School Transition FAQ

At the conclusion of the 2025-2026 school year, Dr. Bessie Rhodes School of Global Studies and Kingsley Elementary School will close.

At the start of the 2026-2027 school year, Foster Elementary School will open. Learn more

View the District 65 Communication Guide for Addressing Questions. The Spanish version is on page 2; it can be accessed by clicking the arrow button at the bottom of the document.

If your question pertains to enrollment or your child’s placement, email registrationinfo@district65.net or call 847-859-8065.

The district’s approved attendance boundaries were designed with stability in mind. They prioritize walkability, reduce the need for students to cross safety hazards (such as Green Bay Road), and aim to minimize disruption for families. These boundaries are the framework the district is using to place students and support strong, lasting school communities.

As we plan for the upcoming school year, the district is operating with the expectation that all schools will remain open (with the exception of Kingsley and Bessie Rhodes) and that students will be able to settle into their new schools with continuity and support. 

This being said, the District must continue to address budgetary challenges and ensure financial sustainability in the short and long term. On January 9, 2026 the School Board approved a resolution for consideration of the closure of Lincolnwood Elementary at a later date if several identified thresholds are not met related to districtwide building utilization and district finances. There is no decision at this time and the Board and administration cannot guarantee there will be no future school closures. 

With financial sustainability in mind, the Board and administration have committed to engaging in creative solutions-oriented planning to help avoid additional closures. Any potential changes will be approached thoughtfully, with a strong focus on minimizing additional disruption and providing clear communication and support for students, families, and staff.

Username: your email address

Password: if you’ve forgotten your password, click “Forgot Username or Password.” If you do not receive a link with instructions, please email registrationinfo@district65.net.

For additional help, visit the D65 PowerSchool page.

During the first week of February, an email was sent for each D65 student with their assigned school and program for the 2026-27 school year (subject line “2026-2027 School Assignment / Asignación de escuela para el ciclo 2026-2027”). Action is required by 11:59 p.m. March 1, 2026.  Please open the email attachment and the letter shares your child’s assigned school for next year and asks you to take one of three steps:  accept the school placement, request to return to your assigned home school, or request a permissive transfer. 

Check the interactive Google Map. Click the magnifying class on the lefthand side. Enter your home address, then select "Move map to [address]". Then zoom out to see your attendance boundary. View D65 Attendance Boundaries webpage

All students in K-7th grade received an email (titled “2026-2027 School Assignment / Asignación de escuela para el ciclo 2026-2027”) on February 4, 2026, with their school assignment. All families are required to log into PowerSchool Parent Portal to do one of three things: 

• confirm your placement
• request a return to your home school
• request a permissive transfer (MUST be submitted by 11:59 p.m. on March 1, 2026)

We apologize - we are aware of this problem. For the moment the only solution is to try the birthdates of your children until it opens. We apologize for this inconvenience.

Registration is required for families entering kindergarten. Please go to the District 65 registration page and complete the registration process. We are so excited to welcome your kindergartener — view more about the experience here!

In most cases, yes! Unless they are graduating, moving to middle school, or have chosen to exit, students in specialized programs listed above will continue with that same program or school. The key exceptions are Willard and Bessie Rhodes students in the Two-Way Immersion program, which are consolidating and will be located at Foster Elementary.

Yes, administrative transfers and permissive transfers that were previously approved will continue to be in effect. Please contact registrationinfo@district65.net if you believe the school assignment does not reflect the permissive or administrative transfer.

We understand that families’ circumstances can change and that decisions about school placement can feel complex. However, permissive transfer requests will not be accepted after the March 1 deadline. Requests submitted after this deadline will not be accepted and students will automatically be enrolled in their assigned school.

This deadline is essential for the District to finalize staffing, class sizes, and transition plans for the upcoming school year. Having a clear and consistent timeline allows us to plan responsibly and ensure that schools are appropriately staffed and prepared to support all students on the first day of school.

If you submitted a permissive transfer request prior to receiving the school assignment letter and form, please use the form to submit the permissive transfer request. This allows for the registration team to know your current preference.

Initial permissive transfer request determinations will be shared with families by April 1, 2026. Families can expect one of three things:

• Request is accepted.
• Request is declined.
• Request is on the waitlist. This happens in cases where the district is still evaluating whether space is available at the requested school.

Yes, an offer letter will be sent via email and respondents will have 1 week to accept or the seat will be automatically declined and offered to the next student. 

We understand that families may wish for siblings to attend the same school, and we recognize that it can be challenging, logistically and emotionally, when siblings attend different schools. At the same time, it is important for students to attend their assigned local-area (home) school so the District can balance enrollment, staffing, and resources equitably across schools and ensure that every building can fully support the students it serves.

New students will be enrolled at their local-area (home) school regardless of where their sibling(s) currently attend unless a family has applied for a magnet school or selective enrollment program (Two-Way Immersion or African-Centered Curriculum). Families may apply for a Permissive Transfer to request placement at a different school; however, permissive transfers are subject to space availability at the receiving school and cannot be guaranteed. These guidelines help the District plan responsibly while still allowing flexibility for families when capacity permits.

During the initial determination period, permissive transfers will be granted at 95% capacity (per grade level) for each receiving school. This is to ensure as many families as possible are granted a transfer with as much notice as possible. Some space must be reserved for families who may move into the attendance area boundaries in the late spring and summer. If space remains available or it is possible to open a new section, the District will make that determination based on class size guidelines and capacity.

The district understands the interest in transparency around permissive transfer requests. We are currently reviewing what information may be shared publicly in a way that is clear, responsible, and protects individual student privacy. At this time, we anticipate potentially being able to share high-level, aggregate information once initial determinations have been made. Additional details will be provided as they become available.

The District will make every effort to grant as many permissive transfer requests within the initial determination period; however, this is not always possible. If a permissive transfer is not able to be initially accepted, placing a family on the wait list allows for additional time to determine if space will be available due to families entering or exiting the district.

We recognize that some families may not be able to wait and would benefit from knowing their child’s school placement as soon as possible and ultimately need to decide to accept their child’s assigned school placement. For others, it may be feasible to wait until the summer to see if their transfer request is accepted.

The registration team will consider permissive transfers in several rounds throughout the summer. The latest that a final determination will be made and communicated to families is at least two weeks prior to the first day of school.

Yes. The School Board approved an exception so that K-4 grade students who are assigned to attend Foster may stay at their current school pending spaces available at the requested grade level. A permissive transfer request form must be completed by the March 1, 2026 deadline. If a request is not submitted by the deadline, students will automatically be enrolled at their assigned school. Please see the below parameters:

• Students who receive a permissive transfer are not eligible for district-provided transportation.  
• Students must attend their assigned middle school or re-apply for a permissive transfer.
• Incoming siblings (eg rising kindergartener) will be assigned to attend their neighborhood school. A permissive transfer request may be submitted but is not guaranteed and based on space availability.

Yes, students who are currently in kindergarten through 4th grade at Dr. Bessie Rhodes School of Global Studies will be assigned to Foster Elementary through 5th grade. This is known as the “Bessie Rhodes Exception.” This allows students to stay together as a cohort and continue their elementary experience with stability.

Yes. If you do not wish to attend Foster, you will follow the steps outlined in the February 4 district-wide email (titled “2026-2027 School Assignment / Asignación de escuela para el ciclo 2026-2027”) communication and select "Requesting a Permissive Transfer or Program Placement Change for my student". Most families received this on February 4, 2026, but some may have received it on February 5. Then select one of these two options:

• Transfer TO a TWI program: Request to return to local-area school (home school) and be placed in a TWI program within your feeder pattern. This option is only available for students who want to remain in the TWI program and do NOT live in the Haven feeder pattern.
• Transfer FROM the TWI program: Request to leave the TWI program and return to local-area school (home school). This option is for students who do not want to remain in the TWI program.

All 5th grade TWI students will be assigned to their home middle school (View Attendance Boundaries page):

• If your home middle school is Haven or Nichols, your TWI student will be automatically enrolled in the middle school dual language program. All Rhodes 5th grade students will be assigned to Haven.
• If your home middle school is Chute, you may request a permissive transfer to participate in the dual language program at Haven or Nichols. Transportation is generally NOT provided for students attending schools on approved permissive transfers outside their local-area school (home school), except where required by policy (such as for specific programs or services). Transportation decisions are based on Policy 4:110 and Policy 4:112.

If you wish for your child to be in the dual language program, you will follow the steps outlined in the February 4 district-wide email (titled “2026-2027 School Assignment / Asignación de escuela para el ciclo 2026-2027”) communication and select “Accept the new assigned school” in PowerSchool Parent.

If you do NOT want your child to be a part of the dual language program in middle school, you will follow the steps outlined in the communication and select “I am requesting a permissive transfer or program change for my student”.  Then select the radio button that says, “Transfer from the Dual Language program”.

Yes. Parents of rising sixth graders need to confirm their child’s school assignment in PowerSchool AND complete the re-registration process. Re-registration for sixth graders as they enter middle school has been a required process in the District for many years. The school assignment process is unique this school year given the school transitions underway.

To enter 6th grade you are required to re-register to confirm residency in District 65 boundaries. Registration for students entering 6th grade opened on February 2, 2026, and will close on April 26, 2026. You will need to complete this process which includes uploading proof of residency documents.

Additionally, if you have a non-attending student (services only), or an outplaced student,  you must complete the re-registration process.

Re-registration is not necessary but you need to update your address with the District.  Login to your PowerSchool Parent Portal account, select “Forms” from the navigation menu on the left side and click the form titled “[Evanston Skokie] - D65 Information Update/Actualización de información D65”.

No. Students who are currently in 6th or 7th grade may remain at their current middle school through 8th grade. This “legacy” status is intended to provide continuity and minimize disruption during the middle school years. This exception will only be in place for students currently enrolled in 6th or 7th grade during the 2025-2026 school year.

On the district’s selective enrollment page, click the button titled “Lottery Application” , create an account and follow the prompts to connect your student and apply (this login/account information is not the same as your PowerSchool Parent Portal login credentials).

The Lincolnwood Elementary capacity for the Structural Deficit Reduction Plan (SDRP) process is 432 and can be found at this link.  The SDRP capacity calculations were based on the teaching stations in a two-, three-, or four-strand building multiplied by the DEC guidelines for class size. In the case of Lincolnwood, this was 18 x 24 = 432. The DEC guidelines are 23 for K-2 and 25 for grades 3-5. SDRP capacities are calculated prior to any program placement and follow a consistent methodology across all schools.

Next year, Lincolnwood will continue to host Structured Teaching Education Program (STEP) and this is projected to utilize four classrooms. Three classrooms will be for students and one for student-related services. There are a total of 20 usable classrooms at Lincolnwood (excluding the library, art room and the multipurpose room in the basement). As a result, we are projecting up to 16 general education classrooms at Lincolnwood next year.  

Our focus next year remains firmly on strong academic learning alongside students’ social-emotional well-being, as both are essential for student success. The Curriculum and Instruction team will continue to support high-quality, rigorous instruction in all classrooms, and we will continue using our district’s standards-aligned curricular materials to ensure consistent academic expectations across schools.

We also recognize that some students—especially those experiencing transitions—may need additional academic and social-emotional supports. We are committed to supporting educators and students during these transitions while keeping academic rigor at the center of our work.

Staff will ensure that students with new school assignments have classmates from their former school in their class. At the end of each school year our staff spends extensive time reflecting on the academic and social-emotional needs of each child to make recommendations for their class placement for the coming school year. These reflections are used to create classrooms that proactively plan for the academic and social-emotional needs of the class as well as individual students. The focus is on creating a classroom experience that allows students to build new relationships, grow academically, and continues to foster their sense of community and support. Staff from Kingsley, Willard and Bessie Rhodes will complete the information for their students aligned with the above parameters. The receiving schools’ staff and administration will use the provided information to place students in classes. 

The Director of Student Services and the school-based Individualized Education Services (IES) Coordinators will ensure that students continue to receive services and support included in the IEPs and 504 plans. We recognize the importance of ensuring that all IES and 504 students are provided a smooth transition and will work with incoming schools to progress monitor students throughout the 2026-2027 school year 

The Multilingual Team will ensure continuity of services by providing consistent access to certified EL educators throughout the transition and into the new school year. Staff will monitor progress in Ellevation, deliver targeted language instruction, and collaborate with classroom teachers to embed language supports in core instruction. Language goals and accommodations will continue without interruption to ensure ongoing language growth and academic success for all EL students.

Supporting students’ well-being, belonging, and continuity of learning is a top priority throughout this transition. The district is implementing a comprehensive, student-centered approach that includes:

• Ongoing social-emotional support through our Culture & Climate team, FACE staff, and social workers
• Coordinated academic planning with Individualized Education Services (IES) and Multilingual teams to ensure smooth, student-centered transitions
• Thoughtful, student-centered scheduling to promote continuity and minimize disruption
• Opportunities to connect before the school year begins, including open houses, meet-and-greet events, and enrollment support sessions
• Outreach from receiving schools to welcome students and families and share important information
• Peer connection opportunities, such as student buddies or mentors
• Community-building efforts in partnership with parent groups
• School spirit supports, including welcome materials or “swag bags” to help students feel excited and connected
• End-of-year celebrations to honor students, relationships, and school communities as this chapter comes to a close

Together, these supports are designed to help students feel safe, welcomed, and excited as they transition to their next school community. These efforts will be in collaboration with school leadership and the school PTA.

Yes, all District 65 schools are hosting two open houses (one in February and one in March).  Additionally, we are exploring opportunities to host an opportunity for school visits/community building during the school day. View Open House Schedule

We will also partner with and support school-based, including PTA events, designed to bring communities together in advance of the 2026-2027 school year including summer playdates and mixers. These opportunities will be shared with families within the school community.

We agree this is an important and meaningful way to support students through the transition. The district is actively exploring opportunities for students to visit their receiving school during the school day as part of broader efforts to build familiarity, connection, and community. While plans are still being developed and details are not yet finalized, this is a priority area of focus. More information will be shared as plans take shape.

The team at your current school will continue to work with you and will transition that work to the receiving school. The Director of Student Specialized Services will work with school based IES coordinators to ensure a continuity of service for students.

The Director of Student Services and the school based IES Coordinators will ensure that students continue to receive services and support included in the IEPs and 504 plans.  We recognize the importance of ensuring that all IES and 504 students are provided a smooth transition and will work with incoming schools to progress monitor students throughout the 2026-2027 school year.

We are currently working with the Director of Student Services and IES coordinators to ensure that receiving schools are provided an opportunity to review a student profile and discuss student needs with the team from the transferring school.  The Academics team is working on a comprehensive plan for all IEP, 504 and EL transitions.  We will work with school leaders and school based IES educators to ensure parents are informed of their child’s transitions.

Yes! They can be viewed HERE.

Each school’s online staff directory is updated in early fall each year and includes our educators’ locations and contact information.

No. Students attending schools on permissive transfers outside their regular attendance areas are  not eligible for transportation.

Students who are eligible for transportation receive an email over the summer.

Transportation for K-5 TWI students is guided by current District 65 policy. The D65 School Board discussed transportation policies at its February 9, 2026 meeting and will vote on any changes at its February 23, 2026 meeting. If the Board rescinds Policy 4:112, all transportation eligibility will follow Policy 4:110.

TWS (native Spanish speakers who receive EL services) and TWX students (native Spanish speakers who have exited EL services) who are enrolled in a TWI program but do not live within the assigned school’s attendance boundaries, receive free transportation under Policy 4:110, regardless of distance.

Based on current transportation policy,  TWE students (native English speakers) enrolled in the TWI program are eligible for transportation under Policy 4:112 if they live 1.5 miles or more from the school or face safety hazards. Families pay 2/3 of the cost (District pays 1/3), unless they qualify for free or reduced lunch. The maximum fee this school year is $600 annually per student. 

Based on Board Policy, TWI students who live in the 2026-27 Willard boundaries would have access to transportation since all students need to cross McCormick to get to Foster School. McCormick is an identified hazard.

No busing shall be provided for students attending schools on permissive transfers outside their regular attendance areas.

In line with District policy, no bus transportation is provided in middle school. The only exception to this is current Dr. Bessie Rhodes School of Global Studies students who live outside of the Haven feeder pattern and have elected to continue to Haven for middle school.