Wait-listed seats are contingent on three important factors:

Timely acceptance of offered seats.  The lottery offered seats on March 20th, giving families 14 days to accept or decline seats.  Seats not automatically accepted will be declined.  Newly offered seats afford families 5 days to accept or decline seats which can stretch out time on the waiting list.

Current Enrollment: When families indicate that they are not returning for the 2025-26 school year, seats become available.  Family decisions are made throughout the summer and can lead to slow wait list progress.

Neighborhood Enrollment: Neighborhood enrollment begins April 1st.  If there is low neighborhood enrollment, some seats can be converted into magnet seats. We will begin identifying seat availability on August 1, 2025, based on neighborhood enrollment.

Expect to have movement between 1–2 seats in the spring/summer. After this, we will closely monitor enrollment for space availability. Please do not contact the school for estimations on the waitlist.

February 12, 2025: Phase 1 application window closes

March 20, 2025: Phase 1 Lottery Notification Day

March 20, 2025: Phase 2 Opens (Space Available/Hardship Seats)

River Oaks accepts sibling hardship and continuing educational hardships for 5th grade students only.  Read below for information on sibling hardships under: My child did not qualify for the gifted and talented program.  Is there room for siblings?

The HISD Office of School Choice processes all applications for the River Oaks ES Vanguard Program.  Their website offers a comprehensive Q&A for information regarding siblings, lottery priority, next steps if you did not get your school choice and more.  Click here to stay informed.

If you do not find the answer to your question on our Q&A page, reach out to schoolchoice@houstonisd.org or visit the school choice Q&A for ways to connect in person or over the phone.

Parents can view the status of the application on the parent dashboard on March 26, 2024. Log on to your application and click take action/next steps. Continue on until you see the schools you selected. If you need help logging into the school choice application, contact: schoolchoice@houstonisd.org.

Congratulations! You have been offered a seat at River Oaks ES. Please follow the following steps in the school choice platform! 

1. Accept or decline your seat.  Once you decline a seat, the decision can not be undone.

2. Electronically, sign the entrance agreement online.

3. Upload proof of residency.

4. Click here for River Oaks Elementary registration information. Registration begins April 1, 2025.

Log in by clicking here.

Congratulations! If your child is offered a seat on March 20, 2025, you will have 14 calendar days (holidays included) to accept the seat. It is recommended that you accept your seat through the school choice system as soon as possible. Once a seat expires, it can not be reinstated.  Log in. Follow next steps, upload required documentation, and complete entrance agreements.  We will contact you with important registration information.

If your child is on the wait list, and you have been offered a seat from the waitlist, you have 5 calendar days (including holidays) to accept the seat.  

In order to qualify for the Vanguard program, students must: already be qualified as Gifted and Talented (GT) within HISD.  An ineligible designation means that the gifted and talented threshold was not met. Students who do not qualify for GT may request testing in 2025 and reapply for the 2026-27 school year if they are GT identified.

The sibling hardship application window opens on March 20, 2025 during Phase 2.  The goal is to keep families together at ROE, sibling hardship notifications can be processed as late as mid-August, based on space availability.  Sibling hardship seats are not guaranteed, zoned families have priority over hardship sibling requests.

The hardship request does not expire until the end of the school year. Sibling hardship for families with currently enrolled siblings will be processed in the order received based on space availability. If you do not have a seat offered by the 1st day of school, you must register and be in attendance at your zoned campus while waiting to see if a hardship seat is available.

Wait listed seats are processed in the order that they are listed in the lottery as space becomes available.  This is an automated system.   Seats are offered as soon as a space becomes available. Typically the waitlists are utilized throughout the summer and until the seats expire at the start of school.

It is important to note that accepting a seat at a lower ranked school will not affect a student’s standing on the wait list if River Oaks is a top choice.

The school has no updates on the wait list status at this time as parents are still accepting seats around the district.  The system is automated and will offer seats as they become available.

The wait list is expected to be retired by the Office of School Choice during the first weeks of school.  If you have not been offered a seat, we encourage you to apply to River Oak for the 2026-27 school year.

River Oaks ES will review Phase 2 applications as follows by space availability:

Priority 1: Sibling applications for students who have a sibling attending River Oaks ES for the 2025-26 school year and rising 5th Grade continuing education applications.

Priority 2: Sibling applications for new students who will have a sibling attending River Oaks ES for the 2025-26 school year.  Applications under this section are not eligible for review until the first day of school.

Priority 3  Phase 2 hardship applications. We will not have information on hardship seats until the first week of school. Applications are processed in the order they are received. 

Priority 4  Phase 2 space available applications will be processed and added to the end of the Phase 1 wait lists.  

Applications that do not fall under Priority 1, Priority 2, or Priority 3, or Priority 4 will not be reviewed for admission to River Oaks ES for the 2025-26 school year.

Bus services are available for students accepted into the Vanguard Magnet Program.

Bus requests for the 2025-26 school year will not be processed or available until late July.  You will have an opportunity to request bus services upon registration at River Oaks. Routes will be assigned by HISD transportation and information will be communicated to parents from the transportation department.  If you have transportation questions, please reach out to: HISD Customer Care 713-556-9400.  

The Vanguard registration window opens on April 1, 2025.  Click here for important information and forms needed for registration.

River Oaks Elementary is open for parent tours on Thursdays from 9:00 - 10:00 am.  Click here to register for an upcoming tour. Once you complete the form, you will have a guaranteed reservation to attend on any Thursday of your choice.  

River Oak Elementary is where you belong! 

Click here for a student-led virtual tour of our campus and campus trailer.