School Choice

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This webpage will be updated beginning October 1, 2024

Please check back for updates

Resident Students Needing to Enroll for 9th grade in the Fall 2024:

Determine your school of residence by clicking HERE.
Enroll online with your high school of residence beginning May 6, 2024.
Contact the LBUSD Secondary Office (High Schools) at (562) 997-8115 for placement other than school of residence (subject to space availability)

Non-Residents wishing to enter LBUSD in 9th grade for Fall 2024:

Visit our website
Obtain an Interdistrict Permit from your residential school district.
Email completed application and required documents.
Placement begins late April through the start of the school year.

Contact the Secondary Office (High School) for assistance: (562) 997-8115

School of Choice Office

Helpline: (562) 997-8306

HSMSChoicehelp@lbschools.net

Explore by School

Browning early college high school

Early College, Hospitality, Tourism & Recreation

california academy of math and science (cams)

long beach polytechnic high school

renaissance high school for the arts

sato academy of math and science

Explore by Industry

arts, media, & entertainment

business & finance/marketing

engineering/architecture

environmental resources

Odyssey (Lakewood)

health, science, & medicine

hospitality & tourism/culinary arts

Early College, Hospitality, Tourism & Recreation (Browning)

public services (government, law, & human services)

specialized programs

technology

Parent University Virtual Workshop on High School Choice

Additional Resources

Pathway Programs 23—24: English / Spanish
Pathways with Minimum Criteria: English / Spanish
For New / Returning to LBUSD parents: How to Complete Online Enrollment: English / Spanish
Step-by-Step how to complete the HS Choice Application: English / Spanish
STEM Index:
How to Calculate the STEM Index: English / Spanish
Special Education Programs: English / Spanish
Student Career: Interest Survey / Survey Results

P3_Wave-hr

2024 High School Choice Timeline for Matriculating 8th Graders

Prepare

OCTOBER — FEBRUARY

Current LBUSD Students

Ensure you can login to your ParentVue account.
Ensure the address in your ParentVue account is correct. (annual verification)

New / Returning Residents to LBUSD

Resident students not currently enrolled in LBUSD may enroll online starting January 8, 2024: Step-by-Step Enrollment Instructions.
1. Determine your Middle School of Residence (MSOR). School Finder
2. Contact your Middle School of Residence for enrollment information and assistance.
  - Returning students - use ParentVUE account
  - New Students - create ParentVUE account
3. Upload documentation, including birth certificate, proofs of residency, Transcripts from 6th, 7th and fall semester of 8th grade and SBAC / STAR testing information. Contact your current school for assistance with obtaining these documents.

Enrollment documents must be uploaded by February 9, 2024 to enter School of Choice process.

Non-LBUSD residents

Enrollment after April 8, 2024
Must obtain an IDP (Intradistrict Permit) from residential district
How to obtain an IDP

Explore

NOVEMBER 2

Parent University Virtual Workshop: 6:00pm — 7:00pm
HS Choice Part 1
www.lbschools.net/YouTube

NOVEMBER 4

High School Choice Fair | @ Cabrillo HS 9:00am — 12:00pm

JANUARY 8

Enrollment opens for new / returning to LBUSD resident students

JANUARY 9

Parent University Virtual Workshop: 6:00pm — 7:00pm
HS Choice Part 2
www.lbschools.net/YouTube

JANUARY 10 — FEBRUARY 8

High School Visits

Lakewood
- Wednesday, 1/10
- 6:00pm — 8:00pm
- Site Night Agenda
Browning
- Thursday, 1/11
- 6:00pm — 8:00pm
- Site Night Agenda
McBride
- Tuesday, 1/16
- 6:00pm — 8:00pm
- Site Night Agenda
Renaissance
- Wednesday, 1/17
- 6:00pm — 8:00pm
- Site Night Agenda
Jordan
- Thursday, 1/18
- 6:00pm — 8:00pm
- Site Night Agenda
CAMS
- Saturday, 1/20
- 10:00am — 12:00pm
- Site Night Agenda
Cabrillo
- Saturday, 1/27
- 10:00am — 12:00pm
- Site Night Agenda
Millikan
- Wednesday, 1/31
- 6:00pm — 8:00pm
- Site Night Agenda
Sato
- Thursday, 2/1
- 6:00pm — 8:00pm
- Site Night Agenda
Poly
- Tuesday, 2/6
- 6:00pm — 8:00pm
- Site Night Agenda
Wilson
- Wednesday, 2/7
- 6:00pm — 8:00pm
- Site Night Agenda

FEBRUARY 9

Last day to submit online enrollment documents for New / Returning to LBUSD Resident Students (11:59pm)
Last day for current LBUSD students to make address changes for HS Choice (11:59pm)

Apply

FEBRUARY 20

High School Choice Online Application opens on ParentVUE at 9:00am

~~MARCH 1~~ MARCH 5

High School Choice Online Application closes on ParentVUE ~~11:59pm~~ 4:00pm

MARCH 15

High School Choice Assignments posted on ParentVue at 5:00pm

MARCH 15 — MARCH 22

Appeal Window. Please use the link provided on ParentVUE under the student placement.

APRIL 8

Placement begins for 8th grade students that enrolled on LBUSD after February 9. Pathway program selections based on space availability.
Online enrollment opens for Non-LBUSD Residents with an Interdistrict Permit (IDP).
- Click here to visit the IDP webpage.

FAQs

Who MUST Complete an Online High School Choice Application?

ALL current 8th grade families MUST complete the High School Choice Application online via ParentVUE. This includes:

● Current 8th grade students attending a LBUSD middle or K-8 school

● Private school students, and New / Returning to LBUSD students that would like to attend a LBUSD high school beginning in the 9th grade. Enrollment assistance is provided by residential middle school.

NOTE: Students that do not complete a school of choice application are not automatically placed at their school of residence.

When does the High School Choice Application open?

When does the High School Choice Application close?

How is an Online High School Choice Application Completed?

1. There are a series of steps to completing the application:

The first pathway selection must be a program/pathway from their student’s high school of residence that does not have a minimum GPA requirement. This is also known as the “default” pathway. This selection can be re-ranked in a later step.

2. The Parent / Caregiver will then be able to select up to 3 more programs/pathways for which their student qualifies and rank the choices in order to indicate the most preferred (1) to the least preferred (4). These can all be from the same school or different schools.

3. Parent / Caregiver will acknowledge and certify (electronic signature) the listed district policies.

4. Parent / Caregiver will receive an email confirmation of their student’s application report with an attached PDF to the email address indicated in the ParentVUE account. Please check your Junk / Spam Email inbox.

Why are some pathway selections unavailable to select?

Most LBUSDs pathways are open to all students however a few pathways require a minimum criteria based on Academic GPA, enrollment in Algebra 1 and or standardized test scores (SBAC or equivalent). Please visit the School of Choice website under the Resources Tab to find the complete list of requirements for all pathways. Contact your school counselor for more details.

Can changes be made to the application once it has been submitted?

Changes can be made at anytime before February 24, 2025 at 4:00pm. Parent / Caregiver may make changes to the online application by clicking the certify button to “de-certify” and go back through the application to make any changes. Once changes are made, a parent must “re-certify” the application by clicking the button. No change will be made to an application after the deadline.

How are Students Placed in Schools and Programs for the 9th Grade?

Although LBUSD cannot guarantee that a student will be placed in a specific school or program, every effort is made to place students at one of their top 3 selected programs.

LBUSD places students at the high schools by following the enrollment procedures outlined in the LBUSD Guidelines for Students and Parents (pages 18-19).

All placements are based on:

1. Seat availability within each program/pathway and overall capacity of the school. Available space is determined by the LBUSD Secondary Office considering both current and projected enrollment.

2. Number of students that apply for the same program/pathway.

3. Rank order of choices made on the application.

*Note: Students enrolling in LBUSD after the School of Choice Process has ended, will be placed in schools based on seat availability.

Pathways/programs without minimum GPA requirements:

● Residents are given priority to pathways/programs without a minimum GPA requirement at their school of residence when the pathway/program is ranked as the first choice. Students with residential priority are placed before students that live outside of the school’s boundary. Newly enrolled, out-of-district students, are placed after all other currently enrolled LBUSD students.

● Students are placed using a random computerized process for pathways/programs that have more applicants than seats available with resident students being placed first.

● The randomization process takes into account student's rank ordered choices.

● It is possible for a pathway/program to fill all of the seats that are available with students that ranked it as their first choice.

● See your middle school counselor for information on our pathways/programs that are typically oversubscribed with applicants.

Pathways/programs with minimum GPA requirements:

● Students that are eligible for these pathways/programs are ranked from highest to lowest GPA and then placed according to available spaces in that program.

● In the event of a tie, the SBAC scores for ELA and Math will be considered.

How Are Families Notified of Their Student’s Placement?

Can a Family Appeal a Student’s 9th Grade Placement?

Appeals are granted on the basis of the information on ParentVUE and the seat availability at the requested school/pathway. The link to the appeal form is found on ParentVUE in the School of Choice Tab under the “notification of assignment.”

Appeals can be considered for the following reasons:

● Student is requesting to return to the High School of Residence. Placement depends on the number of spaces available.

● A sibling is currently attending a school and will be continuing at the same school next year. Placement depends on sibling verification and space availability

GPA / SBAC hardship (for pathways with minimum requirements)

Appeals are not granted on the basis of:

● Transportation issues

● Personal preference

● Perceived quality of a school

● Desired cultural population

● Child care

● After school activities

● Family member’s health

● Proximity to an adult’s workplace

The outcome of an appeal is final. Once an appeal is processed, an email will be sent to the email address of record. The final assignment is also viewable in the Online High School Choice Application via ParentVUE.

Nondiscrimination Statement: The Long Beach Unified School District prohibits unlawful discrimination, harassment (including sexual harassment), intimidation, or bullying, targeted at any student or employee by anyone, based on the student or employees actual or perceived race, color, ancestry, nationality, national origin, immigration status, ethnic group identification, ethnicity, age, religion, marital status, pregnancy and related conditions, parental status, physical or mental disability, medical condition, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, or genetic information, or association with a person or group with one or more of these actual or perceived characteristics.

For questions or complaints, contact Equity Compliance Officer: Steve Rockenbach, Director of Employee Relations, 1515 Hughes Way, Long Beach, CA 90815, 562-997-8220, srockenbach@lbschools.net and Title IX Coordinator: Kimberly Dalton, Director of Human Resource Services, 1515 Hughes Way, Long Beach, CA 90815, 562-997-8108, kdalton@lbschools.net and 504 Coordinator: Jenny R. Acosta, Program Administrator, 2221 Argonne Ave, LB 90815, 562-986-6870, JRAcosta@lbschools.net.