The Washoe County School District announced a new variance policy.
It's designed to make the process easier for kids to go to their desired school, as long as there is enough room for them.
Last school year, 6,600 students we on a variance. Each of those variances required extra steps for the families and principals.
The new policy is now rolled out to families in the district and the superintendent of the district, Dr. Susan Enfield, said she wants it to be an easier process for everyone.
"It was, I think, overly unnecessarily complicated for families and put, what I think, an unfair burden on principals," Dr. Enfield said.
In the new policy, all variance applications must be submitted by next Thursday, June 15.
If a school is under a 90 percent capacity and teaching positions are fully staffed, then variances will be accepted.
If the school is over that 90 percent, students will be put on a wait list, and as spots open up, there will be a lottery where the principal will pull names out of a hat to decide who fills those seats.
The request list will be reviewed before August 31.
Students also no longer have to renew their variance every year.
The variance lasts as long as they are enrolled in that school.
So, if a child currently has a variance and is attending the same school next year, they do not have to renew.
However, with the new policy, Dr. Enfield said her biggest reason for the change is to open more opportunities to more students.
"We are a public education system, and we open our arms and our doors to every child that wants to be in our schools to the best of our ability," Dr. Enfield said.
One inconvenience for students on a variance is that they must have their own way of getting to school, other than the school buses.
"Families still have to transport their children," Dr. Enfield said. "Unfortunately, as much as I want to, I can't provide individual transportation for every child, I just don't have the means to do that."
For students who move into the area after June 15, 2023, they can still submit a variance form.
Families can also make variance request for multiple kids in the household.
The school district is working to figure out the capacity numbers for all schools, however, they still encourage for families to submit their forms right away.Â
You can find the link to a variance form below if you want to move your child into another school.
