Enroll in the City School District of Albany

To register your child for school in the City School District of Albany, you will need to bring proper identification with you. You must register your child in person. 

New York state requires that students enrolled in the district be residents of the district and of age to attend school. The following documents must be submitted to demonstrate this.

1) Documentation of birth – One of the following. Copies will not be accepted.

• Original birth certificate
• Original baptismal certificate
• Passport

The following will be permitted as proof of birthday only if none of the above documents exist or can be produced:

• Official driver’s license
• State or other government issued identification
• School photo identification with date of birth
• Consulate identification card
• Hospital or health records
• Military dependent identification card
• Documents issued by federal, state or local agencies
• Court orders or other court-issued documents
• Native American tribunal documents
• Records from non-profit international aid agencies and volunteer agencies

2) Parent/guardian photo identification

3) Proof of address (two different items required in one parent/guardian name)

Each must include the name and address of a parent or guardian and must be dated within 30 days prior to registration date

• Lease or deed
• Affidavit (a written statement signed under oath) from the person you pay rent to, saying you live there
• A letter from the person you pay rent to saying you live there
• Utility bill or other bill in your name
• Voter registration card
• Driver’s license, permit, or non-driver ID
• State or other government issued ID
• Documents from a government agency or the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement
• Cell phone/telephone bill (welcome letter from phone company is acceptable)
• Satellite/cable television bill or installation receipt
• Furniture rental statement (e.g. Aaron’s, Rent-A-Center)
• Auto insurance ID card
• DSS documentation
• Payroll check (dated within the last two weeks) or income tax from
• Social security statements
• Auto insurance ID card

4) Official immunization record signed by physician or clinic staff

5) Evidence of custody (Custody papers in the form of a court order or stamped petition are acceptable)

• If the student is not the biological child, documentation must be presented which proves a permanent and total transfer of custody and control has been achieved

• Parents must be able to demonstrate they are the person in parental relation to the child, over whom they have toatal and permanent custody and control

6) Report card or transcript for all new students entering middle school and high school

Student registration form 

Request for records form

Pre-K & Kindergarten form (Must be completed in addition to the standard registration for students enrolling in pre-K and kindergarten.)

Student physical form (Physician/family doctor must complete; students may not participate in gym classes until completed.)

Medication permission form (Physician/family doctor must complete this form)

Change of Address form (Must be completed to update address when moving with the district)

All students must be registered at Central Registration, but before you go you can use our list of school attendance zones to find out which elementary and middle school your child will attend based on where you live. 

Please note that the list does not include the district's three magnet elementary schools, which are enrolled each spring via lottery.

Open enrollment is a school-choice option through which parents can enroll their children in a school other than their neighborhood elementary school. It applies to non-magnet elementary schools only.

The ability to use open enrollment depends on available space in the school you want your child to attend. Siblings of students already open-enrolled at a school will be given preference. However, open enrollment is not guaranteed. Open-enrolled students who live less than 1.5 miles from their school are not eligible for transportation.

For more information, contact the Pupil Personnel Services Office at (518) 475-6130.

Please note that children and youth in temporary housing can enroll in school without the documents normally needed to enroll.

Children and youth are temporarily housed or homeless if they lack a fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence, which includes, for example:

• living in a shelter or,
• sharing the home of a relative or a friend because they lost their home or were evicted.

For more information on receiving assistance while in temporary housing, please visit our homlessness and temporary housing page.

Prekindergarteners are enrolled through a lottery designed to provide access for all Albany children. You must enter your child into the lottery to get a seat in the program of your choice. 

Learn more about the lottery process here.

Kindergarten registration typically beings in late April for the upcoming school year. Our district has put in place additional options to make registration easier for families.

Learn more.

Admission to Albany's magnet schools is done through two random lotteries -- one for prekindergarten, and one for grades kindergarten through 5 or 6, depending on the school. Both lotteries require applications. Families are asked to select their top four choices.

Learn more.