CDS Information for Charter Schools

General information for defining a charter school and information on how to start a charter school is located on the Charter School CalEdFacts web page. For questions, please contact the Charter School staff by email at charters@cde.ca.gov, or by phone at 916-322-6029.

Applying for a CDS Code for New Charter Schools

The following steps should be completed when applying for a County-District-School (CDS) code for a new charter school.

1. Complete the process for applying for a charter number. Refer to the Charter Submission Package and Numbering Deadlines web page for more details.
2. Complete the Application for a CDS Code and provide supporting documentation.
   • Review the Application for a CDS Code Instructions.

Converting a Non-Charter School to a Charter School

When converting a non-charter school to a charter school, please notify the CDE Charter Schools Division (charters@cde.ca.gov) and the CDS Office (cdsadmin@cde.ca.gov). In most cases, conversion schools will retain their current school's CDS code and will not receive a new CDS code. The decision of whether or not a school will retain its CDS code will be based on the Guidance for Issuing School Codes.

For Schools Retaining their CDS Code

If it is determined that the school will retain its CDS code, no further action is required from the CDS Office. The school will need to apply for a charter school number and work with the Charter Schools Division to complete the necessary processes for establishing a charter school. Once the charter school number has been assigned and updated in the Charter system, the school will automatically be updated in the School Directory to reflect that it is a charter.

For Schools Requiring a New CDS Code

If it is determined that a new school code is necessary as a result of the conversion, in addition to applying for a charter school number and working with the Charter Schools Division to complete the necessary processes for establishing a charter school, the school will also need to complete and submit an Application for a CDS Code and provide local board meeting minutes showing proof of the approval of the conversion to the CDS Office.

Converting a Charter School to a Non-Charter School

When converting a charter school to a non-charter school, please notify the CDE Charter Schools Division (charters@cde.ca.gov) and the CDS Office (cdsadmin@cde.ca.gov). In most cases, conversion schools will retain their current school's CDS code and will not receive a new CDS code. The decision of whether or not a school will retain its CDS code will be based on the Guidance for Issuing School Codes.

For Schools Retaining their CDS Code

If it is determined that the school will retain its CDS code, no further action is required from the CDS Office. The school will need to work with the Charter Schools Division to complete the necessary processes for updating the charter’s status in the Charter system and/or closing out the charter. Once the charter’s status is updated in the Charter system, the school will automatically be updated in the School Directory to reflect that it is no longer a charter.

For Schools Requiring a New CDS Code

If it is determined that a new school code is necessary as a result of the conversion, in addition to working with the Charter Schools Division to update the charter’s status and/or closing out the charter, the school will also need to complete and submit an Application for a CDS Code and provide local board meeting minutes showing proof of the approval of the conversion to the CDS Office.

Changing Charter Information in the California School Directory

Charter schools must work with their authorizing agency in order to correct information contained in the California School Directory, such as the school name, address, phone numbers, administrator/principal, and grade span, as well as to close a school. The District CDS Coordinator for your authorizing agency will submit a change request on the charter school’s behalf using the Online Public Update for Schools (OPUS) web application.

Resources

To obtain information about the OPUS application and resources, or applying for a CDS code, visit the County-District-School Administration web page, or contact CDS staff via email at cdsadmin@cde.ca.gov.

Purpose and Process of Assigning a CDS Code to Charter Schools

CDS codes are the Department’s mechanism for identifying and tracking schools. While a charter school may be operational and serving students without a CDS code, in order for charter schools to apply for and obtain certain types of funding, a CDS code is required. A CDS code may be assigned to a charter school up to one year prior to the school’s first date of instruction, however, a CDS code cannot be assigned until after the State Board of Education has assigned a charter number. Please visit the Charter School Numbers web page for more information.