Out-of-Zone applications for the 2026-27 school year are now available on the WCS School Zones webpage.
A list of the 2026-27 open-zoned schools 
and information about the application process was made available to families after the WCS School Board approved the list at its meeting January 20. Per state law, school districts are required to identify each school that has space available to serve additional students and post those vacancies on the district’s website two weeks before accepting applications. Applicants must be Williamson County residents, and, if approved, must provide transportation to and from school.
How to Apply
To request that a student attend a school they are not zoned for, families will need to apply online. The first step will be to create an account and select “add forms.” Then, families will be asked to complete one of two online Out of Zone applications.
Families who want to apply for a seat at one of the open-zoned schools should select the application titled Open Zoned Schools – Lottery Limited Seats.
Families who qualify for any of the categories listed below should select Out-of-Zone Application – All Other Provisions:
- Continue in Feeder Pattern
- Grandfather Provision (available if you moved and your student is a rising 5th, 7th, 8th, 10th, 11th, or 12th grader)
- Moving to Zone
- Program of Study (IB Program only)
- Sibling
- WCS Employee
Students currently approved to attend out-of-zone schools who are not changing buildings do not need to reapply. All rising sixth and ninth-grade students will roll up to their zoned schools in Skyward until the out-of-zone application is approved.
Priority Approval
As part of the district’s zoning policy, the School Board gives priority approval to a group of rising ninth graders. Those students must attend a Williamson County or Franklin Special District middle school where less than 15 percent of its students are zoned to a different high school other than their classmates. Students in that small group may choose to attend the out-of-zone high school in the feeder pattern prior to any open-zone requests being granted and provided that the high school has the capacity and is eligible for open zoning. This applies to the following students:
- Eighth graders at Freedom Middle in the Franklin Special District who are zoned to Franklin High will have priority to Centennial High’s 157 open zoned seats.
- Eighth graders at Heritage Middle who are zoned for Summit High will have priority to Independence High’s 40 open zoned seats.
- Eighth graders at Page Middle who are zoned to Centennial High will have priority to Page High’s 80 open zoned seats.
Lottery Process
The deadline to apply is April 15 for all requests except those related to residential moves, International Baccalaureate program of study applications, new students to the district, or new employees.
If the number of open-zoned school applicants exceeds the spots available at a school, the district is required to conduct a random lottery to select students. For that reason, all open zoned school applications are held until after the application deadline. The lottery process begins on April 16 and families are notified through the portal if they received a spot at the selected school or are on the wait list.
Additional information about the lottery process as well as the list of available open-zoned spots for each school can be found on the WCS School Zones page of our website.
Please join our FREE Newsletter
