School Boundary Change - friend's/relative's address (2015, renting)

[sunshinejoe]

I like where I live in So. Broward but unfortunately I am zoned for a not-so-good public school. I have tried to relocate boundaries twice through the Broward School District but my requests have been denied. I have not been that lucky with charter schools either (the lottery numbers are never in my favor).

I have heard and seen that other parents choose to go the easy route when relocating their kids to another public school and use a relative or friend's address to register their kid(s) at their desired location rather than to the assigned one by the county.

Have you used someone else's address to get your child in a school different to the one that the county district told you to go? Any advise you can provide will be appreciated.

- The law is changing but not sure how soon before I can choose any school anytime soon -

Senate Bill 1448 (2015) - The Florida Senate

[ralanprod]

Well, technically it is illegal so all of this is hypothetically speaking.

A person could establish residence at a home within the zoned area you are interested in. The items needed to prove residence are listed on the Broward school's website. If you are able to provide that documentation, then you are all set. You can't just "use someone's address". You have to prove to the school's satisfaction that you do live at that address.

A word of caution - if you claim to be "renting" from a relative - the school system can then send that information over to the tax collector's office. Then the relative will have their homestead exemption in jeopardy. Will they do this? Who knows, but they are up front about the possibility of it happening.

Really though, I have had both my youngest and oldest kids reassigned from their zoned schools. All it took was actually following the proper procedure, then having a good argument to make when appealing the initial rejection. Relocating into a better neighborhood has thankfully eliminated the need to worry about it.

The senate bill you link looks good on paper, but really it's just blowing smoke. It allows transfers to schools not at capacity. Take a guess how many schools you would want your kids to go to aren't technically "at capacity"? At least in Broward it would allow for very little movement.

[Dragonmam]

I really think you should go through the right channels for school reassignment. If the school you want is not at capacity, you can get a seat that you don't have to worry about. Check the Broward County schools website for how to do this. They should have a list of schools accepting reassignment.

If the district finds out, you must withdraw the child immediately and re-enroll in the right school. There is no waiting until the end of the year or even the quarter.