who can apply for open enrollment?
Only students who are entering kindergarten through 12th grade may apply. Open enrollment isn’t available for students in pre-K.
WCSD recommends that students enrolled in specialized or self-contained programming in special education continue to receive their education at their zoned school.
Are there any qualifications for students?
Mandeville said WCSD previously took into account applicants’ grades and behavior, but that policy will be removed once AB533 is fully implemented.
The bill prohibits districts from considering an applicant’s academic, artistic or athletic ability, their participation in any extracurricular activity, whether they have a disability, whether they are learning English as a second language, their address or whether a pupil has previously been subject to any disciplinary action.
However, the law will allow districts to deny a student’s request to move schools if they were suspended for 10 or more days or expelled in the previous school year.
CCSD added that a student must not have been previously removed from the school they are applying to for behavioral reasons.
Is transportation provided?
Both school districts do not provide transportation for students to attend an alternative school. That also includes students who have an Individualized Education Plan and receive special education or students with a 504 Plan that provides them accommodations for a disability with transportation as a related service at their zoned or assigned school.
A 2025 bill (SB460), sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Nicole Cannizzaro (D-Las Vegas), allocates $7 million to the Nevada Department of Education for fiscal year 2026-27 to provide transportation support to certain students who demonstrate financial need.
The Nevada Department of Education stated in a Dec. 24 email that it’s developing regulations for the transportation funding and anticipating releasing a notice of the funding opportunity to districts by March.
Can students participate in athletics at their new school?
CCSD stated in a Jan. 7 email that in general, eligible student athletes can participate in interscholastic athletics during their first 180 school days of their open enrollment placement and will retain eligibility through the remainder of their placement.
WCSD recommends families speak with their school’s athletic director or the Nevada Interscholastic Athletics Association for more information.
If a student’s open enrollment application is accepted, how long does the student commit to staying at the new school?
In CCSD, students must attend their new school for at least one school year.
Meanwhile, WCSD allows students to return to their zoned school at any time during the school year.
Mandeville said in the three years since the district adopted its current open enrollment policy, only a few students have decided to return to their zoned school.
“We've been able to accommodate them moving back to their zone school, and so we don't foresee a change in that policy, because we really want to do what's best for the kid,” she said.
Students can stay at their new schools through the highest grade offered at that school without needing to reapply each year, but would need to submit a new application if they want to move to a different school or are moving from elementary to middle school or from middle school to high school.
Can the placement be revoked?
Mandeville said WCSD’s policy had been to revoke a placement if a student had chronic or severe absent absences or a certain level of behavior incidents. But going forward, she said the placement could be revoked if a student has been suspended for 10 days or more or expelled.
CCSD parents must sign a contract that states they are responsible for getting their child to and from their new school, and ensuring they attend on time. Students are expected to maintain good attendance while attending a school on open enrollment.
The district said in a Jan. 8 email that students who accrue 10 or more absences (excused or unexcused) or accumulate excessive tardies within a semester may be placed on probation. Students who do not meet the obligations of their probation may be dismissed from the school at the end of the school year.