Moms and dads should have confidence in navigating Maine’s K-12 options for their children. And it will go a long way to support them if educators, community leaders and fellow families do their part to raise awareness about the various school choices, application processes and specialty learning opportunities across the state.

Kids in Maine deserve the best education that works for them and their families. They deserve the freedom to attend a school that caters to their unique needs, nurtures their growth and supports their family life and traditions.

For some families in Maine, not having access to a good school match (or knowing where to look for it) results in missed opportunities for children to excel academically, socially or emotionally. Parents care deeply about their children and want to find the learning environment that helps them succeed. For different families, this means different K-12 choices.

So, what are the K-12 options that families should know about?

In some cases, families can explore open enrollment as a way to choose a different public school than the one in their assigned area. While Maine doesn’t boast a statewide system for this, some districts do allow students to transfer to “out-of-neighborhood” schools.

In select areas, families can also choose free public magnet programs, which allow families the opportunity to provide their kids with theme-based education, such as science or the performing arts.

As of 2024, 1.4% of students in Maine choose public charter schools, which have extra freedom to innovate with learning methods compared to traditional public schools. However, only 10 charter schools are currently able to operate in the state due to a public charter school cap. On the bright side, free transportation is available to all students who attend Maine public charter schools and live within the vicinity of where the school is located.

Families can also choose from more than a hundred private schools across Maine. In addition to some privately funded scholarships, the state offers one of the oldest private school choice programs in the country. The Town Tuitioning Program is a voucher program enacted in 1873, and it enables students from towns without a public school to enroll in either a public school in a neighboring town or a private school. While the program is small — only 2% of students in the state are eligible for the program — it makes a tremendous difference to the families it serves.

Maine also offers two statewide online learning options for students, Maine Connections Academy and Maine Virtual Academy, and some districts provide their own online or hybrid programs. Especially for students in rural areas or with special scheduling or health needs, online learning’s flexibility can be a godsend. Part-time opportunities are also available; for example, the University of Maine at Fort Kent offers a free early college program for 10th-12th-graders, and even homeschool students can participate in it.

Outside of traditional schools, Maine families can explore homeschooling their children or finding a microschool, in which students gather together in a small group to learn, explore and socialize. Over the last five years across Maine, microschools with niche focuses like forestry or play-based learning have sprouted and offer unique learning opportunities for children.

In short, Maine offers families many learning choices, though these choices are not without limitations. Open enrollment allows some students to attend public schools outside their assigned zones, but it can be difficult to transfer in many districts. Public charter schools are capped at 10, restricting access to this choice. Maine’s historic Town Tuitioning Program provides an additional choice, but only a small percentage of students are eligible to participate.

As National School Choice Week (Jan. 26-Feb. 1) marks its 15th year, parents, teachers and students in Maine are coming together to celebrate the state’s educational opportunities. Now is the time to share education stories and hopes for the future of K-12 learning in Maine, and equip families with information, empowering students with the best fits for successful futures.