Out-of-district parents could get one more chance to enroll their students in Bismarck public schools before a policy changes.

The Bismarck School Board voted to change its open enrollment policy for out-of-district-students starting April 1, 2008, which is after the open enrollment window, at the board meeting Monday. The policy needs to be approved one more time before it goes into effect.

"I want to give them one more shot, after that, that would be it," board member Dan Kuntz said.

The policy after April 1 would not allow open enrollment, with one exception: Siblings of currently open-enrolled students could open enroll in the district. Students who are already open enrolled in the district are enrolled in the district until they graduate or enroll in another district. The board approved 41 open enrollments for the 2007-08 school year.

School board members had tabled the policy changes after some parents in the Pine Meadows subdivision complained. They told the board they moved to the subdivision thinking they'd get to attend Bismarck schools, either because they were misinformed about the school district for that area or because they thought they could use the open- enrollment policy. Their children were not accommodated by an exception in the policy.

State law allows school districts to have a policy allowing out-of-district students to enroll in the school district. Parents fill out a form and turn it in by a deadline. In Bismarck, the children are assigned to schools that have space for students.

The district where the open- enrolled student attends school gets per-pupil state funding, and the student counts in enrollment numbers. The out-of-district residents do not pay property tax to the Bismarck School District, but to the school district in which they live.

Property owners in the Pine Meadows subdivison, which is part of the Apple Creek School District, could annex into the Bismarck School District, if the property is contiguous to the school district boundary and meets other annexation requirements. This includes getting a petition to the county superintendent, a two-thirds approval by voters in the area and approval by the annexation committee. Then their children and their property taxes would go to the Bismarck School District.

In Apple Creek, the elementary school district has a tuition agreement with the Bismarck district to provide middle- and high-school-level classes. Residents of Apple Creek School would not need to use open enrollment for seventh grade or above to attend a Bismarck public school, and the Apple Creek District pays the Bismarck district tuition.

"They would probably not attempt annexation if they know they have a chance to enroll," Superintendent Paul Johnson said. Siblings would then be grandfathered in, but it still wouldn't help families with children not ready to attend school in 2008-09, which is the school year for the next open enrollment period.

The deadline for open enrollment is March 1, 2008.

The first reading of the policy was approved unanimously, and the policy will come back to the board for final approval at the next meeting.

The board also provided some ideas on what it would like in the district's sex offender policy. The board is looking at the Mandan public school policy as a basis for its policy, while it could consider parts of Fargo public schools policy for the procedures.

"Right now, they can't be on school property unless they receive the superintendent's permission," human resources director Lisa Kudelka said.

Superintendent Paul Johnson has had one parent come to him and tell him they are a sex offender.

There are others, he said, which became evident during the legislative session when the law was changed.

The current practice is based on state law, which only allows sex offenders on school property to vote or attend public meetings, unless they are a parent and have permission. Otherwise, it is a Class A misdemeanor.

Kudelka explained that some low-level sex offenders are with their families and that probation officers told her it is good to include them in their children's activities.

The Bismarck School Board wants to know what to do when it has activities at the Bismarck Civic Center, which is not district property, when there is a school event.

The board will consider what it wants the policy to look like, and a policy could be finalized by the end of October.

(Reach reporter Sara Kincaid at 250-8251 or sara.kincaid@;bismarcktribune.com.)