A Lakes Region high school using a 2009 state law to bring in out-of-district students could become the model for a new push toward open enrollment in New Hampshire.
Prospect Mountain High School in Alton turned to open enrollment as its student population declined. That approach is a way “to save public schools,” said state Rep. Katy Peternel (R-Wolfeboro), vice chair of the House Education Policy and Administration Committee and the featured speaker at Americans for Prosperity–New Hampshire’s recent “Breaking the Education Monopoly” event.
The move comes as school choice supporters have notched major victories, including the passage of universal access to Education Freedom Accounts, signed into law by Gov. Kelly Ayotte earlier this year. Now, Peternel and other Republicans want to expand public school options by allowing students to attend any school willing to take them.
“It will make (school districts) stronger, because they will start attracting students,” Peternel said. “They will have to make their programs attractive to the surrounding communities.”
A recently enacted law already allows families to move their children between schools within their resident district if space is available. AFP-NH Deputy State Director Sarah Scott said that could be significant in cities like Manchester, which offer multiple education options.
“There are a lot of families in Manchester who feel like they have no chance at success because of the school that they are assigned by the district,” Scott said. “They can’t afford to move into a better district… but they want their kids to have options.”
Despite being a leader on EFAs, New Hampshire trails the nation on open enrollment. More than 40 states offer some version of it, Scott noted, and 16 have full open enrollment. About 1.6 million students nationwide use the option, and national polling shows broad support—“84 percent of Republicans and 80 percent of Democrats,” Scott said.
Enrollment trends are also pushing the conversation. A Reason Foundation report found New Hampshire experienced the largest K–12 public school enrollment decline of any state this century.
Prospect Mountain has been a rare exception. The school added 10 out-of-district students in 2022, 20 more in 2023, and 30 this year, including 11 from Pittsfield. Peternel described Prospect Mountain as “one of the most exciting public schools I’ve ever walked into.”
“You could feel energy in the hallway,” she said.
But growth at Prospect Mountain has generated friction with sending towns. The Pittsfield School District argued that because it never voted to join the state’s open enrollment system, it shouldn’t have to cover tuition for students who enroll elsewhere. The New Hampshire Supreme Court disagreed, ordering Pittsfield in October to pay the tuition for its 11 students attending Prospect Mountain.
Opponents of open enrollment say districts like Pittsfield risk losing both students and critical local funding. Supporters counter that other states—including politically blue ones—have successfully embraced open enrollment.
Peternel noted that in places like Colorado and Delaware, open enrollment is considered basic educational fairness.
“It breaks down the zip code barrier,” she said. “So this actually creates equity among the students, because now you can go to that school you’ve wanted to go to, even if your parents can’t afford a house in a place like Wolfeboro or Alton.”
She said she intentionally used the word “equity,” despite its association with controversial diversity, equity, and inclusion debates.
“Because it levels the playing field when you’re not defined by your school or by your zip code,” she said. “So now a student can say, ‘I like the programs they have at that school.’ The parents say, ‘I agree, I think you should go to that school.’ They’re no longer constrained by the community in which they live… So that’s the ‘equity’ — meaning you’re not controlled by where you live.”
