The Humanities and International Studies Program at C.K. McClatchy High School is a magnet program that receives applications from students throughout the Sacramento City Unified School District. Although hundreds of students apply, only 140 freshmen are enrolled in the program each year. For information on how to apply to the program as a sophomore, junior, or senior, see “Non-freshmen HISP applicants” below.

In early December, HISP opens it doors for two days when prospective students and their parents can visit the CKM campus and view HISP classes in session (see Visitation Days).

The formal application process involves a HISP application (which includes attendance at one of two essay writing sessions) as well as an open enrollment application.

HISP Application Requirement

The HISP Application Guidelines & Checklist outlines the steps for applying to HISP. A complete HISP application is comprised of:

• Application Form
• Transcripts
• STAR Test Scores
• Language Arts Teacher Recommendation
• Other Current Teacher Recommendation

Open Enrollment Requirement

ALL prospective HISP students—including those who live in CKM’s attendance area—must complete the district’s open enrollment process regardless of where they live within the Sacramento City Unified School District boundaries. For open enrollment, parents may apply on behalf of their students either online or in person at the Serna Center. If applying online, print the confirmation of your open enrollment for your records.

Consult the district’s web page on open enrollment for additional information and refer often to the HISP home page for updates. Once the open enrollment period begins, an online application is posted on the district website.

For Out-of-District Applicants: Complete only the HISP application process (see the HISP Application Guidelines & Checklist to learn about the six components that comprise an application); submit required items to the school by the deadline. Students who do not live in the district may not (by Education Code) participate in the Open Enrollment lottery. Out-of-district applicants who meet admission criteria will be placed on the bottom of the waiting list. Inter-district permits are then issued only on a space available basis.

Application Review

In late winter, all applications are reviewed and scored. Applications that exceed a specified score threshold are deemed eligible for the program. Students/parents are notified via a letter.

Those qualified applicants who meet criteria and score in the top 20 percent at each of the district’s middle and K-8 schools are offered a slot; the remainder of the 140 slots is filled by lottery conducted by the district. Those students in the lottery, but whose names are not drawn for the 140 slots, are placed on a waiting list for the program in lottery order. In the event an accepted student declines his/her slot, the next student on the waiting list is offered the space in the program. In some years, the first 10 to 20 students on the waiting list have been reached prior to the first day of school.

Acceptance, Registration, and Course Selection

In early spring, letters stating acceptance to the program or lottery wait listing are mailed both by the district and the program. Once your student has been accepted to HISP, you must register your student. Carefully read your student’s acceptance letter for registration steps and deadlines. Failure to register by the deadline will result in your student losing his/her slot in the program.

At the time a student is registered for the program, the student will make final course selections for non-HISP classes (mathematics, science, and languages). See Course Sequence to learn which courses HISP students typically enroll in at each grade level.

Non-Freshmen HISP Applicants

Typically, a small number of HISP slots open each year at the sophomore, junior and senior grade levels for students not currently in the program. Consult with the HISP coordinator on how your student must complete the HISP application process.