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About the School Choice Map

The GreatSchoolsforME.org interactive map is designed to show site visitors the kind of educational choices that are available across Maine.

 

What information does the GreatSchoolsforME school choice map provide?

The school choice map provides users with three pieces of information. First, the map shows which communities in Maine allow students a choice of high schools under Maine’s Town Tuitioning program. Second, for each town in Maine, the map shows the district high school that serves that town, if there is one, plus other nearby high schools from which students might choose if they were allowed high school choice. Third, the site provides links to extensive GreatSchools.org data on each high school in Maine, so that parents and students might investigate their own high school and compare one school to another.

 

What determines whether a town has high school choice or not?

Generally speaking, if a town is part of a school district that does not operate its own high school, students in that town are allowed to attend a nearby high school of their choice. On the map, towns which are identified as having high school choice are those towns which are not part of a school district that operates its own high school.

It is important to point out that in practice, some towns or districts that do not operate their own high schools still require students to attend a particular high school, though it is unclear in state law whether such restrictions on choice are legal, as explained on our School Choice in Maine page. In such cases, towns may appear on the map as offering school choice, but limit that choice regardless. These policies are decided by local school boards and are frequently determined by tradition as much as by explicit policy. Parents in such districts should approach school administrators and school board members for more information about their school choice rights.

 

If the map shows high schools in other towns near me, can I choose one of those schools for my child?

That depends on whether you live in a community the offers a choice of high schools. We have included a list of nearby schools for both choice and non-choice communities because all families should know what educational options might be available to them.

If your school district operates its own high school, that school will appear on the map as the district high school. Your children will likely be required to attend this school.

If you live in school district that does not operate its own high school, your child will likely have a number of high schools from which to choose, though that is not always the case.

Please see our page on School Choice in Maine for more information.

What are the “District high schools?”

Schools identified on the map as “district high schools” are the schools operated by the school district serving the selected town. Because towns that offer a choice of high schools typically do not operate a high school of their own, no district high school appears for those towns.

Students in towns that are served by a district high school are generally not allowed to attend another high school, at least not with public tuitioning dollars, though there are exceptions. Please visit our page on School Choice in Maine for more information.

Schools that serve as district high schools for one school district might also be among the schools chosen by students who have school choice. As a result, a school that appears as a district high school for one town may appear as a simply a nearby high school option for another town.

 

How was the list of nearby schools for each town developed?

Generally, we selected the nearest high schools for inclusion on each town’s list of nearby schools, as they would be the most logical options for families in most towns. Additionally, we used the state’s data on which schools the students in school choice towns have historically chosen to attend as another resource in creating each list.

Because Maine law requires that schools receiving public tuition funds have state approval and be non-sectarian, religious schools and schools without state approval do not appear on the list. These are, of course, an option for families, but cannot be paid for with public tuitioning dollars. Please see our page on School Choice in Maine for more information.

 

If I live in a town that allows a choice of schools, can my child attend a school that is not on the list?

Yes. These lists are not all-inclusive. Generally, students in school choice communities may choose to attend any approved non-sectarian school, including schools in other states. Our intent was not to produce lists that were all-inclusive, but rather to simply illustrate the kinds of high school options available to students in school choice communities, as well as the options that would be available to non-choice communities were they to have those same school choice rights.

 

What about elementary and middle schools?

Nearly all Maine towns operate their own elementary and/or middle schools, so very few Maine students are allowed a choice of schools in those grades, though a few do. The overwhelming majority of Maine students that have a choice of schools, have a choice of high schools only.

 

What about Portland?

Portland does not show up on our map as a school choice town, though Portland does evidently allow parents some choice from among the schools it operates. The key difference is that it is the Portland Public School system that ultimately makes the descion with regard to a student's placement, not the parents. The Portland system's website does feature a rather confusing document explaining the exaustive process for moving a child from one school to another.

Other than the state’s Town Tuitioning program, are there ways my child can attend a school other than our assigned district schools?

Yes. There are a couple of other options for parents looking for more school choices. Please see our page on School Choice in Maine for more information.

The map shows that my town does not allow a choice of high schools, but I would like to have the same kind of choice options other towns have. What should I do?

Please see our Get Involved page for information on how you can help us create more school choice options for Maine families.

 

Do I have school choice options?