Yes. If the student attends an FSPS middle school on school choice and will be in high school next year, they will have to reapply for school choice before they enter high school. 

Attendance zones can be determined using the Fort Smith City GIS system. This link will provide information on the attendance zone for the elementary, middle, and high school for the address you enter. Additional valuable information for city services is also provided.

Students who live in Barling are assigned to Barling Elementary School, Chaffin Junior High School, and Northside High School.

Addresses not providing Fort Smith School attendance information are outside the Fort Smith School District boundaries. For example, some homes in the southernmost parts of Fort Smith are in the Greenwood School District.

State law requires that you attend the district in which your residence lies. There are limited opportunities to enroll your children in a non-resident district:

If you wish to attend Fort Smith Schools but live outside the district boundaries, you may complete an Application for Transfer through the provisions of Arkansas Statute 6-18-206, “Arkansas Public School of Choice Act of 2015”. A School Choice Application must be submitted to the non-resident district. If you wish to attend Fort Smith Schools, please submit your application to the Student Services Department at 3205 Jenny Lind Road, Fort Smith, AR 72902. Applications must be submitted by May 1 for the following school year. This application is only needed once as long as the student remains continually enrolled in Fort Smith Public Schools. The School Choice application and other helpful information can be found on the Arkansas Department of Education website.

The School Choice Application may submitted electronically or by completing a hard copy at the Student Services Office (3205 Jenny Lind Road).

If a student residing in Fort Smith wishes to attend a school in a different district, the same process applies originating at the alternative district by submitting an “Arkansas School of Choice Act of 2015” application in the district of choice by May 1.

In the Fort Smith School District, school assignment is based on a student’s residential address as well as capacity of one’s “home” school. Exceptions to this are explained under “Can I choose the school my child attends within the Fort Smith School District.”

In some cases, enrollment exceeds the capacity of a school to house all the students living in the attendance area. State class size limits will sometimes require that students above the allowed number per class be relocated to other classes/schools in the Fort Smith School District. Those students who moved to other schools are called “class size transfers.” The following guidelines are followed in class sizing students:
1. Any student not present or excused by an administrator for the first day of class will be considered a no-show on the first day and be removed from the class roster. A student’s spot on the roster can only be held if a parent/guardian communicates a legitimate reason to the principal before the first day of school and the principal approves the absence. Any questions about whether to hold a spot will be referred to Student Services.
2. Students will be selected for class sizing in the reverse order of registration. The last student to register will be the first to be class-sized to a school with sufficient capacity.
3. An attempt will be made to transfer class-size students to the nearest school where space is available.
4. Class-sized students will be provided transportation.
5. Siblings of class-sized students will be granted a “sibling transfer” to keep siblings in the same school if spots are available. If spots are unavailable, there will be an effort to find spots for siblings at a school with appropriate seats available.
6. Sibling transfers will be offered transportation.
7. Parents may volunteer their child to be class-sized if it is evident before the first day of school that registered students exceed capacity. The parent may name the school they wish to be transferred to, and an attempt will be made to meet that request if space is available at the requested school. Volunteers will only be class-sized if their home school is over capacity.
8. Class-sized students will be placed on a “wait list” and recalled to their home school as space becomes available in the same order of registration. The last to register will be the last to be recalled.
9. If a parent does not want the placement given when a student is class-sized and would like a different school, that parent may contact Student Services, and effort will be given to place them where they prefer if space is available.
10. At the end of the academic year, class-sized students will be offered the opportunity to indicate the desire to spend a second year at the school they were class-sized to, but transportation will not be provided. Siblings will not be afforded the second year at the school but may apply for an Attendance Area Exception, which is described below.

Unfortunately, we cannot predict how long a child will remain on a wait list to be recalled. This depends on openings occurring due to other students leaving the school Students will be recalled in the order they originally registered.

Students attending a school other than the one whose Attendance Area they live in are called Attendance Area Exceptions. Attendance Area Exceptions (AAE) are granted using the following guidelines.

Elementary Attendance Area Exceptions (AAE)

1. Elementary Attendance Area Exceptions (AAE) will be issued on the eleventh day (September 3, 2024) of the school year and will remain open until 20 school days after the 11th day (September 30, 2024). According to Arkansas class size standards, all AAEs will be issued based on availability.
2. All elementary AAEs will be valid for one school year as long as the student is continually enrolled. If a student drops out from enrollment, the AAE application must be renewed at the next appropriate time.

Secondary Attendance Area Exceptions (AAE)

1. Middle school AAEs will be issued beginning June 3, 2024, for the 2024-2025 school year until 20 days after the first school day (September 16, 2024).
2. High school AAEs will be issued beginning January 3, 2024, for the 2024-2025 school year until 20 days after the first school day (September 16, 2024).
3. Secondary students must complete AAE transfers by July 1, 2023, to be eligible to participate in athletics and activities.
4. Due to high enrollment, AAEs may be limited or not allowed for some secondary schools.
5. All secondary AAEs will be valid if the student remains in the assigned school and maintains good attendance and discipline.
6. Students wishing to participate in varsity sports not provided at the middle school campuses will be allowed to complete an AAE anytime following the 8th grade year for the 9th grade assignment of a school. Students choosing this option must communicate with the Director of Athletics and complete a Declaration of Intent to ensure ongoing eligibility.

Online enrollment forms or 

registration packet AND Required Enrollment Documentation

1. Copy of the student’s social security card or a signed and notarized social security waiver, including a number assigned in place of the student’s social security number. The Student Services Department can provide this form.

2. The student’s age must be verified using one of the following documents (ACA 6-18-208):

  a. State-issued birth certificate,

  b. A statement by the local registrar or a county recorder certifying the child’s date of birth,

  c. An attested baptismal certificate,

  d. A passport,

  e. An affidavit of the date and place of birth by the child’s parent or guardian,

  f. Previous school records,

  g. United States military identification.

3. An up-to-date immunization card.

4. Proof of residence can be accomplished by providing:

  a. One of the following:

    i. A current utility bill (within 30 days), gas or electric, showing the name and address of the student’s legal guardian within the Attendance Area of the school the student plans to attend. If this is provided, no other documentation is needed.

    ii. A home purchase contract with a specific closing date and a copy of the deed to be provided within 90 days.

     iii. Home visit to the address for a designated school official verification.

  b. Families living in a situation where these documents are in another’s name will need to provide a signed written statement from the residence provider attesting to the family living at the address, along with a utility bill in the owner’s name. The letter must be provided to the Student Services office, where a Resident Statement Affidavit can be signed and notarized for the parent/guardian swearing to the claimed living address. Students qualifying as “homeless” will be granted all rights in the federal McKinney Vento Homeless Assistance Law.

  c. An approved School Choice application/letter.

  d. Documentation of an approved transfer within the district – class size or attendance area exception.

  e. Documentation of an approved transfer from the resident and receiving district school boards.

  f. An independent investigation may be made to confirm or deny the verification of any claimed address when seen as needed by the school administration.

Fort Smith Schools does allow parents to enroll based on a contract with a future completion or closing date provided the completion date is within 90 days. An “In Process Affidavit” will need to be completed to use as proof of residency for the enrollment process. This can be obtained at the Student Services Office. A current signed contract and picture id will be required to complete the form. Once the family has occupied the residence, parents will need to follow up by providing two current utility bills to the registrar at your child’s school to complete the process.