How to Register

For the preschool enrollment process, please contact the Center for Early Learning North directly at 573-214-3585. If you submit an application through one of the steps below, it will be denied.

For the Career Center ONLY student enrollment process, please reach out directly to the Columbia Area Career Center at 573-214-3800 if you have not already done so. They will help walk you through the enrollment process.

Steps for families accessing the new student enrollment of their school-age children (K-12) are listed below. Your Kindergarten student must turn five years old on or before July 31st of the school year you are enrolling in. Please be prepared to provide a birth record, immunization record and a proof of residence (current gas, water, electric bill or lease). Other supporting documents may be required.

Note: If you have a preschool enrollment inquiry, please contact the Center for Early Learning North at 573-214-3585.

1. Navigate to the Columbia Public Schools homepage.
2. Scroll down to the “Helpful Information” and select “New Student Enrollment”

3. Select Enrollment Online from the menu

4. Click the blue button titled “New Student Online Enrollment” for the appropriate school year. If you do not see the link for the school year that you are trying to enroll for, it may not be available at this time. Please contact your student’s building for further information.
5. You will be prompted to enter your information to begin the registration process.
6. You will receive an email verification with a link to complete your student’s enrollment. Click the link to begin the application process. Please keep this email and the application number. You may have to re-access the application for additional information after initial submission.
7. Select Begin Registration.
8. Verify your identity to begin and click submit.
9. Verify the information is accurate for each ‘folder’ of the form: Household, Parent/Legal Guardian, Emergency Contacts, and Student. As you navigate through each section, be sure to click the white next button until it’s gone and then click the blue save/continue button.
10. Once you’ve finished reviewing and updating each section in each folder, click submit.
11. You will receive a confirmation email when you submit your registration form. If you need to make changes to the form after submission, please contact your child’s school for assistance.

Steps for families with existing students accessing the Annual Registration module for annual back-to-school verification, acknowledgments, and agreements for their school-age children are listed below. If you do not have access to the portal, please contact your child’s school for assistance. A directory of school contacts may be found at www.cpsk12.org/building-contact.

1. Log into the CPS Families Portal from the Columbia Public Schools homepage. If you are having difficulty logging in, consider viewing ‘Portal Login Help’ as shown on the menu below.

2. Click the Campus Parent icon

3. Scroll down to the Shortcuts menu within Campus Parent and click on Registration.

4. Under the Existing Student Registration, select Start for the correct school year. 

5. Select Begin Registration.

6. Verify your identity to begin and click submit.

7. Verify the information is accurate for each section of the form: Household, Parent/Legal Guardian, Emergency Contacts and Student. Be sure to click the white next button through all tabs, then click the blue save/continue button to continue to the next section.

8. Once you’ve finished reviewing and updating each section, click SUBMIT

9. You will receive a confirmation email when you submit your registration form. If you need to make changes to the form after submission, please contact your student’s school for assistance.

Information for families wanting to register for summer school can be found at the Columbia Public Schools Summer SUNsations website.

New and returning students will need to follow the steps outlined above. You will be prompted to opt in or out of Summer School if the enrollment window is open.
 

Existing students can access the form through the CPS Families Portal. 

1. Log into the CPS Families Portal.
2. Click the Campus Parent icon.
   1. If you have multiple students, click on the photo of the child you are registering.
3. Click on ‘Documents’ from the menu.
4. Select the 2026 Summer School Application document under the ‘Summer School’ header.
5. Complete the application and sign via eSignature.
   1. Only one guardian or student may fill out the application once they have opened it. After that person has signed, it will be available for all to view within the ‘Documents’ section in Campus Parent/Campus Student (high school only).

If you don’t remember your username or password to access CPS Families Portal, please contact the Technology Help Desk.

If you can log in but have questions about the enrollment process, please contact the school your student will attend this summer for assistance.

Kindergarten Registration will open March 2nd, 2026 for students living in the Columbia Public School district who will be five years old before August 1st, 2026. Enrolling your student before Kindergarten Roundup is highly encouraged. See the CPS Kindergarten webpage for details about Kindergarten Roundup.

Please enroll your student now, even if you applied for lottery selection and are waiting to hear back. For more lottery school information, click here.

How to enroll your kindergarten student:

• If your kindergartner is not enrolled yet but you do already have another student currently enrolled in Columbia Public Schools:
  1. ​​​​Go to the CPS webpage, www.cpsk12.org and click on CPS Families Portal.
  2. Log into the portal using your guardian ID/username and password.
  3. Click on Campus Parent. If you are asked to log in again, use the same username and password you just used to log into the portal. 
  4. Scroll to the bottom and click on “Registration”.
  5. Click START beside “2026-2027 Enrollment”. 
     Note: Only complete this for your new kindergartner. You will be asked to complete the annual registration update for all your students this summer. 
      
• If your family is brand new to Columbia Public Schools:
  1. Go to the CPS webpage, www.cpsk12.org and hover over “Family Resources”.
  2. Click on Enrollment (from the menu at the top of the page).
  3. Click on Kindergarten (from the menu on the left).
  4. Under Frequently Asked Questions, click on Online Enrollment Application, follow the link “you may start a new registration”.
      
• If your kindergarten student is currently in a Columbia Public Schools preschool:
  1. Send a current proof of residence (gas, water or electric bill OR lease agreement) and updated immunization record to your student’s school. You may also bring a proof of residence and a green sheet (provided by your student's preschool teacher) to Kindergarten Roundup.

Please note that we can only discuss confidential student and guardian information with the legal guardian. Please have them call to troubleshoot the issue you are experiencing. 

• My student is currently enrolled with CPS and I cannot login to my guardian portal. Who do I call?
  • The CPS Technology Help Desk

• How do I see if I opted in for a bus during the annual update for the regular school year?
  • Navigate to Campus Parent within your CPS Guardian Portal. Click on the menu and select more, then transportation. Remember, it takes time to route the buses after the deadline so please be patient as we work to ensure correct and efficient transportation.
  • If you need to change your opt-in status, please contact your school.

• My student left the district or is returning to the district, but does not have a current enrollment. I cannot access my CPS Guardian Portal. 
  • Once a student is unenrolled, you will no longer have access to the Guardian Portal. If you are trying to reenroll, please follow the instructions for new/returning students above.

• I’m trying to complete the annual update and one of my students is showing as not in my household.
  • It may be that your household address is not listed as primary for the student if you have a split household family. The primary household address that you are using for educational purposes should be the person to complete the annual update.
  • It may be that the system needs to be reviewed at the building level if the above is not true. Please reach out directly to your student’s school.