The 2025-2026 School Choice application will be available February 3rd – March 3rd.

Sarasota County Schools is dedicated to meeting the educational needs of every child. Every school has high-quality educational options for students. Students originally are assigned to the school in the attendance area in which their parents/guardians live, but the district also provides a number of opportunities for parents to select other options for their children.

Parents/guardians residing in Florida can apply to have their grade K-12 students attend a public school in any school district within the state through Controlled Open Enrollment (COE) lottery, also called School Choice. School Choice is a random lottery based on capacity at each school and grade level. Applying for school choice does not guarantee placement at the desired school. All applicants not able to be placed due to capacity will be added to a waitlist.

Students attending a school on School Choice are permitted to remain through the highest grade level offered at that school. There is no need to reapply annually unless applying for a new school.

The 2025-2026 School Choice application is available in the Focus Parent Portal.  See instructions below for how to access the Parent Portal and complete the School Choice application. Please note, the School Choice application will not be available in the portal until 8 AM on February 3rd. School Choice is a lottery and the time stamp on the application submission does not provide any weighting in the outcome.

For additional assistance, please contact the Office of School Choice at ControlledOpenEnrollment@sarasotacountyschools.net or 941-927-9000 x32258.

The School Choice application allows families to rank up to three schools, but it is not required. Families may enter only one school if they choose. The program will allow applications for all schools/grade levels regardless of capacity. Please carefully review seat availability (below) prior to completing the application. All students not able to be placed due to capacity will be added to a waitlist at the school ranked ‘1.’ If a student is awarded a seat at a school ranked ‘2’ or ‘3,’ they will not be added to the waitlist for the first-choice school.

Results of the School Choice lottery will be posted to the Focus Parent Portal in April. A message will be sent to the email address used to register for the Focus Parent Portal Account when results are available. Parents must follow directions in the email to accept the Choice seat by the posted deadline or the seat will be forfeited and offered to another family on the waitlist.

Florida residents residing outside of the Sarasota County school district are welcome to complete a School Choice application. Florida Statute requires that in-county residents be given priority in the School Choice lottery.

Sarasota County residents interested in School Choice for other Florida districts are responsible for directly contacting the districts of interest to learn more about their policies, timelines and application procedures.

Transportation is not provided for students receiving placement through school choice. Parents/guardians are responsible for transporting their children to and from school.

In the event there are more requests than available seats, a random lottery will be conducted to award the choice school assignment. Students meeting specific criteria will have the opportunity to receive one or more preferences during the lottery process. Students not able to be placed due to capacity will be added to a waitlist for their first-choice school.

School Choice is available to students who are not subject to a current expulsion or suspension from public school and who reside with their parent/guardian in Florida.

School Board Policy 5.23 governs COE/School Choice in Sarasota County Schools. 

• All questions and comments regarding the COE School Board Policy 5.23 and/or the COE Plan can be directed to the Sarasota County Schools Office of School Choice by telephone, (941) 927-9000, ext. 32258 or by emailing us