Conejo Valley Unified School District

Moving to a different school inside CVUSD goes through School Choice (the district also calls it “School of Choice”). The district says all CVUSD schools are schools of choice. A school accepts School Choice students only while it has room after current students and incoming neighborhood students.

If more families apply than there are seats, the district holds a random lottery. Any school-age child who lives inside CVUSD boundaries may apply. Families living outside the district use an interdistrict transfer instead.

A student who is new to CVUSD must first complete online pre-enrollment at the neighborhood school; until then, the School Choice application doesn't count as complete. Each family may submit one application per school year, listing up to two schools. For on-time applications, the district's School Choice regulation gives priority in this order: (1) students returning to their own neighborhood school; (2) siblings of current students at that school; (3) students who live in the Conejo Academy attendance area and don't want Dual Language Immersion; (4) children of CVUSD employees; (5) everyone else.

Priorities don't apply to late applications. For 2027-28, the online application opens Monday, November 2, 2026 at 8 a.m. To be on time and go into the lottery, it's due by 11:59 p.m. on Monday, February 1, 2027.

The district emails decision letters to on-time applicants by March 12, 2027. If your child isn't approved, the letter gives a waitlist number, and the district makes no further contact unless a seat opens. Late applications are handled case by case and go to the bottom of any waitlist.

July 1, 2027 is the last day for current CVUSD students to apply for the first semester, and all waitlists are canceled on September 15, 2027. High school students in grades 9–11 who haven't already applied for 2027-28 can apply for the second semester from November 15 to December 1, 2027. For 2026-27, that second-semester window runs from November 14 to December 1, 2026.

If your child is approved, you give up your seat at your neighborhood school, and the new school becomes your child's home school. Moving back later means applying again, as priority 1. If you are approved for your first choice, your child comes off the waitlist for your second choice.

If you are approved for your second choice, your child stays on the first-choice waitlist. The regulation says approved families must confirm enrollment within 10 calendar days. The district provides no transportation for School Choice students.

Questions go to Instructional Services at (805) 497-9511, ext. 1201.

The district's page

Programs and how students get in

• Acacia Magnet School for Enriched Learning: Attendance area (it is the neighborhood school for its zone). Families from other zones apply through School Choice, with a lottery if seats run short. A TK–5 school built on the Schoolwide Enrichment Model, which draws on gifted education practices. The school says all of its teachers are trained in gifted education.
• EARThS Magnet School (Environmental Academy of Research Technology and Earth Sciences): School Choice application only; there is no attendance area. Seats are filled in three tiers. Tier 1: 10% of TK and kindergarten seats go to children in the CVUSD preschool on the EARThS campus, then siblings and employees' children, then on-time kindergarten applicants from the nearby Cameo, Conejo Creek and Michael Manor tracts. Tier 2: a lottery for on-time TK and kindergarten applicants from the former Manzanita school boundary (15% of the remaining kindergarten seats), then priority for nearby grade 1–5 applicants. Tier 3: a lottery for all remaining on-time applicants in the district. An environmental science and technology school that has worked with the National Park Service on outdoor research programs. The district says it opened in 2009 as a school of choice with no boundary.
• Conejo Academy of Leadership and Language Immersion (Spanish-English Dual Language Immersion): Families in Conejo Academy's attendance area pre-enroll there. Other CVUSD families apply through School Choice and pick “Dual Language Immersion Program” as their first choice. Families outside the district apply by interdistrict transfer. The school gives each new TK or kindergarten child a language interview in both languages to keep classes balanced, and parents sign a commitment of at least six years. Half of the school day is taught in Spanish and half in English. The program reaches TK through grade 5 in 2027-28. Families in the attendance area who don't want immersion get School Choice priority for another school.
• Ladera STARS Academy: Attendance area. Families from other zones apply through School Choice. A nationally certified STEM campus that teaches through STEAM: science, technology, engineering, arts and math. The state lists it as a magnet school, and the district groups it with its academies and special focus schools.
• Madroña Academy of the Arts and Sciences: Attendance area. Families from other zones apply through School Choice. A TK–5 school with art, music and science specialists, two science labs, and a GATE program.
• Maple Elementary (“Where Learning Lives Outdoors”): Attendance area. Families from other zones apply through School Choice. A small Newbury Park school built around outdoor, hands-on learning, which the district lists among its academies and special focus schools.
• Sycamore Canyon School (TK–8): Attendance area for both the elementary and middle school grades. Families from other zones apply through School Choice. The district's only TK–8 campus, with an elementary program and a 6–8 middle school program at one site in Newbury Park.
• International Baccalaureate: Cypress Elementary (Primary Years), Sequoia Middle (Middle Years) and Newbury Park High (Diploma): Students in these schools' attendance areas attend as their neighborhood school. Others apply through School Choice. Cypress has been an authorized IB Primary Years school since January 2023. Sequoia runs the IB Middle Years Programme for all its students. Newbury Park High offers the IB Diploma in grades 11 and 12, and students can also test in single IB subjects.
• Discover Academy at Sequoia Middle School: Application. The school says all students must submit a School Choice Application to enroll. A grade 6–8 school within a school, started in 2009, that uses engineering and applied science as its themes.
• Century Academy: Application to the school, accepted year-round. Students coming from outside CVUSD or from a private school include their latest transcript. A blended program for grades 7–12 that mixes online coursework with weekly on-campus classes and advising. Students can join district sports and fine arts programs.
• SHINE Homeschool: Application to the program, accepted year-round. Home-based personalized learning overseen by credentialed teachers. The program's site says it serves TK through grade 6, and the district says TK is available through SHINE.
• Conejo Valley High School (continuation): Not described on the district's enrollment pages. Call the school at (805) 498-6646. A grade 9–12 school where students can recover credits and earn a diploma. It was recognized as a 2025 Model Continuation High School, one of 74 in California, and it offers dual enrollment through Moorpark College.
• Transitional kindergarten (TK): Enroll at your neighborhood school, or apply for another school through School Choice after you pre-enroll. Children who turn four on or before September 1, 2027 are eligible for 2027-28. Offered at every CVUSD elementary school and through SHINE Homeschool.
• Conejo Valley Adult Education: Register directly with the adult school. Offers a high school diploma or equivalency, English as a Second Language, online career courses and parenting classes.
• CVUSD Preschool – Early Childhood Program: Register through the preschool's own website. The district says the program has three locations in Thousand Oaks. The district also lists Wonder Preschool and a parent-participation Parenting Program run by the adult school.