Military Families: Planning your Arrival to Fairfax County
Information on policies specifically designed to ease your transition
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For information about registration for the upcoming 2022-2023 school year, please contact your zoned school directly. Enter your address in the boundary locator to determine the name of your zoned school. If you already know your zoned school, then you can find your school’s website by visiting our Schools and Centers Directory for contact information.
Families who need language support may contact the following central office registrars:
- العربية (Arabic): Belsam Tubia at [email protected]
- فارسی (Farsi): Sima Navidi at [email protected]
- 한국어 (Korean): Carlin Kim at [email protected]
- Español (Spanish): Miriam Dubon at [email protected]
- اردو (Urdu): Farah Rana at [email protected]
For General Registration Questions, contact Patty Durish at 703-204-6734 or send an e-mail to [email protected]. A staff member will contact you within two business days to assist you.
Frequent moves are often part of military family life and enrolling in a new school can be challenging. However, at Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS), we have policies specifically designed to meet your unique needs and ease your transition.
Student Registration: A 5-Step Process
You will need to review the 5-step process outlined in General Registration Requirements (Grades 1 through 12) or Kindergarten Registration to understand the overall registration process. However, this page offers information about the special considerations given to military families during the time of student enrollment. These policies differ from those offered to nonmilitary families.
Special Considerations for Military Families
Enrolling Before Arrival
For military members who are not living in Fairfax County but who intend to move into Fairfax County within 120 days, the Code of Virginia 22.1-3 allows for enrollment in the school division of the child’s intended residence if documentation is provided, at the time of enrollment, of military orders of the service member parent or an official letter from the service member’s command indicating such relocation. The following is required:
- Documentation indicating a permanent address within the school division, such as a deed, signed lease, or ratified sales contract, shall be provided to the school division within 120 days of a child’s enrollment or tuition may be charged, including tuition for the days since the child’s enrollment in school.
- The assignment of the school such child will attend shall be determined by the local school division.
- Transportation must be provided by the parent.
- Review of documentation and approval for enrollment is done in the Office of Student Registration. For more information about this process for eligible military families who will be living outside of Fairfax County, please contact the Registration Services Technician at 703-204-6756, [email protected], or the Central Office Registrar at 703-204-6724, [email protected].
School Location
Upon request by a parent or legal guardian, FCPS provides for open enrollment of any student residing on a military installation or in military housing located within Fairfax County, if the school capacity and grade level capacity at the requested school will permit. Information regarding the application process may be accessed on the Student Transfer page.
Nonmilitary and military families of a student enrolled in FCPS may request a student transfer for his/her school-aged child (K-12) from the base school for the next school year during transfer season. Check Student Transfer for additional details.
Immunizations
In a situation in which a military child who falls under the provisions of the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military Children (MIC3) is without documentation of immunizations, he or she will be immediately enrolled and shall have up to 30 days from the date of enrollment to obtain any required immunizations.
Kindergarten Registration
In a situation in which a military child who falls under the provisions of MIC3 has registered for kindergarten in the sending state prior to transfer, even if the child never actually attended kindergarten in the sending state’s public school, the student would be eligible to enroll in kindergarten in the receiving state (Virginia).
Fort Belvoir School Liaison
To help make your transition easier, Department of Defense (DOD) provides a School Liaison Officer or a point of contact. Contact a Fort Belvoir School Liaison for assistance with school registration or any other issues.