The EPISD decision to embrace open enrollment has some interesting aspects.
Who benefits?
Did our local developers have a hand in the decision? Having open enrollment means that families can buy houses in new subdivisions that are just outside of the EPISD boundaries and still send their children to EPISD schools. New houses mean more money for our developers.
Evidently many people believe that our local school districts are not of equal quality and would like to have a new house and still send their children to EPISD.
At what cost?
EPISD is telling us that absorbing the students will not cost the district extra money. Will the district get reimbursed the same amount per student for the new students as they do for the ones living in the district?
At what point might we hear that we need new bond money to build more facilities because of the new students?
Recruiting
Will the new policy lead to aggressive recruitment of athletic talent from other districts?
Pro business
I don’t know enough about the new policy to decide whether I favor it or not. I do know that with our temporary board of managers we seem to have a group that is more apt to decide to favor their business cronies financially than they are to take care of our educators.
We deserve better
Brutus
elpasospeak 
I’m all for everybody (and I mean everybody) getting a quality education, but what percentage of EPISD’s students come from Mexico? Will open enrollment mean that students living in New Mexico can study at EPISD schools?
Our benevolent oligarchs are focused on regional development, which means that El Pasoans will foot the bill for a lot of amenities that benefit neighboring communities, and if I were cynical, I might conclude that public education was one of those amenities.
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Great point! As parents we are asked to purchase paper and supplies for schools more each year. How many families live in one house and all the kids go to one school but only one tax per house. I see many cars dropping kids off at schools with license plates from Mexico.
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School Districts get money from the Federal Government based on enrollment, without regard for where the students actually live. This move is a simple and underhanded ploy to enhance enrollment numbers, so they can get more Federal money. Meanwhile, talking of a waste of El Paso taxpayer money, I have a question: Why does our Airport Authority need to own a golf course? And, how does it benefit you and me if the Water Board drills them a well at a cost of several millions?
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The Federal subsidy per student does not cover our full cost per student, so that is not a logical reason for changing to open enrollment, especially in the mist of a budgetary crisis.
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actually, it is their illogical reason for changing to open enrollment. i agree with you that it doesn’t cover the full cost of the student, but it is their assumption that federal and state money for more butts in a chair and crowd the classrooms with more students per teacher will make up for their budget shortfall. not to mention it helps woody sell the transmountain development area. it sounds like they also want to combine bowie and jeff and maybe sell the jeff property to the hospital or private group.
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If a car dealer loses money on every car he sells because he is selling them below cost, he can’t reverse his losses by simply selling more cars. He is simply increasing his losses. EPISD is going to attract more students and create an even greater deficit and tax burden.
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What is the criteria for allowing people outside the school boundaries into the district?
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in the long run their reason for more butts in a chair and overcrowd classrooms would make up some money, but at what cost to the students education ? glad all mine are done.
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