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Preschool Registration

Preschool Registration Information

This page provides guidance to support you through the process of registering for preschool. 

Frequently Asked Questions about Preschool Registration

Who is Eligible to Register for Preschool?

Children turning 4 years old on or before September 1, 2026 are eligible to register for preschool for the 2026-2027 school year. Children receiving Special Education services are eligible to attend preschool at the age of 3. 

In our preschool program, your child will develop the social, language, literacy, math and science skills needed for elementary school and beyond! To learn more about our preschool programs, curriculum, hours and registration, please visit our Early Childhood website. To learn more about resources available through our community partners, click here.

Before You Register

  • Identify three school choices. You may select any three schools offering preschool programming. Please refer to this chart for a list of available schools that offer preschool.
  • Consider the starting and ending times for each school, as well as your needs for before and after-school care.
  • Transportation for preschool students is NOT provided by the district. Families are responsible for transporting children.
  • Gather documents needed for registration including:
     
    • Child’s birth certificate
    • Child's current immunization record (which may need to be updated prior to the start of school), and a current physical exam (dated within one year of enrollment date)
    • Photo ID of parent/guardian registering the child
    • Proof of residency (copy of current utility bill, lease, or mortgage that is dated within the last thirty days)
       
      • If you are living with a Lowell resident, you will need to complete a third-party affidavit. Please have a conversation with us if you are unable to produce sufficient documentation or if your housing is insecure. We abide by McKinney-Vento. Please use this link for more information on third party affidavits and McKinney-Vento.

  

Registration Process 2026-2027

  • Registrations are processed Monday through Friday from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm, but registrations can be submitted online at any time.
Links to online registration form

 

There are three ways to submit the online registration form. 

  1. Registration via Computer: You will need to create an account with Aspen before entering your child’s information. For help with creating an account, click here. Please note that registration is only compatible with a desktop or laptop computer and not available for a smartphone or tablet at this time. We recommend saving the email and password used to complete the registration in the portal in a safe place for future reference. Clicking on this link will take you to the Aspen registration portal.
     
  2. Registration In-Person: Come to the Family Resource Center, located at 151 Merrimack Street, to use a computer and fill out the form. The Family Resource Center is open Monday through Friday from 8am until 4pm each day. Please note that the last walk-in registration can be started at 3:15pm.
     
  3. Schedule an Appointment: You can schedule an appointment with a staff member that will assist you with your registration form. For this option, please call 978-674-4321 or email familyresourcecenter@lowell.k12.ma.us.
     

Registration Video Tutorials

Creating an Aspen Account (1st time users)

Online Registration Instructions

Families can also call 978-674-4321 to discuss any need for support or accommodation.

Once you fill out the registration form, you will receive a follow-up email from the Family Resource Center informing you of the status of your registration. 

Preschool Lottery

The Lottery is typically held in the last week of April or first week in May and is live via Zoom and posted on the web.

All pre-registered children will be assigned a lottery number. Families will receive notification providing the student's lottery number with their placement offer.

Lottery families will receive an email notification with the child's Pre-K placement offer and families MUST respond by selecting one of the following options:

  • Accept placement
  • Accept placement and remain on waitlist for preferred school until October 15. 
  • Reject placement and remain on waitlist for preferred school until October 15.
  • Reject placement and seek alternative pre-K programming outside of Lowell Public Schools

Families must return the proposed placement offer response via email within 7 business days to the Early Childhood Department indicating one of the selections above.

All notices of potential preschool placement will be sent to the email address used to register your child. Please check any spam/junk folders. If you do not receive any information and you registered during the lottery period, please contact the Early Childhood Department by phone 978-967-0396 OR 978-674-2051 or E-mail jrichardson@lowell.k12.ma.us.

Preschool Assignment

Upon receiving your response to the placement email, the Early Childhood Department will issue an official assignment letter by May 31st, 2026. lf you have a question about your child's school assignment, please reach out to the Early Childhood Specialist:

If your child receives special education services, an Individual Education Plan (IEP) and you have a question regarding your child's school assignment please reach out to:

For any questions, Early Childhood Coordinator, Lisa Van Thiel can be reached at:

In August, you will receive notification from your child’s school with teacher assignment.

Frequently Asked Questions About Preschool Registration

Q. My child will turn 4 years old after the lottery registration period. Can I still register my child during that time to be included in the lottery?

A. Yes, if your child will be 4 years-old on or before September 1, 2025, your child is eligible for preschool through LPS for the 2025-2026 school year.

Q. Can I register my child during the lottery period and submit my documents at a later time?

A. Only completed registrations which include providing the required documents for registration will be entered into the lottery. Any registrations that are incomplete and/or missing documentation will be added to the waitlist based upon the date all documentation is received.

Q. What happens if I register my child after the Lottery Period?

A. All registrants that come in after the lottery registration period will be automatically placed on the waitlist based upon the date of registration. Once all lottery participants have been placed and assigned, the EC department then goes to the waitlist and begins offering placements based upon availability and student's date of registration.

Q. If I register my child on the first day of the registration period will I get my first choice or preferred school?

A. All students registered during the registration period are randomly assigned a lottery number. Registering your child on the first day or last day has no effect on the lottery number your child will receive. All students registered during that time frame are randomly assigned a lottery number. Preschool placements are made based upon lottery numbers.

Q. If my child gets placed at the preferred school I chose, will I get to choose the session I want?

A. Students are placed at the schools of their choice based upon their lottery number. Preferred sessions are not guaranteed. Diligent efforts are made to diversify the sessions by gender, ethnicity, and language.

 

Q. What happens if I don't get the school that I chose or prefer?

A. All registrants during the lottery period will receive a notice of potential School assignment with clear directions for next steps. All parents/guardians must respond to the notice with one of the following options by the deadline.

  1. Accept the placement
  2. Accept the placement but have your child be placed on the waitlist for your preferred school
  3. Reject the placement and be placed on the waitlist for your preferred school 
  4. Reject the placement and choose an alternative preschool placement.

Q. My preschooler has an older sibling in my preferred school. Does this guarantee my preschooler will be assigned to the same school?

A. Unfortunately, sibling preference does not apply to preschool. Assignments are made based upon lottery numbers. Each school that has preschool programming has a varying number of preschool classrooms that limits the number of preschoolers who can be assigned to that school.

Q. Is my preschooler able to get a bus to get to and from the preschool program?
A. Transportation is NOT available for preschoolers. Only preschool students who have an Individual Education Plan-IEP that includes transportation are eligible for bussing.

Q. Do all schools offer full day preschool?

A. No. Full day options are only available at the Bartlett Elementary, Cardinal O’Connell Early Learning Center, Greenhalge Elementary and Murkland Elementary. If you would like to be included in the lottery for full day programming, you must choose one of these schools.

Q. What happens if I choose the full day for my session choice, but my preferred school only has an AM or PM session?

A. School assignment will be made based upon your choice of schools, not session choice.

Q. What happens if I don't receive notification of a potential preschool placement?

A. All notices of potential preschool placement will be sent to the email address used to register your child. Please check any spam/junk folders. If you do not receive any information and you registered during the lottery period, please contact the EC Department by phone 978-967-0396 OR 978-674-2051 or E-mail jrichardson@lowell.k12.ma.us.

 

Q. What happens if I don't respond to the notice of potential preschool placement? Will my child still be able to attend LPS preschool in September?

A. If you do not respond to the notice within the designated time frame indicated on the notice, that placement will be given to the next student on the waitlist. Any families not responding to the notice will be added to the waitlist along with late registrants.

Q. Will my child automatically go to kindergarten at the school where she attends preschool?

A. All students must register for kindergarten. Preschool is considered a 1-year placement only, and has no bearing on their kindergarten placement. Please visit the Family Resource Center page to learn more about kindergarten registration and placement.

Q. Will my child need to register again for Kindergarten?

A. Yes. All children turning 5 by September 1 are eligible for kindergarten. In order to ensure equity across kindergarten placement lotteries, all students must re-register and update immunization records.

Q. My child is already enrolled in Lowell Public Schools and has an IEP. Do I need to re-register her for the next school year?

A. No, you do not need to register your child again for preschool. All students currently enrolled in the Lowell Public Schools preschool program will continue at their current school for the 2025-2026 school year.

 

Family Resource Center Enrollment Clerk Contact Information