The Oak Park School District’s policy of capping the number of out-of-area students attending local schools has been modified in order to increase enrollment and revenue.

Last September the school board voted to limit the number of out-of-town students to 35 percent of the district’s student body. This year, transfer students comprise about 33 percent of the student population in all Oak Park schools, including the district’s alternative schools, Oak View High and Oak Park Independent.

Total enrollment in Oak Park will reach 4,500 students next year.

A new formula approved by board members in January changes how some transfer students are defined and counted, which will allow more out-of-area kids to attend Oak Park schools.

Children of district employees and students attending Oak Park’s alternative schools will not be included in the district’s overall count, which means more students can be included in the population of the six traditional schools.

The move to increase enrollment is expected to boost the budget by $700,000 after expenses, Oak Park superintendent Tony Knight said.

School board member Marie Panec opposes an increase in out-of-district enrollment.

Lottery results

At a Feb. 16 meeting, the board held a lottery for District of Choice transfer students. Of the 780 applicants, 381 students were accepted for enrollment next year. With some transfer students graduating, the total number of additional out-of-area students expected to attend the six traditional Oak Park schools is estimated at 211, Knight said, keeping the school district within the 35 percent range.

If the two alternative schools are included in the calculation, the out-of-area enrollment is closer to 37 percent, Panec said.

Permit students are expected to be more than 40 percent of the Medea Creek Middle School student population next year. Red Oak Elementary, however, will remain below the district average with 24 percent.

Next year Brookside and Oak Hills elementary schools are expected to have 36 percent of their student body come from outside the community. Almost half of Brookside’s first- graders are projected to be transfer students.

Oak Park High School will meet the 35 percent cap next year.

“The hardest part about the District of Choice program is communicating to parents and community members the benefits of this program to resident students,” said Board President Barbara Laifman, who added that some residents see the “perceived negative effects” but don’t realize, for example, that programs still exist that would have been cut without the extra funding.