• Current school: The school of a current HIDOE student or the HIDOE school that your child presently attends (student attends a GE-approved school OR attends the school within their geographic attendance area, or attends a public (conversion) charter school).
• Home school: The school within the geographic attendance area, which the student shall attend according to legal residence. This term applies to students new to HIDOE, incoming kindergartners, and/or students from public (conversion) charter schools. 

• A HIDOE school is any Hawai‘i K-12 public school, including public charter schools and public conversion charter schools, regulated by the Hawai‘i State Department of Education.
• A DOE school is a regular or traditional Hawai‘i K-12 public school, whose policies and procedures are administered by the Department of Education, as a local educational agency.

No, you may apply to the public charter school directly.

At this time, conversion charter schools utilize the GE process for enrolling out-of-area students. Public conversion charter schools are former DOE schools that have converted to become public charter schools. However, the conversion charter school is still obligated to enroll students who: 1) live within their former DOE geographic service area boundary and; 2) are enrolling in the same grade levels that were originally part of the school before it converted to a charter school. The conversion charter school remains the home school for these “in-area” students. However, other students, who live outside of the service area boundary, must comply with the application, acceptance and enrollment process set up by the charter school.

GE approval is not required for students seeking enrollment to a Hawaiian Language Immersion Program. Per HRS §302A-1143, school-aged persons enrolled in a Hawaiian language medium program are not required to attend the home school of their local residence but may be openly enrolled in the Hawaiian Language Immersion Program program.

Families in unstable housing should not submit a GE application unless they want to attend a different school from the school they were attending when housing was lost (school of origin) or the school in the area where they stay overnight most frequently (home school). Please contact the Education for Homeless Children and Youth program at (808) 723-4192 for more information.  

Schools should be aware that military families usually PCS or transfer to/from Hawaiʻi during the summer months. Until the families are provided with permanent housing, they usually reside in temporary lodging facilities (TLF). Typically, there are long waiting times to find permanent housing so newly arrived children will attend the schools servicing that TLF. Since many military families wish to have their children enrolled in the school located near their permanent residence and may miss the GE window for next year enrollment, schools will be flexible to accept a signed and accepted offer to a lease agreement from a leasing office as proof of residence, if the following are included: parent/legal guardian’s name and signature with date of acceptance; residential address; effective date of offer; available unit date; and, deadline to respond date.

GE applications for the next school year shall be submitted between Jan. 1 and March 1 to facilitate a decision and parent notification by March 15. However, applications shall be accepted at other time periods whenever unforeseen circumstances arise.

Yes. The GE Request Form is accessible here: CHP 13-1 (PDF)) is accessible on the HIDOE website.

Yes, it does matter if it is for the current or next school year AND if the student is a HIDOE or a non-HIDOE student. See below for information as to which school to submit the GE application.

If applying for the NEXT School Year, the form should be completed and submitted for processing:

If applying for the PRESENT School Year, the form should be completed and submitted for processing:

An acceptance into one school does not automatically void all other GE applications. Per Chapter 13 (PDF) (the rule on geographic exceptions), for applications received by March 1, notification of the decision shall be mailed no later than two weeks after March 1 unless the student is to be considered in the chance lottery selection process. The notification should “inform the applicant that an alternative student may be selected by the principal if the student is not registered at the receiving school within 10 working days from the postmarked date of the mailing.” Receiving schools should keep note for audit purposes if an alternate student is selected.

Late GE applications will be put on a waitlist by the date that they are received unless space is available to accommodate the request. All notable considerations must be accommodated prior to any regular GEs.

In order not to inconvenience the parent, the receiving school should date-stamp the receipt of the application. The application should then be faxed or couriered (after making a copy) to the current school or to the home school. Specific procedures on how the school sends the application to the next school is at the discretion of the principal.

For the current school year, the forwarding school has five business days to process and forward the completed GE request form to the requested school(s) from the date of receipt.

For the next school year, the forwarding school will process and forward the completed GE request form to the requested school(s) so that the requested school(s) receives the GE request form by the 2nd business day of March. Fax may be used to forward the GE request forms to the requested school(s) by the deadline.

Yes. A parent or guardian must establish legal residence in Hawai‘i to determine the home school within the geographic attendance area of the legal residence (HRS §302A-1143, Attend school in what district) (BOE Policy 500-12). If a current HIDOE student is seeking a GE, then the current school will review the proof of residence on file. If a non-HIDOE student is seeking a GE, then a proof of residence document will need to be submitted along with other enrollment documents at your home school PRIOR to requesting a GE.

Preferred documentation includes the following (see also to the How to Enroll page):

• Rental/lease agreement, mortgage document, or current real property assessment document in the parent/guardian’s name. A signed and accepted offer to a lease agreement from a leasing office is acceptable, if the following are included: parent/legal guardian’s name and signature with date of acceptance; residential address; effective date of offer; available unit date; and, deadline to respond date.
• Utility bill for water, electric, gas, or telephone in the parent/guardian’s name and is being sent to the legal residence.
• If the parent or legal guardian cannot provide documentation of legal residence because the parent/legal guardian is living with a relative/friend, a notarized statement by the relative/friend can be accepted by the school with the following stipulations:
  • Notarized statement must state that the parent/legal guardian and child are living with the relative/friend;
  • Notarized statement must state the name of the relative/friend that is on the relative/friend’s proof of legal residence;
  • Notarized statement must state the same address of relative/friend that is on the relative/friend’s proof of legal residence;
  • A copy of the relative/friend’s proof of legal residence must be attached to the notarized statement; and,
  • Notarized statement must be signed by the same name of the relative/friend that is on the relative/friend’s proof of legal residence.

In accordance with BOE Policy 500-12, “A student, once granted a geographic exception, shall belong to the school for which it is granted, …until the student graduates or otherwise transfers.” If a student’s legal residence changes, the GE remains valid until the student is withdrawn or at the end of the student’s terminal grade level year. If a GE student wishes to continue to the next projected middle or high school within the GE complex, then a new GE application must be submitted.

A written appeal needs to be filed with the receiving school’s complex area superintendent within 10 school days of the postmarked date of denial. The written appeal can be submitted using Request for Review of Denial for Geographic Exception Form CHP-2 (PDF). The complex area superintendent shall render a written decision within 10 school days of the postmarked date of the filing for an appeal.

No. Once granted a GE, a student shall belong to the school and be treated no differently than any other student attending the same school. A GE is only revocable if the GE is found to be granted based upon false information submitted.

The notable considerations are priority considerations over other GE requests. All other requests for geographic exceptions shall be considered only after priority requests have been accommodated (HAR Ch. 13 §8-13-7(c)). You may check the “Other” box in Section I and provide a detailed statement of your reasons for seeking a GE. If more space is needed, you may staple additional documentation to support your reasons for seeking a GE.

Physical residence is the actual physical residence of the child (i.e., non-custody residence), per HRS §8-13-2, Chapter 13, Geographic Exceptions. Legal residence presumes that the child resides with the parents/legal guardian at the parents/legal guardian’s residence.

No. This information helps the school become aware of physical access needs, such as accessible walkways, special walker, distraction-free study space, preferential seating, or allergies, which allow the student to attend school on a daily basis. Specific disability labels should not be identified on the GE Request Form.

Forwarding schools are responsible to address all items in Section II and should not allow parents to answer this item on the GE Request Form. Specific disability labels should not be identified on the GE Request Form by the forwarding school. Moreover, receiving schools should not use any listed information against the GE approval for that student.

Refer to charts below. The school listed in the “SUBMIT TO:” section is responsible for completing Section II.

If applying for the NEXT School Year, the form should be completed and submitted for processing:

If applying for the PRESENT School Year, the form should be completed and submitted for processing:

The principal or his/her designee. The principal retains overall responsibility if delegated to a designee.

The principal or his/her designee. The principal retains overall responsibility if delegated to a designee.