South Cobb High, Cooper Middle and Clarkdale Elementary open $600-a-semester seats to students from outside Cobb

Three schools in the South Cobb High School cluster, South Cobb High, Cooper Middle and Clarkdale Elementary, are among 12 Cobb County schools now offering open seats to students who live outside the district. Tuition is "$600 per semester with no application fee," according to the Cobb County School District.

The district announced the program, called Choose Cobb, in a post dated Nov. 4, 2026. The post says eligible students "may apply for available seats at 12 participating schools across four high school clusters." The district is taking applications for the spring 2027 semester through Nov. 30, 2026. Applicants must meet eligibility requirements, and the district says admission "depends on student qualifications and available space."

What it means for families here

The district says the program "uses existing classroom capacity while generating additional revenue to support participating schools." It also says that "Cobb students remain the priority."

South Cobb High's feeder-schools page lists Cooper, Floyd and Garrett middle schools. Mableton Elementary appears under both Floyd and Garrett, and Clarkdale Elementary appears under both Cooper and Garrett. Hello Mableton has not confirmed how much of the city of Mableton falls inside the attendance zones of the three participating schools.

The other three clusters in the program are Harrison High, Lost Mountain Middle and Vaughan Elementary; Allatoona High, Durham Middle and Pickett's Mill Elementary; and Kell High, Palmer Middle and Kennesaw Elementary.

What the district has not said

The announcement does not say how many seats are open at South Cobb, Cooper or Clarkdale. It says only that "available seats vary by school, grade, class, and program." It also does not explain how the district decided these schools had room to spare, or how the tuition money will be divided among the participating schools.

Hello Mableton did not find a school board vote approving the program in the documents reviewed for this story. The announcement says the eligibility rules and answers to common questions are on the Choose Cobb website. Hello Mableton did not review that site, so those rules are not reported here.

How to apply or ask questions

Spring 2027 applications close Nov. 30. The district directs questions about eligibility, applications, tuition or application status to the Choose Cobb office at choosecobb@cobbk12.org or 770-514-2844.