Click here for more information on the new Universal 9th Grade at BHS.
Click here for the bilingual letter sent to all 8th grade BUSD families in November, 2017 about 2018-19 high school enrollment.

Page Contents

• Information Nights
• BHS eTree
• General Information on Enrolling at Berkeley High School
• Step 1: Enrollment with the Admissions Office
• Step 2: BHS Registration and Course/Lottery Selection
• High School Campus Tours
• Math & Language Placement Tests
• Additional Information

Information Nights

Fall Information Night
Berkeley High’s Fall Information Night for Incoming 9th grade families is scheduled for Wednesday, November 14, 2018, in the Berkeley Community Theater located on the BHS campus. The event will start in the lobby with a variety of information tables at 6:00, the formal presentation will begin promptly at 7:00. While we welcome everyone, the evening will be of particular interest to those who are new to the Berkeley Unified School District. Students are welcome as long as they are accompanied by an adult.

There is no longer a learning community lottery process for incoming 9th grade students. All 9th grade students at Berkeley High School now participate in the “Universal 9th Grade” program. More information on the 9th grade program is available here.

Winter Information Night
There will not be an additional information night in February as in prior years. Registration for Berkeley High School begins with the Fall Information Night on Nov. 14 and registration in December (see below).

BHS eTree

The eTree is an essential source of information about orientation, registration, school events, sports, Student Daily Bulletin, College Advisors’ Bulletin, messages from the Principal, volunteer opportunities, and more. Please watch for postings with the subject line: Incoming Families. To subscribe to the BHS eTree, send an email to bhs-request@lmi.net with the word subscribe in the subject line.

General Information on Enrolling at Berkeley High School

NEW to BUSD Students:
Students must first enroll in the district through BUSD through the BUSD Admissions Office at 2020 Bonar to be able to submit course requests. For enrollment in the 2019-2020 school year, please refer to Step 1 below.

Continuing BUSD Students:
Current BUSD 8^th grade students must re-enroll through the BUSD Admissions Office at 2020 Bonar to be able to submit course requests. This process is only for Berkeley residents. Information regarding inter-district transfers can be obtained from the Admissions Office at 510-644-6504.

Students Entering Grades 10-12:
The BHS Choices Brochure gives you an overview of the range of possibilities for students in the six learning communities that make up Berkeley High School. This BHS School Profile 2014-15 also gives a snapshot of our comprehensive high school and student success. Here you can also find the Course Catalog and Handbook for 2018-19.

Step 1: Enrollment with the Admissions Office

Enrollment is required for ALL incoming students, including current BUSD 8th Grade students and new-to-BUSD students.

Enrollment dates for Fall 2019:

Parent preference forms and registration packets will be mailed home to current BUSD students on November 1st.

December 3rd – December 21st, 2018: High School Enrollment from 8am-4pm at the Berkeley Unified District Building at 2020 Bonar Street.

(Note: The Admissions Office will be open on Saturday, December 15th 9am-3pm.)

High School Enrollment will not open up again until March 26th.

Enrollment location:
The requested documents must be submitted in person by parents or legal guardians to the BUSD Admissions Office at 2020 Bonar St., Suite 108.

Registration packet:
We advise you to complete your packet before you come to BUSD offices.

• Continuing BUSD families: Registration packets will be mailed out to families of current BUSD families on November 1st, 2018.
• New-to-BUSD families: Registration packets can be picked up at the BHS front desk starting December 1st, 2018, if you would like to fill this out prior to going to the district office.

You may also pick up a copy at the BUSD Admissions Office when you come to enroll your student. Please plan to spend 30 to 45 minutes completing the registration packet if you do not fill out the packet ahead of time. You will need to include name/phone numbers/addresses for doctors, dentist, and emergency contact information.

Enrollment documentation:
Please bring the completed registration packet and documents listed below when you come to the district office, so we can make copies at the time of enrollment.

All documents must be current originals (issued within the last 2 months) imprinted with the name and current Berkeley residential address of the parent/legal guardian. A student can use only one residency address for purposes of establishing Berkeley residency.

Proofs of Berkeley Residency
Proof of Berkeley residency is required for ALL incoming 9th Grade Students, including current BUSD 8th Grade students and new-to-BUSD students.

Only personal accounts will be accepted (No care of, DBA or Business accounts). Must submit one from each of the three groups (A, B and C) listed below.

Homeless families should contact our McKinney-Vento Counselor, 644-6529.

Enrollment deadlines:
The first deadline for new to BUSD students and for continuing BUSD students to have their enrollment and re-matriculation completed is December 21, 2018 (see above noted December enrollment dates). If you miss the December deadline, you must enroll and/or re-enroll when enrollment reopens on March 26, 2019 by visiting the BUSD Admissions Office from 8am-4pm. Students who are admitted into the district in March will be in the second round of course selection and enrollment.

Admission is complete when you have provided the appropriate documents and submitted a completed registration packet.

Step 2: BHS Registration and Course/Lottery Selection

Continuing BUSD Students:
There will be a parent meeting at your child’s middle school from 6:00 to 7:00p.m in February or March, dates to be determined. Please make sure you are receiving your middle school etree messages so you have the updated dates, times, and locations. These meetings will be conducted by BHS administrators and are for parents from BUSD middle schools only. There will be a simultaneous Spanish language session with the same information. During the school days following the parent meeting, BHS counselors will go to the middle schools to gather course requests from students via an online form. BHS will mail home the student selections for final review and families/guardians will have one week to request changes by hardcopy to BHS. Students entering the 9th grade need only make choices for their 2 electives. ALL 9th grade students will be part of the Universal 9th grade houses.  More information about the 9th grade program at Berkeley High can be found here: Berkeley High Universal 9th Grade.

NEW-to-BUSD Students:
New-to-BUSD students who have completed the admission process by the January deadline can make course requests in the BHS Library on specified evenings in February or March of 2019. Please check back later for specific dates. The process will take at least 1.5 hours.

If you cannot make your assigned night, we will accommodate you in one of the three sessions, but please try to attend during your allotted time. Students will have their choices mailed to them for verification and will have one week to request any changes by hard copy to BHS.

Students Entering Grades 10-12:
Berkeley High is divided into five learning communities. Two are large: AC and BIHS. Three are smaller: AHA, AMPS, and CAS. Assignment is by lottery but students may indicate a preference. Incoming 10-12th grade students will have an opportunity to list their preferences in the spring when they sign up for classes. All student requests will be mailed home to their parents/guardians for approval.

Your child may list as many as five or as few as two learning communities. Students MUST list AC and BIHS, the two large programs, in the order they prefer. If the student only wants AC or BIHS then s/he only lists those two.

If s/he wants one of the smaller learning communities (AMPS, AHA, or CAS) s/he lists the small schools desired, in the preferred order, and then finishes off with AC and BIHS, in the preferred order. The student may list one of the smaller communities followed by AC and BIHS; two of the smaller communities followed by AC and BIHS; or three of the smaller communities, followed by AC and BIHS.

We will mail you the results of the lottery in late May or early June.

If you miss the lottery and register late spring or in the summer, you will enter a second or third lottery. There is no final cut off date for enrollment at Berkeley High School. When you have established residency, please go to 2020 Bonar Street to start the process of registering and enrolling at the high school.

High School Campus Tours

The “touring season” for prospective students runs from October to March. The small group tours leave the Front Desk at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday through Friday and 10:45 on Mondays. The tours are by reservation only and last a little over an hour. The tours walk by classrooms – many of which have open doors – but they do not go into rooms for observation. The tours are not “orientation tours.” There are student-led tours for our incoming students in August during registration/orientation. Prospective students are welcome on the school day tours but ONLY if accompanied by their parent or guardian.

Tours are by reservation only. To sign up, please email bhsoutreach@berkeley.net. Please indicate several days that work for you and the number of people in your party.

Many people have asked if they could visit Berkeley High on their own or if their student could “shadow” a current student. This is not possible. The school is focused on the education and security of our currently enrolled students. We are simply too large a school to accommodate unsupervised visitors.

If you have any questions about this process, please contact Lisa Sibony, BHS Volunteer Coordinator, at lisasibony@berkeley.net.

World Language and Math Placement Tests

World Language
Berkeley High offers four world languages: Spanish, French, Mandarin and Latin.

If you are NEW to Berkeley Unified School District and want to be in a language class above level 1, you will need to take the language placement exam.

If you are currently enrolled in BUSD and want to SKIP level 2 (3/4), you should also come to take the placement test.

This year the exam will be offered in April or May, 2019. The exam will be given on the second floor of the M building – located off Milvia above Channing. You do not need to sign up ahead of time, just come on time. Some students finish the exam in 45 minutes and others need 90 minutes, so it is difficult to say how long the exam will last. If you cannot attend the April session, there will be a make-up placement test in August 2019 (exact dates to be determined).

There is no language placement test for students who enroll in the beginning level of any of the four languages. Placement for Longfellow, King, and Willard students currently studying French or Spanish will be determined by their current teacher.

Please contact Beatriz Ferrer-Castro beatrizferrercastr@berkeley.net with any questions.

Math
The majority of students will be placed in Math 1, a course covering algebra, geometry, probability and statistics. Some students may test into an accelerated version of Math 1. Math placement testing for students interested in placing into Advanced Math 1 will take place in the BHS library for all non-BUSD students. Current BUSD students will take the placement test at their middle schools. Tests will take place in Spring 2018, exact dates to be determined.

Students do not need to register or to bring anything to the test except a pencil; calculators are not allowed. The test will take one hour. Placement results will be mailed home along with lottery assignments in mid to late May.

Families of students with IEPs or 504 plans requiring accommodations should send info to feliciaphillips@berkeley.net

Information about when you will receive the results of these exams will be explained at the time of the test.

Additional Information

Freshmen Orientation:
Freshmen orientation will take place in August 2019. During orientation students will meet administrators, pick up their class schedule, textbooks, picture ID, and locker assignment. In addition, there will be campus tours and an activity fair.

Free & Reduced Lunch Information:
Apply here: www.ezmealapp.com
For more information about the Free & Reduced Lunch program, click here.
For more information about Nutrition Services, click here.

Athletics Registration:
Visit the BHS Athletics page to register for a fall sport.

BHS Band and Orchestra:
Visit the BHS BAO page for information.