Hillsborough County Public Schools’ second magnet, school choice and choice hardship application window for the 2022-2023 school year opens on Wednesday, March 23 and runs through Saturday, April 2, giving students the opportunity to enroll in elementary, middle or high school magnet programs or schools outside their neighborhood boundaries.
With 38 national and global award-winning magnet schools that boast more than 80 programs for students, there’s something for everyone, including science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM); fine and performing arts; international studies; career and technical education; and world languages.
A 39th magnet school, Waterset’s soon-to-be-named pre-K-8 magnet school with a capacity of 1,600 students, is slated to open in August and will feature an international studies program that will infuse STEM as well as an arts program. A robotics lab, augmented reality lab and arts and graphic design lab will provide hands-on learning to students. It will be the first magnet elementary school in the SouthShore area and first pre-K-8 school in Southeastern Hillsborough County.
“There are still spots remaining at this new school, but we expect to have more applications than available spots,” said Supervisor of Magnet Schools Bob Cox. “If your student is interested in this school, you should definitely apply.”
For leaders at Hillsborough County Public Schools, it’s all about choice. Parents can choose from various schools based on their child’s interests and way of learning. Options can be based on location, interests, curriculum or system of learning (either brick-and-mortar or virtual schools).
“Magnet schools offer students the opportunity to explore and engage with their education in ways they never have before,” said Cox.
School choice enrollment for elementary and middle magnet schools is determined via a computerized lottery system that sorts through all applications after the window closes. Families will receive an email notification by late April indicating whether they’ve been accepted to a school of choice. The magnet high school process is criteria-based.
The first application window ran from October to December. After the lottery, parents were notified of the results in January. There is a brief period of time during which an offer must be accepted before it expires.
“If you didn’t get an offer in the first application window, your application rolls over to the second window so you don’t have to reapply,” said Cox.
