Northeast Austin Fifth Graders Shift to Marshall
Families at six elementary schools should check their address and transfer options before the new Marshall boundary takes effect next fall.
Updated on Nov. 3, 2026 in Secondary Education
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The Austin Independent School District board last week approved a new attendance boundary that sends fifth graders at six Northeast Austin elementary schools to Marshall Middle School next year, and sends Norman-Sims Elementary students to Kealing Middle School. A separate small change rezones about 111 students from Linder Elementary to Travis Heights Elementary.
Why it matters
The changes are meant to relieve overcrowding and keep neighborhoods together from elementary through high school, which matters for families deciding where their children will spend middle school. Marshall Middle School has drawn many families by choice, and the district says Linder Elementary has been running short of space to house all required staff.
The board approved the Marshall Middle School boundary for fifth graders at Blanton, Harris, Jordan, Overton, Andrews and Pecan Springs, and Norman-Sims students will move to Kealing. The Marshall campus opened in 2023 with $60 million from the 2017 $1.05 billion bond, and the renovated Linder campus cost $56.4 million and opened in August.
The players
Austin Independent School District
The Austin-area public school district that operates Marshall Middle School, Linder Elementary and the rest of the schools in these boundary plans, and is funded by the 2017 and 2022 bond programs.
Marshall Middle School
A 2023-opened middle school in Northeast Austin that is receiving fifth-grade students from six nearby elementary schools under the new boundary.
Linder Elementary
A Southeast Austin elementary school whose newly renovated campus opened in August and which is rezoning about 111 students to Travis Heights Elementary.
The details
Sixth and seventh graders living inside the new Marshall boundary can finish middle school at their current campus by applying for a transfer. Andrews students north of Highway 290 and Pecan Springs students south of 51st Street, excluding the Senate Hills area, will be able to choose between Marshall and their assigned school. The Linder change moves about 111 students to Travis Heights Elementary, and the changes for both Marshall and Linder start next fall.
Timeline
2017: Bond funding for Marshall Middle School was approved.
2022: Bond funding for the Linder Elementary renovation was approved.
2023: Marshall Middle School opened.
Last week: The school board approved the Marshall and Linder boundary changes.
Next fall (2027): Marshall and Linder boundary changes take effect; broad citywide changes are not expected until fall 2028.
The Home Front
Austin families are watching a district that paused a citywide attendance redraw last year and now is making smaller, school-by-school changes instead. The broad citywide boundary changes are not expected to take effect until fall 2028.
If your child is in fifth grade at one of the six affected Northeast Austin elementary schools, check whether your address falls inside the Marshall boundary and whether you want to use the transfer or choice option before next fall. If you are near Linder Elementary, confirm with the district which Travis Heights attendance area now applies to your address.
The takeaway
Attendance boundaries can shift a child's whole school path, from elementary to middle to high school, so it pays to confirm your address against the official district boundary map. Keep the transfer and choice deadlines on your family calendar, since the Marshall and Linder changes start next fall.
What happens next
Families affected by the Marshall and Linder changes should watch for the district's transfer and choice enrollment windows ahead of next fall, when the new boundaries take effect. Broad citywide boundary changes are not expected until fall 2028.
Further reading
For more on how middle school options are changing, see Secondary Education in our Austin coverage.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Austin American-Statesman.
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