School Registration

This registration process is for families who do not have any students currently attending DCG schools. Registration can be completed with a computer or smart phone. If you need access to a computer, a kiosk is available at our District Office. Please email enrollment@dcgschools.com with any questions or to set up an appointment.

Once you have submitted your completed application, please allow two business days for the information to be processed. Your child’s building of attendance will email you with additional information.

Request your Infinite Campus Parent Portal by clicking here. Please note, if you are registering for the upcoming school year, your portal will be active on July 1st. If you are registering during the current school year, your portal will be active on your child’s 1st day of attendance.

Fees are available, to be paid through your Infinite Campus Parent Portal account. If you are registering for the upcoming school year, Infinite Campus will be available to you in early July. If you are registering for the current school year, it will be available on your child’s first day of attendance at DCG.

Preschool Registration

The registration period is February 1 – February 15 for the following school year. 3-year-old registrations submitted during this time will be eligible for a random selection to fill available openings. After February 15th, please email stephanie.birmingham@dcgschools.com to be placed on a waiting list.

4-year-old registrations submitted between February 1-February 15 will typically be placed, however, if more registrations are received than anticipated, we will create a waiting list. After February 15th, complete the online registration and you will then be notified of your status from the preschool department.

This registration is for families who currently have students attending DCG schools. Registration can be completed with a computer or smart phone. Register your child by following the instructions provided below.  If you need access to a computer, a kiosk is available at our District Office. Please email enrollment@dcgschools.com with any questions or to set up an appointment.

To add a “new” student, use the “Add New Student” button located on the “student” tab.

Registration opens February 1 for the following school year.

Register all of your children at the same time. This includes a child starting at DCG for the first time (for example – preschool or kindergarten).

• Look for “more” on the left navigation menu – online registration.
• Fees are available through your Infinite Campus Parent Portal the first week of July each year.

DCG Athletics and Activities information are available through Bound. Registration will begin on July 1.

If you have questions, please contact Katelyn Cain at the DCG High School Activities Office at 515.986.9747 or katelyn.cain@dcgschools.com. 

The Iowa Open Enrollment Law allows parents/guardians to enroll their student in a public school district other than their district of residence by completing an open enrollment application. Beginning July 1, 2024, state code requires open enrollment applications to be submitted to both the resident and receiving districts by March 1. This enrollment application will be submitted for the following school year.

Receiving districts may deny an open enrollment request if one of the following applies:

• The application violates the district’s insufficient classroom space policy,
• The district does not have the appropriate special education program,
• The application would adversely affect the district’s implementation of a court-ordered desegregation plan, or
• The student has been expelled or suspended.

Kindergarten open enrollment applications must be received by September 1. All other open enrollment applications must be completed by March 1 to be considered for the following school year.

Please send open enrollment forms to:

Dallas Center-Grimes CSD – Attn: Registrar

PO Box 680

Grimes, IA 50111

OR

Email: deanna.sandegren@dcgschools.com 

Open Enrollment Form 2025-2026 | 2026-2027

To learn more about open enrollment, visit the Iowa Department of Education’s website.

Open Enrollment FAQs

Does an application need to be filed for each individual student?

Yes. For each student in Transitional Kindergarten – 12th Grade.

Does an open enrollment application need to be filed on an annual basis?

No. Once an application is approved, your student may continue in the district until they graduate or you move from your resident district?

Can I choose which building my student will attend?

Students approved for open enrollment status will be assigned to a school in which space is available in their grade level. Every effort is made to place students in their school of choice AND with their siblings.

Is there any cost involved?

The resident school district will be responsible for paying the cost of tuition on an annual basis for your student to attend school in the receiving district. However, all miscellaneous registration fees for participation in the educational programs (extra-curricular activities, school supplies, etc.) are the responsibility of the parents/guardians.

Can my request be denied?

Open enrollment requests are denied if it is filed after the deadline, appropriate special education programming is not available, if there is not classroom space for the student, or if the student is under suspension or expulsion.

Do we need to request open enrollment if we move out of the district and want our student to remain in the same school district?

Yes

Does open enrollment affect athletic eligibility?

Please contact the school Athletic Director for information regarding the varsity 90 school day ineligibility period for open enrolled students.

Can an 11th or 12th grade student complete their education at the resident district if their family moves to another district?

Yes. According to Iowa Code 257.6(d), non-resident 11th and 12th grade students who were residents of the district during the preceding school year may be enrolled in that district until they graduate. An open enrollment application is not required.

Private instruction means instruction using a plan and a course of study in a setting other than a public or organized accredited nonpublic school.  Iowa Code section 299A.1 (2) (c).  It includes competent private instruction (by a licensed practitioner or a non-licensed person), independent private instruction, home school assistance programs, and non-accredited nonpublic schools. Find more homeschool information from the Iowa Department of Education’s website.

What is Homeschool (Private Instruction)?

Iowa families may consider private (homeschool) instruction as an option for providing their students with an education. This category includes multiple choices and allows parents to choose a pathway that is best suited to their educational philosophy and goals for their child or children, and aligns with the instructional needs of their child(ren). Private instruction (homeschooling) means instruction using a plan and a course of study in a setting other than a public or organized accredited nonpublic school (Iowa Code 299A.1(2)“c”). This includes Independent Private Instruction (IPI) and Competent Private Instruction (CPI) options respectively. Depending on the amount of support and interaction with the local school system desired, the family may begin to review options and narrow their focus on the path most closely aligned to their educational vision. This can include complete autonomy, meaning no interaction with the local school system, to a more involved partnership that can include support from a person with a current Iowa teaching license, dual enrollment for academics, activities or special education service as well as the access to a homeschool assistance program (HSAP), if offered, senior year plus programing, and a range of other support and engagement options.

COMPETENT PRIVATE INSTRUCTION

Competent Private Instruction (CPI) is instruction that is provided on a daily basis for at least 148 days during the school year, for at least 37 days each quarter of the school year. It may be provided by a person with a current Iowa teaching license (Iowa Code 299A.2, Option #1) or by a parent, guardian or custodian without a current Iowa teaching license (Iowa Code 299A.3, Option #2) and results in the student making *adequate annual progress. Adequate annual progress will be covered in greater detail in the information on assessment. 

CPI Option #1 includes students who are under the supervision of a person with a current Iowa teaching license for instruction provided in the homeschool setting. This includes students who are participating in a HSAP, if offered by their district, a person with a current Iowa teaching license privately retained by the family, or instruction supervised by a parent, guardian or custodian with a current Iowa teaching license, substitute license or substitute authorization. 

CPI Option #2 indicates students who are not under the supervision of a person with a current Iowa teaching license. 

If your student has an IEP, you are not required to receive prior written approval from the district or the Area Education Agency to engage in homeschool instruction (Iowa Administrative Code 281-41.500). If you would like your student to continue to receive their special education service, request to convene the IEP team to discuss how specially designed instruction may be provided. If you would like to discontinue service, the IEP team would meet and you would revoke consent for service. You may still dual enroll if you revoke consent for service, however, your student would not have the accommodations and supports that were included in the student’s IEP plan. This means if your student was provided with assistance, extended time, etc., that support would come to an end.

INDEPENDENT PRIVATE INSTRUCTION

The Independent Private Instruction (IPI) pathway does not require the family to file any forms or submit documentation regarding the curriculum you are using, or provide proof of adequate annual progress with the local school district or the Iowa Department of Education. Your student(s) may not dual enroll for academics, activities or special education service. The family may determine when the student has completed their education, in alignment with Compulsory Education law in Iowa. 

Independent Private Instruction (or IPI) means private instruction that meets the following criteria: 

• is not accredited; 

• enrolls not more than four unrelated students;

 • does not charge tuition, fees, or other remuneration for instruction;

 • provides private or religious-based instruction as its primary purpose; 

• provides enrolled students with instruction in mathematics, reading and language arts, science, and social studies;

 • provides, upon written request from the superintendent of the school district, in which the IPI is provided or from the director of the Department, a report identifying the primary instructor, location, name of the authority responsible for the IPI, and names of the students enrolled; and 

• is not a nonpublic school and does not provide CPI as defined in Iowa Code 299A.1 and Iowa Administrative Code 281-31; and  

• is exempt from all state statutes and administrative rules applicable to a school, a school board, or a school district, except as otherwise provided in Iowa Code 299 (Compulsory education) and Iowa Code 299A (Private instruction; Iowa Code 299A.1(2)“b”).

Competent Private Instruction (CPI) is private instruction provided on a daily basis for at least one hundred forty-ei

Independent Private Instruction (IPI) means instruction that meets the following criteria:

• Is not accredited
• Enrolls not more than four unrelated students
• Does not charge tuition, fees, or other remuneration for instruction
• Provides private or religious-based instruction as its primary purpose
• Provides enrolled students with instruction in mathematics, reading and language arts, science , and social studies
• Provides, upon written request from the superintendent of the school district in which the independent private instruction is provided, or from the director of the department of education, a report identifying the primary instructor, location, name of the authority responsible for the independent private instruction, and the name of the students enrolled.
• Is not a nonpublic school and does not provide competent private instruction as defined in Iowa Code section 299A.1 and these rules.
• Is exempt from all state statutes and administrative rules applicable to a school, a school board, or a school district, exempt as otherwise provided in Iowa Code chapters 299 and 299A.
  1. CPI Handbook
  2. CPI Timelines
  3. Flowchart of Private Instruction Options
  4. CPI Form A
  5. Request Form for Consideration of Standardized Assessment Not on Department Approved List

Contact Information

Alyson Finley, Student Services Director

alyson.finley@dcgschools.com 

Deanna Sandegren, Registrar

deanna.sandegren@dcgschools.com

515.992.3866

Iowa law requires the evidence of immunization to be presented before any student can be enrolled in DCG CSD. Students new to the district need to provide a current Certificate of Immunization documenting these immunizations upon registration. This may be obtained from the student’s medical provider or the public health office.

The immunization schedule for children can be found here. This schedule aligns with Iowa Code. The state of Iowa requires students entering 7th grade to have both a Tdap vaccine and a meningitis vaccine. Students entering 12th grade will need to show proof of two doses of the meningitis vaccine. The meningitis vaccine must be received before the first day of 7th or 12th grade, and an updated immunization record must be provided to the DCG School Nurse before the first day of school. 

Please contact your building’s school nurse with any questions. 

Immunization Law – Iowa Department of Public Health

Religious Certificate of Immunization Exemption 

Medical Certificate of Immunization Exemption