District specialty/magnet school and program information
(12/06/19) Anoka-Hennepin is home to 13 specialty/magnet schools or programs that feature customized curriculum, including arts, mathematics, science, aerospace, engineering, and biomedical and/or environmental sciences.
One of those programs is a STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics) program at Anoka High School (AHS). And new this year: AHS has been accepted into the Northwest Suburban Integration School District (NWSISD), which is made up of seven public school districts, and offers access and bus transportation to students and families interested in magnet school programming found within those member districts.
NWSISD districts include Anoka-Hennepin, Brooklyn Center Schools, Buffalo-Hanover-Montrose Schools, the Elk River Area School District, Fridley Public Schools, Osseo Area Schools and Rockford Public Schools.
Anoka-Hennepin’s NWSISD schools include Anoka High School’s STEAM program, Anoka Middle School for the Arts, Blaine High School’s Center for Engineering Mathematics and Science (CEMS) program, Coon Rapids High School’s CEMS and Biomedical Sciences programs, Science and Children’s Engineering, and University Avenue Elementary for Aerospace and Children’s Engineering.
In addition, coming next year, Evergreen Park World Cultures Community School in Brooklyn Center will transition to a science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) program. As a result, the school name will be changing to Evergreen Park Elementary - STEM School of Innovation. That school is also part of the NWSISD.
Anoka-Hennepin also has specialty schools that aren’t part of the NWSISD, and they include Champlin Brooklyn Park Academy for Math and Environmental Science, Champlin Park High School, International Baccalaureate (IB) Program, Hoover Elementary School - Biomedical, Health Science, and Engineering, Jackson Middle School, A Specialty School for Math and Science, Lincoln Elementary School for the Arts, Monroe Elementary School - Mathematics, Science and Children's Engineering, and the district’s Secondary Technical Education Program (STEP).
Application deadline to transfer to specialty/magnet schools is approaching
Families interested in applying for in-district transfer – current Anoka-Hennepin families wanting to go to a school other than their assigned site, and provide their own transportation – must submit their applications by Jan. 15, 2020. Go to ahschools.us/EnrollmentOptions for an application and additional information.
The same Jan. 15, 2020 deadline applies to families interested in applying for open enrollment – families wanting to attend a school district outside their assigned home school district, and provide their own transportation. Again, go to ahschools.us/EnrollmentOptions for an application and additional information.
Families interested in Northwest Suburban Integration School District (NWSISD) magnet schools — Evergreen Park and University Avenue elementary schools, Anoka Middle School for the Arts, and Anoka, Blaine and Coon Rapids high schools — must submit their applications by Dec. 31, 2019. Go to nws.k12.mn.us for an application and more information.
Some schools are holding open house events or tours before these application deadlines. Check out the specialty/magnet flyer at ahschools.us/specialty for more information.