Tools to help you choose
Choice of School and Magnet Applications Revamped for 2025
It ’ s almost time to select schools for the 2025-26 school year !
At Garland ISD , families have the opportunity to choose any school program in our district . With hundreds of options at our 68 campuses , there ’ s something for everyone . From career and technical education courses to magnet programs , Innovative Schools of Choice , and more , students of all ages can find the education path that will best suit them .
Families can select the programs they ’ d like their students to attend during the Choice of School period . Choice of School for grades 1-12 is January 7-February 10 , and April 1-30 for Pre-K and Kindergarten .
This year has some significant changes that will make the Choice of School and magnet process easier for our families :
We have a new mobile and text-friendly system called Avela Apply . Currently enrolled families will get an email from Avela to complete the Choice of School process if they are already enrolled . Students new to GISD will still use Skyward and complete Choice of School during enrollment .
Choice of School and magnet applications are one process instead of two .
Parents can now rank up to 6 school programs as their choices in priority order , instead of only three . You can also mix magnet and non-magnet programs in your ranking .
There is no need to accept or decline seats . Students will receive one placement offer , the Single Best Offer , which will be sent via Avela Apply and email . Families can expect the emails in March for grades 1-12 and May for PreK-K .
Students will automatically go on the waitlist for choices ranked higher than the Single Best Offer .
Tips for Choice of School
• Make sure your primary email address and phone number are up to date in Skyward . You can make updates by logging in to Skyward or contacting your current school ’ s data clerk .
• Parents should only rank school programs that your child qualifies for and that you ’ d be happy with your child attending . Be sure to put schools in order of preference .
• Check the transportation maps at Avela Explore by entering your address into the search bar and selecting the correct one in the drop-down . It will show you the designated transportation zone for each campus near you with a tag labeled “ transportation area ”.
• Many of our schools offer both non-magnet and specialized programs . Be sure to pay attention to the “ non-magnet ” vs . “ magnet ” designation on the school list so you select the correct school / program .
Tools to help you choose
School Interest Finder garlandisd . net / school-interest-finder Avela Explore explore . garlandisd . net Magnet Programs garlandisd . net / magnet Innovative Schools garlandisd . net / innovative Prekindergarten garlandisd . net / prekindergarten Kindergarten garlandisd . net / kindergarten Career and Technical Education garlandisd . net / CTE
Be a part of our # GISDUnmatched community ! See what makes Garland ISD great at our Unmatched Campaign website thegisdeffect . lpages . co / gisd-unmatched . For more information about Choice and magnets , visit garlandisd . net / choice and garlandisd . net / magnetapplication .
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