Sign Up

A California Local Education Agency (LEA) should take the following steps to sign up for the California Healthy Kids Survey (CHKS) as part of their biennial administration required by CDE. Both the CHKS and the CSCS must be scheduled at the same time. You should allow a minimum of one month between starting the sign-up process and conducting the survey.

It is critical to note that you cannot conduct the CHKS without first contacting the Cal-SCHLS Regional Center (formerly the CHKS Regional Center). Although most of what you need is available on this website, registration with the Regional Center is MANDATORY.

STEP 1: Review Materials

First, assign a district Survey Coordinator. It is essential that the District Survey Coordinator understand the basic tasks involved in survey administration. Before calling your Regional Survey Center (Step 2), you MUST review the following material, located on this website:

The Guidebook for the California Healthy Kids Survey, Part I: Administration (pdf). Provides detailed instruction on all aspects of administering the survey in California, along with ready-to-use support materials and tools. It serves as a step-by-step guide to the tasks that need to be performed, and contains an overview to the survey’s purpose, its content and format, its requirements, the reporting process and fees, and the procedures for maintaining data confidentiality.
The Guidebook to the California School Climate Survey for Teachers and Other Staff, Part I: Administration (pdf). This short guide explains the new staff School Climate Survey – what it's about, who has to take it, and how it's administered.
The Survey Instruments. Get acquainted with the most recent surveys, and the supplemental CHKS modules you may want to use.

STEP 2: Prepare the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)

The Memorandum of Understanding outlines the responsibilities of both the Local Education Agency (LEA) and the Cal-SCHLS Regional Center (formerly, the CHKS Regional Center), as well as the conditions that must be met in administering the surveys. It must be signed by an LEA representative and returned via mail or fax to the Regional Center staff before services can be continued. Please note: Simply submitting the MOU does NOT sign you up for the surveys; you must call (888) 841.7536 to do so.

STEP 3: Contact your Cal-SCHLS Regional Center to Register your Survey

A staff technical advisor will help you determine the minimum requirements for your district and start the process of developing your survey plan. Your advisor can help you determine whether the paper survey with optical scan answer sheets or the web-based survey will work best for you. Be sure to be ready with the following information, especially if you decide to use the paper survey and plan to order your answer sheets (Note: CHKS answer sheet orders must be placed AT LEAST two weeks before you want to receive them. Orders can take up to four weeks longer if you plan to sample.):

For traditional schools, current enrollment by grade (5, 7, 9, and 11), plus the total number of students in continuation and regular day schools;
The total number of staff you are targeting at each school site;
Whether you participate in a program that requires specific CHKS questions;
Whether you need to customize your survey (e.g., add questions);
Which modules/surveys you plan to administer to the students; and
Tentative dates for when you plan to administer the student and staff surveys.

STEP 4: Take Administration Training

If you are a new coordinator, sign up for the free Administration Workshop teleconference held monthly. Onsite, county- and district-level trainings are available for a fee. Call the toll-free number (888) 841.7536 for details.

Do NOT send payment in advance. A sales order (SO) for your basic costs will be mailed to you with your answer sheets. Please send us a purchase order (PO) or check based on this SO. You may order additional items such as school reports or electronic copies using the Answer Sheet Return Checklist enclosed with your answer sheets. We will issue a new SO based on your request. Again, please wait to receive this new SO before issuing a PO or check.