Register
New to CMS? Registration opens on November 18th.
Your first step is to register in CMS as a new student for the 2025-2026 school year. Once registration is processed, your child will automatically be assigned to your neighborhood school (based on your home address) and you will receive a Student Identification Number (ID) and Personal Identification Number (PIN) via US Mail. You can also contact your assigned neighborhood school to request your child’s ID and PIN 24-48 hours after it has been processed. We strongly recommend you complete the registration process as soon as possible to ensure that you get your ID and PIN as soon as possible.
Currently a CMS student?
You are already registered, but you will need to know your child’s student ID and PIN. You may contact your child’s current school to obtain that information.
Explore
Research your options! Check out theme descriptions on our Themes and Schools page, and use links to visit school websites.
We highly encourage you to visit schools for Open Houses and Information Sessions. This will give you a chance to get up close with our schools and programs and ask the questions that will help you feel confident about your choices! Check out the link below. If you don’t see events for a school you want, contact the school directly.
AttendEndless Possibilities: Exploring Education Options at CMS,a fair designed to help you make choices about your child’s future!
Some magnet programs, including Dual Language and Montessori, have late-entry requirements. Use the link below to read more about those requirements.
Apply
Completing the Program Choice Lottery application is a quick online process that will be open November 18th – January 3rd from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.
In order to participate you must first complete your registration to obtain an ID and PIN, so be sure to register as soon as possible.
On the Program Choice Lottery application, you may apply for up to three options – ranked in order of which option is desired most. You are not required to choose 3 options and we encourage you to only apply for those that you have fully explored and truly desire.
Some families have a School Performance Priority if they are assigned to a neighborhood/home school that has been placed the low performing school list for three or more years. These families would have up to three additional neighborhood/home school options available on their lottery application.
Please note:
- The lottery is not first come, first served. All applications are processed after the lottery closes.
- There is only one lottery application window.
- All lottery applications are due January 3, 2024 by 10:00 pm.
Results
After the lottery closes, it will take a few weeks to process the results. We ask for your patience as we work to send you timely, accurate information. Your results will be sent to you via US Mail.
You may use the links below to see how many students were seated in each of the last five lotteries.
