In the spirit of customer satisfaction, the Clark County School Board approved a proposal Thursday that could pave the way for students throughout the district to choose the school they attend.

Trustees voted 6-0 to launch a pilot program in fall 2008 that would allow students enrolled in Northeast Region schools, in first through 12th grades, to select the school they'll attend, regardless of the school they are zoned for.

Superintendent Walt Rulffes said the program will breed competition among schools and improve student achievement. Students attending the school they prefer will be more motivated to perform academically, he said.

"This stems from the notion of customer service," Rulffes said. "We want students and parents to have choices in determining their education."

But district staff told School Board members that the pilot program largely depends on whether the Legislature allocates funding for transportation. Those costs have not been determined, but Rulffes said the price tag would be several million dollars, depending on how many students are interested in changing schools.

Even though the program isn't a sure thing, trustees were enthusiastic that the district is considering the initiative.

"This is terribly exciting," said Trustee Terri Janison. "It's great that we are talking about this."

Northeast Region Superintendent Marsha Irvin called the program innovative. Although there are similar programs in other school systems, including in Milwaukee and Seattle, she said, the Clark County program would be the first in a rapidly growing school system.

The district is one of the fastest growing and fifth-largest in the nation with about 303,000 students.

Irvin said it's important that the district obtaining transportation funding from the Legislature to carry out the pilot program. "If we don't offer (students) transportation, then we're really not offering choice," she said.

Under the pilot program, Irvin said, students could only choose to enroll in schools that are not overcrowded. If too many students want to enroll in a particular school, she said, then the district would have to use a lottery system to determine who is allowed to attend.

The Northeast region has 50 schools and about 48,000 students. The region will grow by three schools in fall 2008.

Under the federal No Child Left Behind Act, school systems must allow parents with children at a failing low-income school that receives federal funds to transfer to a non-failing school.

Parents who choose that option for their child are given access to busing to the passing school.

So far, only a small portion of parents have exercised that option. This year in the Northeast Region, eight elementary and three middle schools were deemed failing.

But only 93 students from those schools transferred to a different school, Irvin said.

Irvin and Rulffes said they don't expect a large number of students will switch schools.

"We don't expect a mass exodus from one school to another," Rulffes said. "Most people are happy with their schools."

Bill Garis, the district's athletic director, said students who transfer from one school to another to play a sport must sit out an entire school year before they can participate. He said all the logistics involving sports and an open-enrollment process have not been determined yet.

"We haven't really determined how we're going to approach this issue because open enrollment is a whole different animal," Garis said. "I'm sure, at a minimum those students will be treated like any other transfer."