Time to End Maryland’s Public School Boundary Fence

Maryland’s Open Enrollment Law Ranks Dead Last

Imagine living two blocks from a great school—but your child can’t attend it because your house falls on the wrong side of an invisible line. That’s not fiction. That’s how education policy works in over half of America.

As a mom, a former school board member, and a proud product of public schools, I believe in giving every child the best shot at success. But right now, we’ve got 33 states earning an “F” for open enrollment. That’s not a typo. Thirty-three. And states like Maryland, North Carolina, and Alaska? They’re not just failing—they’re dead last. Zero points. No transparency, no access, and no real options for parents.

According to the Reason Foundation, “The Old Line State has no cross-district or within-district open enrollment options. School districts are not required to post their available capacity, nor are there provisions against charging transfer students tuition. The SEA does not collect or publish open enrollment data, such as the number of transfer students or why transfer applications were rejected. State law doesn’t stop school districts from rejecting transfers based on their abilities or disabilities. School districts are not required to inform rejected applicants in writing of the reasons for their rejection. Rejected applicants cannot appeal their denial to a non-district entity.”

Let me tell you what that means in plain English. It means that if your local school is failing your child, too bad. It means if your family lives near a great public school but isn’t zoned for it, tough luck. It means some districts can charge you $4,000… $10,000… even $11,000 just to transfer. That’s not school choice. That’s legalized gatekeeping.

Meanwhile, states like Oklahoma, Idaho, and Arizona are getting it right. Oklahoma passed the most sweeping open enrollment law in the country this year—earning them the top ranking. They’re not just letting kids move across district lines. They’re making districts be honest about how many seats are available, why they reject students, and making sure parents can appeal when schools say “no.” What a concept: putting students ahead of bureaucracies.

And parents love it. A recent poll showed that 84% of parents support open enrollment. That includes 69% of Republicans, 81% of Democrats, and 71% of Independents. That’s not red or blue—it’s common sense.

We talk a lot about equity in education. We create task forces, commission reports, and virtue signal at ribbon-cuttings. But when it comes to the most basic form of fairness—letting a child attend a better public school—we’ve created a system rigged to trap families by ZIP code.

Let’s look at the data: In Arizona, Florida, and Wisconsin, roughly 10% of students used open enrollment in 2021–22—over 450,000 kids. Most of them moved to schools rated “A” or “B” by the state. In Wisconsin, the highest-rated districts gained thousands of students, while the lowest-performing districts lost 54,000. That’s accountability in action. That’s families voting with their feet.

It’s not just about the suburbs, either. Rural school districts are benefiting too. In Colorado, over 7,000 kids in remote rural areas transferred in the last school year. In Wisconsin, rural fringe districts gained over 2,500 students net. When you give families a choice, they take it.

But here’s the dirty little secret: many school districts—and their unions—don’t want this. They like having captive audiences. They like drawing lines that favor well-funded neighborhoods while keeping out “those kids.” They’ll cry about funding, but then charge transfer families five-figure tuition bills. That’s not about equity. That’s about control.

And don’t get me started on data. Only 13 states even require reporting on how many students transfer. Only six report how many are rejected. Only five explain why. Without transparency, families are in the dark, policymakers are flying blind, and school boards can make arbitrary decisions without consequences.

States like Indiana and Nebraska have made improvements. Indiana just banned transfer tuition fees. Nebraska added a non-district appeals process and some limited reporting. That’s progress. But we need more.

Here’s my message to state lawmakers: tear down the fence. Public education should serve the public—not just the ZIP codes with the best property values. We fund students, not systems. And if a school is doing a great job, it should welcome kids from across the street, not punish them for where they live.

We don’t accept arbitrary boundaries in other public services. If you call 911, the dispatcher doesn’t say, “Sorry, your address is zoned for a different fire station.” If you show up at a public park, you don’t get turned away for living in the wrong district. But somehow, we think it’s fine to ration education by real estate.

Let’s fix that.

Require every school district to participate in open enrollment. Make them post their available seats online. Ban tuition for public school transfers. Stop discriminating against students with disabilities. And give families a way to appeal when they’re denied access to better opportunities.

This isn’t about shutting down schools—it’s about opening doors. It’s about treating families with respect and trusting them to choose what’s best for their children.

Public schools should have no boundaries—because talent has no boundaries, potential has no boundaries, and a child’s future shouldn’t depend on a street address.

Let’s get to work.

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Endnotes

Yes. every kid. and YouGov, “Landmark poll: Americans believe expanding freedom strengthens education,” October 18, 2023. https://yeseverykidfoundation.org/landmark-poll-americans-believe-expanding-education-freedom-strengthens-the-nations-education-system

EdChoice and Morning Consult, “National Tracking Poll #2407020,” July 9–12, 2024. https://edchoice.morningconsultintelligence.com/downloads

Jude Schwalbach, Public Schools Without Boundaries: 2024, Reason Foundation, October 2024.

Jude Schwalbach, “The Hidden Role of K–12 Open-Enrollment Policies in U.S. Public Schools,” Education Next, July 9, 2024. https://www.educationnext.org/the-hidden-role-of-k-12-open-enrollment-policies-in-u-s-public-schools

Jude Schwalbach, “Last Year, 200K Colorado Kids Used Open Enrollment to Pick Their District School,” The74, August 8, 2024. https://www.the74million.org/article/last-year-200k-colorado-kids-used-open-enrollment-to-pick-their-district-school

Elizabeth Setren, “Research Findings: The Impact of the METCO Program,” METCO, January 2024. https://metcoinc.org/research

Aaron Churchill, “Ohio’s school funding formula is hurting open enrollment,” Thomas B. Fordham Institute, June 6, 2024. https://fordhaminstitute.org/ohio/commentary/ohios-school-funding-formula-hurting-open-enrollment

J. Thomas Perdue, “Report on Georgia’s Open Enrollment Transfer Environment,” Georgia Public Policy Foundation, April 11, 2024. https://www.georgiapolicy.org/publications/report-on-georgias-open-enrollment-transfer-environment

Jude Schwalbach and Ahmed Almoaswes, “Oklahoma now has the best open enrollment policy in the country,” Reason Foundation Commentary, July 30, 2024. https://reason.org/commentary/oklahoma-now-has-the-best-open-enrollment-policy-in-the-country

Available to All, “The Broken Promise of Brown v. Board of Ed: A 50 State Report on Legal Discrimination in Public School Admissions,” April 2024. https://availabletoall.org/report-brown-v-board

Jude Schwalbach, “When Public Schools Keep Certain Students Out—or Make Them Pay to Attend,” The74, April 29, 2024. https://www.the74million.org/article/when-public-schools-keep-certain-students-out-or-make-them-pay-to-attend

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Carol Hughes is a contributor for Direct Line News.  Contact Carol at Carol.Hughes@mcgopclub.com

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