Middle School Options & Transfers

Update February 14, 2022: The information on neighborhood transfers for the school year 2022-23 is now available. Additional information is available on the neighborhood transfers webpage for each level.

Update February 1, 2022: The lotteries for all secondary (middle and high) option school/program applications were held on Monday, Jan. 31, 2022. View the recording here.  Families will be notified of their acceptance or placement on the waitlist by the methods they selected through the online application portal (email or text) after 4 p.m. on Monday, February 7, 2022.

Update November 1, 2021: Virtual Middle School Information Night was held on Monday, Oct. 25, 2021, at 7 p.m.  Select the following links to view:

General Middle School Options & Transfers Application Information for School Year 2022-23

Option Middle Schools & Programs Application Timeline
Application Window: CLOSED Nov. 1, 2021 at 10 p.m. – Jan. 21, 2022 at 4 p.m.
Lottery Jan. 31, 2022, 12 – 4 p.m.
Lottery Notification Feb. 7, 2022 after 4 p.m.
Accept/Decline Feb. 21, 2022 by 11:59 p.m.
Middle School Neighborhood Transfers Application Timeline
Application Window: OPEN Feb. 21, 2022 – March 11, 2022
Lottery March 18, 2022, 1 – 3 p.m.
Lottery Notification March 25, 2022 after 4 p.m.
Accept/Decline April 8, 2022
  • Option Schools/Programs: Spanish Immersion Program at Gunston, Montessori Middle Years Program at Gunston, and H-B Woodlawn (Grades 6-8).
  • Neighborhood Transfers: Neighborhood transfers for the 2022-23 school year will be offered to the following middle schools: Dorothy Hamm, Jefferson, Kenmore, and Williamsburg. Additional information is available on the Middle School Requesting a Transfer webpage. The 2022-23 school year lotteries for the middle schools accepting neighborhood transfers was held on Friday, March 18. View the recording
  • Information Night: Families of students entering middle school in the fall of 2022 will hear an overview about APS middle schools, school options, application deadlines and procedures, school-based information sessions, available student resources, and more.
  • Waitlists: Middle school neighborhood transfer waitlists will be maintained by the APS Welcome Center until May 2, 2022. Options seats are continuously filled throughout the school year as seats become available. Families will be notified if they are on the waitlist and a seat becomes available. If families do not accept or decline a seat by the deadline, the available seat is given to the next student on the waitlist. All waitlists reset when the options and transfers period begins each year, so families must reapply if they are still interested in attending a school or program they applied to previously.
  • Sibling Preference: Sibling preference is not currently offered at the middle school level.
  • Transportation: Transportation is available for students attending option schools/programs who live outside their school’s walk zone (View school bus eligibility maps). All transportation for option school and programs is provided via hub stops. Hub stops are central locations—such as a community center or school—where students from several neighborhoods meet to catch the bus to their school and may be a longer distance from a student’s residence. Transportation is not provided for neighborhood transfers or administrative placements. Select here to learn more about transportation for option schools.
  • FAQs: Families should review the Secondary Options and Transfers FAQs for answers to questions frequently received about the options and transfers process.
  • Lottery Information: The 2022-23 school year lotteries for the middle and high school option programs were held on Monday, Jan. 31, 2022, from 12 – 4 p.m. View the recording.
  • To Apply: Apply for an option middle school or program through the online application portal.

For additional information or questions, please contact the APS Welcome Center at 703-228-8000 or schooloptions@apsva.us.