The 202-26 magnet school lottery is not open at this time!
Choosing a magnet school for your child is an exciting process. Learn how to enroll your child in a magnet school of choice here.
CRCSD students who live within a magnet school resident attendance zone can automatically enroll in that magnet school. These students are not required to enter the magnet school lottery to attend the magnet school serving their neighborhood attendance area.
If a CRCSD student living outside of a magnet school resident attendance zone wishes to enroll in a magnet school, they need to enter the magnet school lottery. If a student from another district would like to attend a magnet school, they need to apply for open enrollment in addition to entering the magnet school lottery. Please note that submitting open enrollment paperwork does not bind you to attending a school in Cedar Rapids Community School District.
Questions? Please contact Jillian Schulte
Lottery application process
We highly encourage you to research and visit the magnet schools you are interested in. After you determine which magnet schools meet your child’s needs, you will identify a first choice magnet school. To better serve all students, families have the option to identify a second magnet (in elementary and middle), and a third magnet in elementary. Only select the magnet schools you want your child to be considered for.
All efforts will be made to place students based on their preferences; however, this may not be possible given the level of interest in the magnet schools. It is also important to remember that students who live in a magnet resident attendance zone are guaranteed a seat in that school.
The lottery is a computer generated, randomized process to select and accept students who live outside of the magnet school resident zone. Students who live in the magnet school resident zone do not need to enter the lottery to enroll.
All students are eligible to apply for the magnet school lottery, and must complete the online lottery form to be considered.
Magnet school lottery placements
Pending availability of seats, the following placements will apply when the lottery is processed.
Applicant priority
Lottery students are placed based on their applicant placement in the lottery. Each application is given a random placement after the lottery is processed.
Sibling legacy priority
Sibling legacy placement is given to applicants who have a sibling who attends a magnet school at the time of enrollment in August 2024.
Magnet pathway priority
A priority is given to elementary magnet school students applying to a middle magnet school and preschool and AK students attending a magnet school to continue their magnet learning environment
Sibling priority
The magnet school lottery is a family lottery. Sibling priority placement is given to siblings of students who have received placement at a magnet school. Siblings of magnet school students who live at the same address and share at least one biological or legal parent have sibling priority placement in the same magnet school building as their sibling, pending grade level availability. However, there is no guarantee that siblings will be placed together.
Lottery results
Lottery results will be communicated the week of March 2024. An email notification will go to the email address provided in the lottery application. Families will have 72 hours to accept their student’s lottery offer.
If a seat is declined, students in the waitlist applicant pool will be placed in the remaining open seats.
| Important 2025-26 Lottery Dates | New dates soon |
|---|---|
| Magnet school lottery opens | January 3, 2024 – New dates soon |
| Magnet school lottery closes | March 4, 2024 – New dates soon |
| Magnet lottery & family notifications | March 6-8, 2024 – New dates soon |