Here’s how to apply for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools’ choice lottery for 2023-24
Applications for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools’ “School Choice Lottery” open soon, giving students and their families the chance to get into a variety of magnet programs and more.
The district offers a number of special programs, such as language immersions and the International Baccalaureate program, at elementary, middle and high schools around the county.
But seats are limited.
The lottery takes into consideration multiple factors, including socioeconomic status and where a student’s siblings are in school. Some students will be waitlisted and eventually get placed as seats open up.
Here’s what to know about applying for CMS’ school lottery system for the 2023-24 school year:
How to apply for the CMS school lottery
Students new to the district will need to first “future enroll” for the next school year before entering the lottery system. Current CMS families “will receive students’ IDs and PINs before the lottery opens,” the district says.
Once you’ve got your student enrolled and have their information, the district recommends attending an open house and/or information session for the school or schools your family is interested in. The full slate of events can be found at cmschoice.org/calendar.
After narrowing down your choices, it’s time to apply for the lottery. The application opens Jan. 16 and will be available daily from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.” The application window closes Feb. 13.
“Be sure to write down your confirmation number after submitting the application,” CMS recommends.
Most students will be able to apply to up to three schools. Students coming from a “priority school” — defined by the district as “a school that, based on the most recent data available, has been identified as among the lowest-performing schools in the state” — will be able to apply to up to six schools.
“Lottery results will be mailed to all families who participated in the lottery within a few weeks after the lottery closes,” CMS advises.
How the CMS school lottery is decided
A family’s socioeconomic status impacts how they fare in the lottery system, the district explains. That is determined by census data and “family-reported data” gathered during the application process, including household income and how many children are in the household.
“Applications with these questions answered are given priority,” CMS says.
CMS also considers “proximity priority” and has a “sibling guarantee.”
The sibling program says “an older sibling can pull a younger sibling into a magnet program if the older will still be in the school when the younger sibling attends.” The guarantee applies to all programs except early and middle colleges, and the younger sibling must still participate in the lottery and list their older sibling’s program as their first choice.
What if your child is waitlisted?
Students who don’t get accepted into any of their chosen schools initially will automatically be “randomly assigned a waitlist number for their first choice” school, CMS advises.
If your child is chosen off the waitlist, you will receive a phone call from the school that’s picked them. Those calls can come “as seats open up” anytime between March and August, per the district.
This story was originally published December 30, 2022 at 6:00 AM.
