A student applying for an Open Enrollment transfer is required to meet all of the following criteria:

• The student must have 95% attendance for the previous semester and the last six weeks.
• The student must have completed all classes for the last semester, and be passing all current classes.
• The student must have passed all portions of their latest state-mandated test and/or assessment exam.
• Space must be available at the requested campus, grade level, or program.
• If an Open Enrollment application is approved, the student accepts the seat, and becomes seated on a campus, the campus principal may review the Open Enrollment application at any time to ensure that all eligibility criteria have been met.

• Satisfactory scores on standardized achievement tests at the 60^th percentile or above.
• Successful achievement on District-administrated academic test(s).

Factors that determine if a campus can accept Open Enrollment students may include:

• Building capacity
• Current program or campus enrollment
• Growth projections
• Grade-level enrollments
• Teacher allocations
• Paraprofessional staff allocations

If a student meets the eligibility criteria listed above and campus criteria is met, one or more of the following exceptions may be applicable:

• The student is a current student at the campus in which they are applying.
• The student is the child of a full-time Birdville ISD employee. An in-district transfer may be requested with approval being based upon the eligibility and campus criteria listed above being met.
• The student is requesting a transfer to a campus outside of their attendance zone where an older sibling attends. The older sibling must be on the campus during the initial enrollment year and must meet all of the eligibility criteria listed above as well.
• A student who moves outside of the District during the course of a grading period may be permitted to continue at their current campus for the remainder of the six-week grading period. Before the end of the grading period, parents/guardians may apply for Open Enrollment if the student meets the eligibility criteria and the campus criteria requirements are met. If the Open Enrollment application is approved, the student may remain at the campus as long as they meet the eligibility criteria.

• Record of poor attendance
• Late arrivals or pick-ups
• Failing grades
• Disciplinary infractions
• Failing state-mandated test(s)
• If the application is for the purpose of participating in athletics at receiving campus
• Falsification of information
• Failure to meet eligibility criteria for transfer
• Decreased campus staffing
• Elementary projection exceeds 20 per class for kindergarten through fourth grades
• Elementary projection exceeds 22 per class for fifth grade
• Student projections reach 95% of campus/program capacity
• If any criteria is not met after being granted Open Enrollment and seated at the campus

Birdville ISD - District of Innovation

Transfer of Student – (TEC §25.036) (LOCAL POLICY FDB)

Local Innovation Plan/Guidelines: Relief from the code governing this policy would eliminate the provision of a one-year commitment in the event of exceptional circumstances, which would include, but are not limited to, student misbehavior warranting in or out of school suspension, placement in DAEP or expulsion; or attendance which falls below the TEA truancy standard including absences from school, and or multiple instances of late arrival, early dismissal or late pickup. This exception would not apply to McKinney Vento students due to federal law. Transfer revocation will be handled by the Executive Director of Student Services and may not be appealed.

• A student may apply for up to three campuses of their choice on one Open Enrollment application.
• Open Enrollment applications will be reviewed in the order they are received for students who meet the eligibility criteria.
• Next, to determine acceptance or denial of Open Enrollment applications, the campus principal and a Student Services Department administrator will appraise all Open Enrollment applications.
• Lastly, in a reasonable amount of time, parents/guardians will be notified through the email address provided in the student’s Open Enrollment application.

• Each application represents one student. This is required because the student is applying for a certain vacant seat in a specific grade at a particular campus. A student currently attending a campus in Birdville ISD through Open Enrollment, will not automatically progress from one grade level to the next, whether it be at the same campus or continuing on to a new campus in the feeder pattern.
• Each student living outside of the campus attendance zone must submit an Open Enrollment application every school year.
• The student must meet all eligibility criteria each school year.
• There is no tuition fee for out-of-district applicants for the current school year. However, consideration for an Open Enrollment tuition fee for out-of-district applicants will be reviewed in subsequent years.

• The campus principal may revoke a student’s Open Enrollment approval at the end of a school year based on the listed eligibility criteria, the listed reasons for denial, other items listed on Birdville ISD’s website and/or Birdville ISD handbooks, and code of conduct rules and regulations.

• A student currently attending a campus in Birdville ISD through Open Enrollment will not automatically progress from one grade level to the next, whether it be at the same campus or continuing on to a new campus, in the feeder pattern.
• Each student living outside of the campus’ attendance zone must submit an Open Enrollment application every school year.
• The student must meet all eligibility criteria each school year.

• Each student approved into the Open Enrollment program must provide their own transportation to and from school.
• Transportation requirements apply to both in-district and out-of-district applicants.

• Students who participate in University Interscholastic League (UIL) athletics are excluded from Open Enrollment transfers until they have verified eligibility through the Director of Athletics. Please contact the Birdville ISD Athletics Department at 817-547-5820.
• Students who move from one Birdville ISD high school campus to another Birdville ISD high school campus (under the exemptions), are ineligible for varsity competition for one complete school year per UIL rules.
• Students who transfer for athletic purposes may be denied and/or lose their Open Enrollment approval.

For further information and questions, please call the Birdville ISD Student Services Department at 817-547-5790.

Open Enrollment is a process through which in-district and out-of-district students may apply to a Birdville ISD campus other than the one they are zoned to attend based on their residential address. Applications are considered on a case-by-case basis and require approval by the campus principal and an administrator in the Student Services Department.

No. The process can change each year based on student enrollment and what is in the best interest of Birdville ISD.

Due to student growth or loss of students due to attrition, every campus and grade level is reviewed annually to determine space availability.

The application process may be discontinued if the qualifications/criteria are not met by the applicant.

Under the current state financing system for public schools, the state has frozen the amount of money districts receive based on the property values of Austin ISD in 2005. Local taxes do not fully support Birdville ISD. BISD will receive supplementary funds from the state for the attendance of the out-of-district students.

It adds additional state revenue to Birdville ISD’s annual budget. BISD will receive supplementary funds from the state for the attendance of the out-of-district students. Since the state pays Birdville ISD for occupied seats, this process adds approximately $4 to $5 million into Birdville ISD’s operating fund annually.

No. By filling available seats, Birdville ISD will receive additional state funds as a result of the students’ attendance.

No. All students must meet our eligibility criteria or they will be removed from BISD.

No. Any student that is accepted on an Open Enrollment application, for a campus other than the one their residential address zones them to attend, will be required to provide their own transportation to and from school every day.

Yes. You may apply for up to three campuses on one application.

Yes. A returning student opting for open enrollment must submit the application annually. 

No. Each application is processed individually and each applicant must meet the eligibility criteria listed in the Open Enrollment information.

BISD requires students to declare their high schools to help with planning for available classroom space and to make sure there are no issues with programs that have UIL eligibility requirements.