Palm Beach County, FL · Relocation Resource
Palm Beach County School Choice, Explained
Four separate application systems, four different deadlines. Here is what each one is and when it closes.
In Palm Beach County, your home address assigns your zoned school, but it does not get your child into a Choice, magnet or career academy program. Those are separate applications, awarded by lottery, and they have their own deadlines. For the 2027-28 school year the Choice application window runs October 8 through December 4, 2026, and the School District of Palm Beach County states that December 4, 2026 is the final deadline for all applications and all programs.
This catches relocating families out regularly. In much of the Northeast you buy into a district and the matter is settled. Here there is a second layer on top of the attendance zone, and the application window for next school year closes in the autumn of the year before.
The four systems, and when they close
| What it is | Window | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Student ID request | September 8 to December 4, 2026 | A Palm Beach County student ID number is required before a Choice application can be submitted. This is step one, not step two. |
| Choice and Career Academy application | October 8 to December 4, 2026 | The main lottery. The district states December 4, 2026 is the final deadline for all programs at all schools. |
| Reassignment, elementary | October 19 to 23, 2026 | A different mechanism from Choice, with its own short window. |
| Reassignment, secondary | November 30 to December 4, 2026 | Only schools listed for the relevant marking period are open for reassignment. |
| Controlled Open Enrollment | March 1 to 5, 2027 | Based on seat availability rather than program criteria. Families can apply to schools outside their assigned zone without meeting program-specific requirements. |
There is also a late Choice window in the spring for families who missed the on-time deadline. In the prior cycle it ran March 30 to May 1 and late applications were not included in the March lottery. Lottery results in the prior cycle were released in early April. Confirm the current year's dates with the district before relying on either.
How the lottery works
- All eligible applications submitted by the published deadline go into a random lottery selection.
- Each student submits one application but may apply to two programs and rank them in order of interest.
- The lottery considers every first-choice applicant for a program before it considers any second-choice applicant for that same program. Ranking matters.
- Being selected does not enroll your child. You must register at the school after acceptance, within the school's deadlines.
- A student already in a Choice program who wants a different program, even at the same school, has to apply and go through the lottery again.
- Continuing into a middle school program for sixth grade requires a new application during the open window.
What your address does, and does not, do
- Your address determines your zoned school. That part is automatic.
- Eligibility for specific schools is based on your address at the time of the application deadline.
- If you move to Palm Beach County after the application deadline, your student registers at their assigned school for that year.
- If your address changes after you have applied, the district may contact you to review your selections against the new address.
- Moving out of the county, or out of the attendance zone, during the application or assignment period can affect a placement.
Full Choice schools have no attendance zone at all
A handful of schools in the county are assigned entirely through the application and lottery. Every student attending one was placed there by the Choice process, which means buying a home nearby does not secure a seat. The district has consistently identified these as full Choice schools:
- Morikami Park Elementary School, Delray Beach
- S.D. Spady Elementary School, Delray Beach
- Don Estridge High Tech Middle School, Boca Raton
- Verde K-8, Boca Raton
- Northboro Elementary School
- Poinciana Elementary School
- Plumosa School of the Arts (K-8)
- Bak Middle School of the Arts
- A.W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts
- Suncoast Community High School
- The Conservatory School at North Palm Beach
- Village Academy
Morikami Park Elementary runs as a whole-school International Baccalaureate program. Per the school's own access and admissions policy, every accepted student is placed in the IB programme on enrollment and all are required to participate in the lottery system. If Morikami is the reason you are looking at a particular street, that is worth knowing before you make an offer.
Choice and career programs along the Delray, Boca and Boynton coast
The district offers more than 340 Choice and career academy programs across more than 100 schools countywide. These are the ones inside the corridor Mangrove Realty works:
- West Boca Raton Community High School — arts programs requiring a qualifying audition score (Dance, Music-Band, Music-Vocal, Theatre), plus Aviation and Technology and a Sports Management and Recreation program.
- Boca Raton Community High School — Culinary Arts, Air Force JROTC and Biomedical Sciences.
- Boca Raton Community Middle School — Pre-Information Technology.
- Don Estridge High Tech Middle School, Boca Raton — a full Choice school, so there is no zoned path in.
- Loggers' Run Community Middle School, west Boca — performing arts.
- Carver Community Middle School, Delray Beach — International Baccalaureate.
- Congress Community Middle School, Boynton Beach — science and technology.
- Boynton Beach Community High School — arts programs requiring a qualifying audition score (Dance, Digital Media, Music-Band, Music-Vocal, Theatre, Visual Arts), plus Early Childhood Teacher Education.
Audition-based arts programs run their own audition calendars. The district communicates audition dates and times after the application deadline, so applying on time comes first and the audition follows.
If you have not moved here yet
Residency requirements for the Choice application are the one point where the district's own materials are not consistent. Some district pages state that programs are open to students within and outside Palm Beach County; the Choice booklets state that the parent or guardian and the student must be full-time county residents at the time of application. Because a wrong answer here could cost a family a seat or a deadline, confirm your own situation directly with the district before you rely on either reading. The Department of Choice and Career Options can be reached at (561) 434-8755 or choicequestions@palmbeachschools.org.
Questions families ask
When is the Palm Beach County school choice deadline for 2027-28?
The Choice application window for the 2027-28 school year runs October 8 through December 4, 2026. The School District of Palm Beach County states that December 4, 2026 is the final deadline for all applications and all programs at any school.
Does buying a house in a school's zone get my child into that school?
For a zoned school, your address is what assigns your child. For a Choice, magnet or career academy program, and for any full Choice school such as Morikami Park Elementary or Don Estridge High Tech Middle, your address does not secure a seat. Those placements come from an application and a random lottery.
Do I need anything before I can submit a Choice application?
Yes. A Palm Beach County student ID number is required first. For the 2027-28 cycle the student ID request window ran September 8 through December 4, 2026, the same closing date as the application itself.
How many programs can my child apply to?
One application, up to two programs, ranked in order of interest. The lottery considers all first-choice applicants for a program before any second-choice applicants for that same program, so the order you choose matters.
What happens if I move to Palm Beach County after the deadline?
Per the district, a student who moves to Palm Beach County after the application deadlines registers at their assigned public school for that year. A late Choice window opens in the spring, but late applications are not included in the main March lottery.
What is Controlled Open Enrollment and how is it different from Choice?
Controlled Open Enrollment is based on seat availability rather than program criteria, so families can apply to a school outside their assigned zone without meeting program-specific requirements. For 2027-28 its window is March 1 to 5, 2027, months after the Choice deadline closes.
How do I find out which school my address is zoned for?
Use the School District of Palm Beach County's own Find My School tool and confirm the result for the exact address. Attendance boundaries are redrawn from time to time, so verify per property rather than assuming from a neighborhood or a town name.
Verify before you rely on any of this
Application windows, lottery dates and program lists change every year, and attendance boundaries are redrawn from time to time. Everything above is drawn from the School District of Palm Beach County's published materials as of November 11, 2026 and is offered as a starting point, not as advice on eligibility or placement. Applications are submitted at mypbchoiceapp.com. For anything that affects a decision, confirm it with the Department of Choice and Career Options at (561) 434-8755 or choicequestions@palmbeachschools.org.
Buying or selling along this coast?
If a school deadline is shaping your move, timing the purchase around it is the part worth talking through. Damara Cohn has been a licensed Florida broker since 2002 and works the Delray Beach, Boca Raton and Boynton Beach coastal corridor.