Magnet school

What It Means

A magnet school is a public schoolPublic schoolA school run by publicly elected or appointed officials and paid for mainly with public money, including district, charter and magnet schools. See more that offers a special curriculum or teaching approach designed to attract students from across a district, including students of different racial backgrounds. The federal Magnet Schools Assistance Program defines it as a public elementary or secondary school, or an education center, with a special curriculum capable of drawing substantial numbers of students of different racial backgrounds. Federal grants from that program help districts set up and run magnet schools as a way to desegregate public schools and to reduce or prevent minority group isolation.

How Parents Say It

• "She got into the STEM magnet for middle school."
• "The arts magnet has auditions in January."
• "Is the magnet school in our district or across town?"

The Breakdown

Common magnet themes, from the U.S. Department of Education

By stage. A district may offer magnets at elementary, middle or high school level, and the federal definition covers both elementary and secondary schools. The choice tends to come up at kindergarten, at the move to middle school and before high school, so look at the district's magnet list a year ahead of each of those points.

Pick a magnet if your child has a strong interestInterest rateThe yearly percentage a lender charges for borrowing money, not counting fees; the APR adds certain fees to show a fuller cost. See more that matches a theme the district offers, and you can manage the commute and the application.

Pick a charterCharter schoolA tuition-free public school run under a charter, a contract with a state, district or other authorizer, that families choose rather than being assigned to. See more if a charter school near you offers the program you want, and you're ready for its application and lottery.

When to talk to the school. If your child has an IEPIEPAn IEP (Individualized Education Program) is the written plan a public school makes for a child who qualifies for special education under IDEA. See more or a 504 plan504 planA school's plan of supports for a student whose disability substantially limits a major life activity, under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. See more, ask the magnet school how it provides those services before you apply, the same question you'd ask any public school.

Good to Know

Each district decides how its magnet schools take students, so ask for the application dates, whether there's a lottery, test, audition or interviewJob interviewA conversation in which an employer asks about your experience and skills to decide whether to offer you a job, and you learn about the role. See more, and whether the district provides transportation. The federal Magnet Schools Assistance Program gives its grants to school districts, which set up and run the magnet schools. If you're comparing it with a charter, Buhata's charter school page covers the federal charter rules.

Related Terms and Categories

• Charter school

  A tuition-free public school run under a charter, a contract with a state, district or other authorizer, that families choose rather than being assigned to.

• Public school

  A school run by publicly elected or appointed officials and paid for mainly with public money, including district, charter and magnet schools.

• School choice

  The range of K to 12 options a family can pick from instead of only the assigned public school: other public schools, charters, private school or homeschooling.

• Montessori school

  A public or private school using Maria Montessori's method: mixed-age classes, Montessori materials, child-chosen work and long stretches of uninterrupted work time.

• Gifted and talented

  Students who show high ability in an intellectual, creative, artistic, leadership or academic area and need services beyond the regular classroom to develop it.

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