How to Apply

Admission to ACCESS Academy is by lottery only.

Application for the 2026-2027 school year will be available through ParentVue from February 18, 2026 to March 18, 2026. To learn more about the application process, visit the PPS Enrollment & Transfer website.

Please read through the Frequently Asked Questions before reaching out. If you have questions that are not addressed on the FAQ page, join one of our virtual information sessions. Any further inquiries are best addressed via email to accessattend@pps.net - no phone calls please. (-:

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Eligibility Requirements

Portland Public Schools (PPS) uses a set of nationally normed assessments to determine student eligibility for the ACCESS Academy lottery. Students must demonstrate performance at the 99th percentile or above in Reading, Math, and/or Cognitive Ability on one of the assessments listed here or at the bottom of this page.

• Applicants must have a composite (not sub-test) score at the 99th percentile or higher in Reading, Math, or Cognitive Ability.
• Scores from any academic year may be considered.
• To qualify, assessments must meet the following requirements:
• The test must be proctored by an independent, qualified professional.
• Submitted documentation must include a full score report generated by the assessment vendor (summaries from psychologists or other professionals cannot be accepted without the score report).

Additionally, student applicants must be currently enrolled PPS students OR reside within PPS boundaries. For an out-of-district student to apply to a criteria-based lottery in PPS, they must first be approved in the inter-district lottery which opens in early May.  After enrolling in an approved neighborhood school or non-criteria-based program, students can then apply to criteria-based programs (such as ACCESS) where they meet eligibility. Contact the PPS enrollment and transfer office for questions regarding district boundaries. 

Predetermination of Eligibility

Families of students currently enrolled in 1st through 7th grades who have a qualifying score on a district-administered assessment (marked with an asterisk (*) below) will be notified of their eligibility to apply in time for the ACCESS Lottery. Those families will not need to submit additional eligibility documentation, should they decide to submit an application for the lottery.

Families of students applying for the ACCESS lottery whose students are not predetermined as eligible must submit documentation of a qualifying assessment score.

Assessments Accepted for ACCESS Academy Eligibility

iReady Math Diagnostic*	Otis-Lennon School Ability Test (OLSAT)
MAP Growth (NWEA)* – note: this differs from MAP Fluency	Stanford-Binet Achievement Test
Naglieri Nonverbal Ability Test (NNAT)*	Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC)
Naglieri General Ability Test (Verbal, Nonverbal, or Quantitative)*	Wechsler Individual Achievement Test (WIAT)
Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAT)	Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence (WPPSI)
Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (ITBS)	Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Cognitive Abilities
Kaufman Test of Educational Achievement

Neither the ACCESS nor the district team are able to provide information about private testing.