CPS Withdrawal for Homeschool: A Step-by-Step Guide

The decision to leave Chicago Public Schools is usually made before the paperwork conversation starts. A failed IEP meeting, a string of emergency school closings, a child who is academically regressing while the school's data says otherwise — the reasons stack up over months until the decision feels less like a choice than an inevitability. What stops families at the threshold is not second-guessing the decision. It is not knowing what the paperwork actually requires and whether getting it wrong could create legal exposure.

It can. But the process is not complicated when you know the steps.

The Legal Foundation: Illinois Private School Status

Illinois does not require you to register with the state, notify the state, or obtain approval to homeschool your child. Under 105 ILCS 5/26-1, the compulsory attendance law contains a private school exemption, and the People v. Levisen (1950) ruling established that home education qualifies as private school instruction under Illinois law. That ruling has governed the legal interpretation of homeschooling in Illinois for over seventy years.

What this means practically: when you withdraw from CPS and begin educating your child at home, you are not entering a gray area. You are exercising a clearly established legal right that the Illinois courts and the General Assembly have affirmed.

The district's obligation is to your compliance with state law. The district's preferences about what you should do are not the same thing as what you are legally required to do. Keeping those two things clearly separated is useful when you encounter school staff who are unfamiliar with the law or who characterize the process as more restrictive than it is.

Step 1: The Physical Visit to the School

Chicago Public Schools requires that withdrawal from a CPS school be initiated through a physical visit to the child's current school. This is not something you can accomplish by phone call, email, or letter alone. A parent or legal guardian must go in person.

When you arrive, tell the office staff that you are withdrawing your child to attend a private school. Do not use the word "homeschool" if you want to minimize the likelihood of an extended conversation — under Illinois law, home education is private school education, and describing it that way is accurate. Ask for the withdrawal form.

The staff will typically process the withdrawal and update the enrollment record. In some cases, you may encounter staff who want to schedule a meeting with an administrator before processing the withdrawal. You are not required to attend such a meeting, and your withdrawal request does not depend on administrative approval. Politely but clearly state that you are there to complete the withdrawal, and ask what the required documentation is.

Step 2: The Statement of Assurance

CPS uses a Statement of Assurance as the primary withdrawal document for families transitioning to home education. The form is available in both English and Spanish. It asks parents to affirm that they are providing private school instruction equivalent to what is required under Illinois law.

When you sign the Statement of Assurance, you are asserting that:

• Your child will receive instruction comparable to what public schools provide
• You are assuming responsibility for ensuring compulsory attendance through your private school arrangement

The form does not require you to specify your curriculum, identify a school name, list your teaching qualifications, or submit any future progress reports. Illinois does not require any of those things from home-educating families. The Statement of Assurance is an acknowledgment of your assumption of educational responsibility — nothing more.

Complete the form carefully. Keep a copy for your records.

Step 3: The Letter of Compliance

The Statement of Assurance handles the school's internal administrative process. Separately, the Ad Hoc Committee on Home Education in Illinois recommends that families submit a written letter of compliance directly to the school in addition to or alongside the Statement of Assurance.

The letter serves a distinct purpose: it creates your own documentary record that you formally notified the district of your educational intent and the legal basis for your private school exemption. If a truancy inquiry arises weeks or months later — particularly if there is any administrative confusion about whether the withdrawal was properly processed — you want your own record of the communication, separate from the school's internal paperwork.

A letter of compliance does not need to be long. It should include:

• The child's full name and date of birth
• The child's CPS ID number and school name
• The date of withdrawal
• A statement that the family is exercising the private school exemption under 105 ILCS 5/26-1 and that the child will receive private school instruction at home
• Your signature and the date

Send the letter via email to the school principal and the Local School Council contact if you have one. Follow up with a physical copy delivered at the time of your school visit. Keep copies of all correspondence.

Understanding Truancy Risk and How to Avoid It

Illinois takes truancy seriously in ways that are worth understanding before you start the withdrawal process. Truancy officers in Illinois have peace officer authority, which means they can compel cooperation with truancy investigations in ways that ordinary city employees cannot. Parents of habitually truant students face Class C misdemeanor charges under Illinois law.

The truancy framework applies to students who are not enrolled in any school — public or private — and who are not otherwise accounted for under an exemption. Once you have completed a proper withdrawal and can document that your child is enrolled in a home-based private school, your child is not truant. The exemption is real and robust.

The risk is procedural, not legal. If CPS does not properly update its enrollment record at the time of your withdrawal visit — which happens with administrative backlog at busy schools — your child may appear in the system as unenrolled rather than withdrawn to private school. If a truancy officer subsequently makes contact, your documentation (Statement of Assurance, letter of compliance, copy of withdrawal form) is your evidence of proper procedure.

This is why the physical visit, the written documentation, and the personal copies all matter. They are not bureaucratic caution — they are your protection against administrative errors in a large district that processes thousands of enrollment changes.

If Your Child Has an IEP

Families leaving CPS because of inadequate IEP implementation face an additional layer of complexity. When your child withdraws from CPS, the district's obligation to provide FAPE (Free Appropriate Public Education) under the IDEA ends. Your child's existing IEP does not transfer to your home school and cannot be enforced once you have withdrawn.

If you are accessing any services from the district as a parentally-placed private school student — which Illinois law technically allows under certain conditions — the rules change. But if you are fully withdrawing and providing a home-based private school education with no district services, the IEP becomes reference documentation rather than an active document.

Many families find that the loss of the IEP obligation is actually a relief — they were not receiving the services anyway, and now they can seek private providers on their own terms. Others find it a genuine loss. Know which situation you are in before you withdraw.

What Happens at the Microschool

If your child is joining a learning pod or microschool rather than a fully home-based arrangement, the withdrawal process is identical. From CPS's perspective, your child is withdrawing to attend a private school. Whether that private school consists of your family alone, a two-family pod, or a more structured microschool with a hired facilitator, the withdrawal documentation you complete is the same.

Each family in a microschool must complete its own withdrawal process independently. The microschool founder cannot withdraw students on behalf of other families. Every parent goes through the same steps: physical visit, Statement of Assurance, letter of compliance, personal copies.

If you are organizing a Chicago-area learning pod or microschool and want the full legal compliance documentation — including withdrawal letter templates, CPS-specific guidance, and enrollment agreement frameworks — the Illinois Micro-School & Pod Kit gives you everything you need to navigate the process correctly from the start.

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