A LOOK AHEAD * A growing student population in the Los Angeles Unified district is reducing the space for its open enrollment program and . . . : Putting a Lid on School Choice

With a student population expected to increase by 11,000 in the next school year, officials say the Los Angeles Unified School District’s well-received open enrollment program might soon be crowded out of existence.

Only 6,000 seats at 120 schools will be available this fall, officials said. That’s 1,400 fewer than a year ago and 16,000 fewer than 1994, the first year of the state-mandated program, which was begun when some campuses were sparsely attended or closed.

“The numbers could continue to go down rapidly,” Bruce Takeguma, an assistant director of school management services, said last week. “We can offer the program to the extent that it’s possible. If there’s no space for students, there’s no space.”

Today marks the beginning of the monthlong period in which parents may apply to send their children to any school in the district.

Officials attributed the decrease in available seats not only to the growing student population, which is expected this fall to reach an all-time high of 709,000, but also to a strong Southern California economy that has enabled more families to afford higher housing costs in neighborhoods with excellent schools. Residency is the best way to ensure admittance, officials point out, as state law requires every school to accommodate its neighborhood students before offering open enrollment.

Many schools are also operating with limited classroom space, caused by an increase in the number of students requiring smaller special-education classes and implementation of the district’s class size reduction program. The latter mandates a maximum student-teacher ratio in kindergarten through third grades, and some ninth-grade classes, of 20 to 1.

Takeguma and other administrators warned of likely disappointment, particularly on the Westside and in the San Fernando Valley, home to many highly regarded schools, such as Palms Middle School in West Los Angeles and El Camino Real High School in Woodland Hills. Historically, both have offered open enrollment, Takeguma said, but this year have no open-enrollment seats available.

In a year or two, the same thing could happen at Granada Hills High School, also considered strong in academics. With only 75 open-enrollment slots at the 3,500-student campus, parents from nearby communities have inundated the school with calls, eager to discover an edge that will get their children into the school.

“They ask if they can bring in their children’s report cards, or provide references,” said Kathleen Rattay, Granada Hills’ principal. “They beg, promising to volunteer at the school or do whatever it takes. I have to tell them I can’t do things that way. It’s hard.”

If a school receives more open-enrollment applications than it has space available, seats are awarded by a lottery.

In 1993, the state Legislature enacted the open enrollment policy to give families in less affluent areas the opportunity to send children to schools with excellent academic records.

District officials and school principals said it is unfortunate that fewer students can take advantage of the open enrollment program, because the program can help the district attract and retain bright students.

Takeguma said he doesn’t believe the overall program will ever disappear. “I don’t think it will reach an absolute zero,” he said. “But unless all our hopes and dreams come true, and more schools are built, [the program] could almost phase itself out.”

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For more information, call the desired school or the district’s Office of School Management Services at (213) 625-6414.