The 2025–26 5Essentials Survey administration window is scheduled for February 3 through March 13, 2026, for all districts and schools except Chicago Public Schools (CPS) District 299. The CPS survey window is expected to open one week later, on February 10, 2026.
Participation and Rostering Requirements:
- Eligible Schools: All public school districts and schools, including those with RCDTS codes beginning with 3 (e.g., 3XXX), are automatically rostered unless they have been approved for an alternate survey. List of SY26 rostered schools
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- Administrator rosters are generated from the Administrator of Record identified via the Entity Profile System (EPS).
- Teacher rosters are generated using data from the Employment Information System (EIS). For teachers with multiple school assignments, their "Primary Working Location" in EIS will determine the school to which they are rostered. Valid teacher and staff emails are required for participation.
- Student Rosters: Student rosters for grades 4 through 12 are generated from enrollments in the Student Information System (SIS). Student exclusions are limited to those correctly coded in I-Star with an IEP or those with an English Learner (EL) record (other than Spanish) in SIS.
