Common Acronyms

Like many organizations, the Forum uses numerous acronyms to communicate. The following is a list of acronyms that are likely to be used throughout this meeting.

A4L

Access For Learning Community
The A4L Community, previously the SIF Association, is a unique, non-profit collaboration composed of schools, districts, local authorities, states, US and International Ministries of Education, software vendors and consultants who collectively address all aspects of learning information management and access to support learning.

CCSSO

Council of Chief State School Officers
CCSSO is a nonpartisan, nationwide, nonprofit organization of public officials who head departments of elementary and secondary education in the states, the District of Columbia, the Department of Defense Education Activity, the Bureau of Indian Education, and the five U.S. extra-state jurisdictions.

CEDS

Common Education Data Standards
The CEDS initiative is a voluntary common vocabulary, data model, and suite of implementation tools to help education stakeholders understand and use comparable education data throughout the early learning through postsecondary and workforce settings.

CIP

Classification of Instructional Program
The CIP provides a taxonomic scheme that supports the accurate tracking and reporting of fields of study and program completions activity. CIP titles and program descriptions are primarily used at the postsecondary level, and CIP is used by NCES in the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS). Additional information on the history and use of CIP is available at https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/cipcode/resources.aspx?y=56.

ED

U.S. Department of Education

EDFacts

EDFacts is a U. S. Department of Education initiative to collect, analyze, and promote the use of high-quality, pre-kindergarten through grade 12 data. EDFacts centralizes performance data supplied by K-12 SEAs with other data assets, such as financial grant information, within ED to enable better analysis and use in policy development, planning, and management.

EIMAC

Education Information Management Advisory Consortium
The EIMAC mission is to advance the use of data and technology in support of CCSSO's aspiration that every child graduates ready for college, careers, and life and that our state leaders, schools, and educators have the right resources at the right moment to meet the needs of each student they serve.

ESSA

Every Student Succeeds Act
The ESSA reauthorizes the 50-year-old Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), the nation's national education law and longstanding commitment to equal opportunity for all students. ESSA builds on key areas of progress in recent years, made possible by the efforts of educators, communities, parents, and students across the country. It includes provisions that will help to ensure success for students and schools.

FERPA

Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act
FERPA is a Federal law that protects the privacy of student education records.

LEA

Local Education Agency (i.e., a school district)

NCES

National Center for Education Statistics (U.S. Department of Education)
NCES is the primary federal entity for collecting, analyzing, and reporting data related to education in the United States and other nations. NCES established the National Forum on Education Statistics to improve the collection, reporting, and use of elementary and secondary education statistics.

NESAC

National Education Statistics Agenda Committee
NESAC is a Forum standing committee that addresses ways to fulfill the Cooperative System's legislative mandate to improve the quality of data at federal, state, and local levels.

PPI

Policies, Programs, and Implementation Committee
PPI is a Forum standing committee that deliberates on the major functions and general effectiveness of the Cooperative System, focusing on strategies to assist SEAs and LEAs in improving their ability to collect and report comparable, accurate, and timely data and ways to enhance coordination among federal agencies, between federal and state agencies, and between state agencies and local districts.

SCED

School Courses for the Exchange of Data
SCED is a voluntary, common classification system for prior–to–secondary and secondary school courses. It can be used to compare course information, maintain longitudinal data about student coursework, and efficiently exchange course–taking records. SCED is based on a five–digit Course Code that provides a basic structure for classifying course content. Additional SCED elements and attributes provide descriptive information about each course. More information is available on the Forum's SCED website at https://nces.ed.gov/forum/sced.asp.

SEA

State Education Agency (i.e., a state department of education)

SETDA

State Educational Technology Directors Association
SETDA is a non–profit membership association launched by state education agency leaders in 2001 to serve, support and represent their emerging interests and needs with respect to the use of technology for teaching, learning, and school operations.

TECH

Technology Committee
TECH is a Forum standing committee that is concerned with technology strategies to address the collection, management, use, and exchange of student and staff information and the supporting technical infrastructure.