Last year, my friend Chelsea moved to a lovely home that was assigned to her favorite Fairfax County schools. This summer, she called me frantically asking about what to do because she had been notified that the High School boundary was in a study to be re-organized and she wasn't sure about the new assignment.
She then told her friend, Becky, who was moving to the DC area that it was pointless to choose a home by school. After all, the boundaries change and the house she chose could be re-assigned to a different school than the one she wanted.
School boundary changes aren't as terrible as they seem
After I calmed each of them down, I explained to them that school boundaries in our County don't change as often as it seemed. Plus, when there is a change, there's plenty of advance notice - many times there's a year or two (or more!) prior to the re-organization. And, many of the kids who would be directly affected with a change in the middle of their school experience are grandfathered to finish their studies in the school where they started.
But, why are Chelsea and Becky so worried about changing school boundaries?
In Fairfax County, there is no open enrollment. Enrollment in a Fairfax County school is primarily done by school attendance area (or school boundary). There are some exceptions, of course, but the only way of ensuring that a child attends a specific school is to live within the boundary of that school.
However, even when one lives in the school boundary of choice, the boundaries can change.
To learn more about Fairfax County School boundaries, read on: Fairfax County Schools: How often do boundaries change?
See you on the other side. ;)
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