"Jena's attractive school landscape must be preserved!"

Jena parent representatives, the city of Jena and local politicians are calling on the state of Thuringia to take swift joint action. The focus is on the regulations of the Thuringian School Act on the allocation of school places for the first and fifth grades, which from Jena's point of view do not take into account the educational diversity in the city and the desire of many parents for a free choice of school. The East Thuringia State Education Authority is responsible for this.

In 2021, the state updated the Thuringian School Act and defined criteria for the allocation of school places, such as the principle of place of residence and the preferential allocation of places to siblings. Jena is characterized by a diverse school landscape with different educational concepts and profiles. In addition to several community schools, there are also schools with a special focus, such as the Carl-Zeiss-Gymnasium Jena with its mathematics and science profile, or reform-oriented institutions such as the Jenaplan School Jena. This diversity is desired by families, citizens and the city council and has grown over many years. It should make it possible for children to receive a suitable school place according to their individual learning and development needs. The criteria defined by the state do not suit Jena's educational landscape.

School law criteria do not fit Jena's educational landscape

The Thuringian Education Act provides for school boards and education authorities to make deviating special determinations. On this basis, the city of Jena issued a general decree in 2023 together with the East Thuringia State Education Authority: schools were allowed to allocate 30 percent of the class size according to content or conceptual criteria - for example, for children from cooperating educational institutions or from other districts. In 2024, the city continued this general ruling, but there was no feedback from the education authority. Instead, in August 2025, the city was instructed by the education authority to revoke the general ruling that had been in force since 2023 and to carry out the procedure exclusively in accordance with the general statutory criteria. This decision was made at a time when enrollment processes were already underway or had already been completed. The city had pointed out at an early stage that changing the procedural basis at short notice would lead to considerable irritation and legal uncertainty. Since then, repeated attempts at talks between the city of Jena, the education authority and the responsible ministry have remained unanswered. A letter jointly written by the Lord Mayor and the Head of Education to the Thuringian Minister of Education in November 2025 has remained unanswered to this day.

"Jena stands for a strong, diverse and future-oriented educational landscape - and it is precisely this strength that must now be secured,"

said Johannes Schleußner, Head of Education for the City of Jena. The joint appeal from parents, city councillors and the city administration to the Thuringian Ministry of Education is:

"Finally get into conversation with us. Make use of the existing legal possibilities. Let's work together to create a solution that is legally secure, that takes the will of parents seriously and that does justice to the reality of our diverse school landscape. The time to act is now. It may be too late for the current proceedings - but not for the future of our children, our families and our educational location."

Parents, politicians and the city administration are open to constructive and solution-oriented cooperation with the school board and the Ministry of Education. However, all those involved must now be prepared to take responsibility for a fair, modern and reliable school policy.