LRSD Open Enrollment Begins

A big day for students and parents in the Little Rock School District.

On any given Sunday you will find the parking lot at St. Mark Baptist Church in Little Rock packed.

But this is not Sunday service, it's Monday and open enrollment for the Little Rock School District is underway.

Karen Mills and her husband are here to register their son for the fourth grade.

He's been on a waiting list for one year to get into Williams Magnet, so they've been shelling out money for private school.

"Private school numbers have dwindled and I want to get him into the public system as well, so we can have a better comparison for his education," said Mills.

Like Karen and her husband, hundreds of parents wait in line, make copies of documents, head to a table full of paperwork, then a room to fill it all out, once complete, they wait in line again to register.

Karen is done with all the paperwork, but won't know until maybe March if her son will be allowed to attend Williams.

She says the not knowing is very stressful.

But here's how you can cut down on part of the stress of open enrollment:

"If you are not registering a 3-year-old, 4-year-old or a transfer without transportation go to your zoned school and register," explained Frederick L. Fields.

In the meantime for parents like Karen, the hard part is over, now it's wait and see.

"I did it last year, I've learned to just be patient," added Mills.