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Austin ISD Is Now Accepting School Transfer Requests. Here's What You Need To Know.

Gabriel C. Pérez
/
KUT

Austin parents unsatisfied with their neighborhood schools can now apply for their children to be transferred to another school within the Austin Independent School District.

AISD has an open transfer policy, so families don't have to send their students to their assigned neighborhood school.

Students outside boundary areas can't transfer into schools that are already at capacity, however. (Schools that aren’t accepting transfer students for the 2019-2020 school year are listed at the bottom of this post.)

There are two categories of transfers: priority and nonpriority. Here are situations that qualify for a priority transfer:

Sibling transfer: Priority is given to a student whose sibling already attends or will attend the same school.

Tracking transfer: Let’s say you transferred your daughter in elementary school to a school other than your assigned one. Now, she is about to start middle school. You can send her back to your neighborhood middle school, but you would also get priority if you wanted to keep her in her current school path.

The caveat here is if the school you want to transfer into is at capacity.

Majority-to-minority transfer: If a student is assigned to a school where more than half of the student population is the same race as them, they are eligible to transfer to a school where less than half of the population is the same race as them. So, if a black student is assigned to a school where a majority of the students are black, he would get a priority to transfer to a school where a majority of the students are white.

Nonpriority requests are for any reason not listed above.

Students who are approved for a transfer must provide their own transportation. Applications are due Jan. 31. After that, requests will be considered on a first-come, first-served basis.

Requests for K-12 transfers may be submitted online through the parent cloud portal or mailed to the Office of Student Services (Room A200), Carruth Administration Center, 1111 W. Sixth St. Requests can also be faxed with the required documents to 512-414-4994.

Pre-K requests must be done in person at the school parents wish to transfer into.

A parent or guardian must show a photo ID and proof of residence. Students who are new to AISD must register online before submitting a transfer request.

The following schools are closed for transfers next school year:

High schools

  • Akins
  • Austin
  • Bowie
  • Lanier
  • McCallum

Middle schools

  • Fulmore
  • Lamar
  • Murchison
  • Small

Elementary schools

  • Baldwin
  • Baranoff
  • Becker (transfers are closed only for pre-K through third grades and the dual language program)
  • Blazier
  • Brentwood (except kindergarten)
  • Casis (except kindergarten)
  • Cowan
  • Doss
  • Gullett (except kindergarten)
  • Hill
  • Kiker
  • Maplewood (except kindergarten and sixth grade)
  • Menchaca
  • Oak Hill
  • Reilly (transfers are closed only for pre-K through third grades and the dual language program)
  • Ridgetop
  • Summitt (except kindergarten)
  • Sunset Valley (transfers are closed only for pre-K through third grades and the dual language program)
  • Zilker (except kindergarten)
Claire McInerny is a former education reporter for KUT.
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