Non-Residence Student Transfers

ENROLLING NON-RESIDENT STUDENTS

At Pullman Public Schools, we welcome enrollment of non-resident students. Non-resident students are those who do not live within the Pullman School District Boundaries. There are some limits based on school board policy about whether we can accept a student from another district.
 

Non-resident students may attend our schools as long as:

  • The anticipated needs of resident students are met first.

  • Acceptance of the non-resident student does not create a financial hardship for our district.

  • The non-resident student's attendance and disciplinary records meet appropriate standards, which are set by the school board.


Non-Resident student assignments are for one academic year only. 
You must submit a new application each academic year to request continued enrollment in Pullman Public Schools.
 
  1. To do so, you must fill out an Out-of-District (Choice) Transfer form which is then submitted to the school district where you live.
  2. You can then request release from your resident district online using the OSPI Choice Transfer Portal. If you do not have access to this portal, you may manually request release by collecting your resident district's signature on the out-of-district transfer request form.
  3. This information is sent to Pullman Public Schools for review by the principal of the school you are requesting, the superintendent, and if your student is in a special program, the assistant superintendent will also review. 
 

School Choice

Non-resident students do not have an elementary attendance area school, but you may pick your top two choices using the out-of-district (choice) transfer form. Pullman Schools cannot guarantee that your top school choices will have space available for your student. 

Your student can only be assigned to schools and programs when space is available for students outside the district zones. To be accepted, that space must be available for your student's grade level and program needs. For secondary schools, only the seats set aside for open choice are available for non-resident enrollment.

  • School assignments based on an address within the school district are not automatically continued if the student becomes a non-resident. If a student moves out of the district, a choice transfer form must be submitted immediately upon the change of residence.

APPLICATION PROCESS AND TIMELINE
State law requires that non-resident students supply a Choice Transfer Request from the district of residence each year to apply for non-resident enrollment. The transfer request for non-residents who wish to attend Pullman Public Schools must be submitted by the deadlines specified each year. Applications are considered on a first come/first serve basis. 

Applications must be submitted by June 30th of each school year. Application submitted after this deadline may not be considered until after the first day of school. Elementary Transfers for the 2024-2025 school year will be reviewed on August 05, 2024.

Applications may take up to four weeks to process. It is our goal that applications received by the June 30th deadline will receive a response in early August or sooner, depending on when the application was received and submitted. You will receive an automated email when the request has been submitted as well as when it has been approved or denied.

The Choice Transfer application must also have all questions answered regarding the student's attendance and behavior and all information regarding program needs such as special education, Title I, LAP and ELL must be completed.

You must submit one application per child in your family on an annual basis.

The transfer request is not complete until your student's resident school district has released your student from their district and Pullman School District has accepted. You can request release by submitting through the OSPI Choice Transfer Portal.  The student remains the responsibility of the resident school district until the effective start date at the non-resident school.

The parent/guardian will be notified by email of acceptance and the effective start date or rejection. If the request is rejected, the notification will include the reason for denial and steps to appeal the decision.

Children of school district full-time or part-time classified or certificated staff are permitted to submit an out-of-district transfer form to attend the school in which that employee is assigned.


ENROLLING IN ANOTHER SCHOOL DISTRICT

The Pullman School District Board of Directors shall release any student who resides within the boundaries of the Pullman School District to attend school in another district in another district, provided the other district agrees to accept the student.

Requesting Release

  • A parent or guardian will request the release of his/her child by completing the appropriate district form (3141F Annual Request for Release and Application for Nonresident Admission, which can be found below.
  • Alternatively, you may also enter your request for release from Pullman School District using the OSPI Choice Transfer Portal: https://eds.ospi.k12.wa.us/ChoiceTransferRequest.

The superintendent will grant or deny the request for release according to the above-stated criteria, and promptly notify the parent in writing of the decision.

If the request is granted, the superintendent will notify the nonresident district and make necessary arrangements for the transfer of student records.

If the request is denied, the superintendent will notify the parent of the right to petition the Board, upon five (5) school business days prior notice, for review of the decision and to have a hearing before the Board at its next regular meeting. Following the hearing by the Board, a final decision will be promptly communicated to the parent in writing. If the Board denies the request for release, the written decision will inform the parent or guardian of the right to appeal such decision to the superintendent of public instruction.


 
 
POLICY & APPEAL INFORMATION
 
District policy governs whether a non-resident student may attend Pullman Public Schools. Factors taken into consideration include space availability; program capacity and/or cost; history of suspensions or expulsions; and concerns with attendance or behavior. 

As outlined in policy 3141, in the event that the application for admission to the non-resident district or the request for release from your district is denied, the superintendent or designated staff member will notify the parent or guardian of the reason(s) for denial and the right to petition the Board of Directors, upon five school business day's prior notice, for review of the decision and to have a hearing before the board at its next regular meeting.
 
Following the hearing by the board, a final decision will be promptly communicated to the parent in writing. The final decision of the district to deny the admission of a no-resident student may be appealed to the Superintendent of Public Instruction or his or her designee pursuant to the process detailed in RCW 28A.225.230 and below.
 

If your non-resident student transfer request is denied after appealing to the school district, you have the right to appeal that decision before an Administrative Law Judge with the Washington State Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH). Parents are not required to first follow a school district's appeal process before submitting an appeal to OAH. 

If you choose to submit an appeal to OAH to request a hearing, complete the Notice of Appeal Form. Send only the appeal application form and a copy of the denial letter/email to (a brief cover letter is optional):

Student Transfer Appeal
Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH)
600 University Street, Suite 1500
Seattle, WA 98101-3126
 

Appeals may also be filed via email: the Office of Administrative Hearings. The notice of appeal form must be sent by secure email. If you do not have a secure email password, send an email to this address without the form attached to request instructions for filing the form by secure email.

Fax: 206-587-5135

Parents should be sure to have their child enrolled in a school while they are waiting to hear the outcome of their appeal.


 
Photo of Rachel Sater    Choice Coordinator

Rachel Sater

Phone (509) 332-3581

Fax (509) 336-7202

enrollment@psd267.org
Enrollment FAQ