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CPS Application Process Update

November 20, 2017

Dear Parents or Guardian:

This is to provide you with important information about applications for the 2018-2019 school year for current Chicago Public Schools (CPS) preschool students and siblings of current CPS students.

Current Preschool Students

In most CPS elementary schools, the preschool program does not feed directly into kindergarten, which means that preschool students must apply in order to be considered for kindergarten. If you want your preschool child to attend kindergarten at the school where he/she is currently enrolled, you MUST submit an application if:
  1. The preschool your child attends is NOT your designated neighborhood school, or
  2. Your child does NOT attend preschool at Drummond, Inter-American, Mayer, or Suder (these are the only CPS schools where PreK feeds into kindergarten)
(To clarify, if your child is enrolled in preschool at your designated neighborhood school, you do not have to apply if you want your child to attend kindergarten at that school. If your child is enrolled in Drummond, Inter-American, Mayer, or Suder, you do not have to apply if you want your child to attend kindergarten at that school. If your child does not fit into one of these two categories, you must apply.) Information about the application process can be found at the end of this letter.

Siblings of Current Chicago Public School Students

If you have a child that you want to enroll in a Chicago public school for the 2018-2019 school year, and you have another child enrolled in that school, you MUST submit an application through the Options for Knowledge application process for the child that you want to enroll. The currently enrolled sibling’s last name, CPS ID number, and current school name or code MUST be included on the application. Sibling applicants to elementary magnet, magnet cluster, or open enrollment schools are selected first and will be offered seats to the extent that space is available. If a school receives more applications from siblings than there are seats available, a computerized lottery will be conducted to fill the seats.

The term “sibling” refers to natural siblings, step siblings, foster siblings and adopted siblings only. In order to be eligible, the currently enrolled sibling and the sibling applicant must live in the same household. An applicant cannot be enrolled as a sibling if the currently enrolled sibling graduates in 2018 or transfers to a different school in the 2018-2019 school year. If the currently enrolled sibling graduates or transfers to a different school, the sibling applicant will be placed in the general applicant lottery.

How to Apply

You can apply online at go.cps.edu (click ‘Apply’ to begin the process), or submit a paper application, accessible at go.cps.edu (click ‘How to Apply’ and ‘Elementary Schools’). The application deadline is December 22, 2017. Students who do not have an application submitted by the deadline WILL NOT be eligible for admission in the 2018-2019 school year. If you have questions or need assistance with the application process, please do not hesitate to contact the Office of Access and Enrollment at 773 553 2060 or gocps@cps.edu.
Sincerely,
Tony T. Howard
Executive Director