Forum Annual Report 2007-08

National Cooperative Education Statistics System
National Forum on Education Statistics

Summary
2007–08

Officers

Chairperson: Susan VanGorden, Lakota Local School District, Ohio (OH)
Vice-Chair: Bruce Dacey, Delaware Department of Education
Past Chair: Derrick Lindsay, Mississippi Department of Education

Standing Committees

National Education Statistics Agenda Committee (NESAC)
Chair: Linda Rocks, Bossier Parish Schools (LA)
Vice-Chair: Helene Bettencourt, Massachusetts Department of Education

Policies, Programs and Implementation (PPI)
Chair: Levette Williams, Georgia Department of Education
Vice-Chair: James Haessly, School District of Waukesha (WI)

Technology (TECH)
Chair: Kathy Gosa, Kansas State Department of Education
Vice-Chairs: Steve Smith, Waterville Public Schools (MA)
     and Tom Purwin, Jersey City Public Schools (NJ)

Completed Task Forces & Publications

Forum Guide to Core Finance Data Elements
Purpose: This document provides an overview of key finance data terms. It also covers the two NCES public school finance surveys: the state-level National Public Education Financial Survey and the School District Finance Survey (or F-33). Differences and similarities between the two surveys are described. Chapter 3 contains definitions for key finance data elements. Chapter 4 contains a listing and definitions of key finance indicators and economic adjustment indexes.

Linda Champion (chair), Florida Department of Education
James (Chris) Christman, Pittsburg State University
Matthew Cohen, Ohio Department of Education
Garnet Lavan Dukes, Florida Department of Education
Dori Nielson, Montana Office of Public Instruction
Catherine Sielke, University of Georgia
Consultant: Steven D. Honegger, American Institutes for Research
Project Officer: Frank Johnson, National Center for Education Statistics

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2007-08 Task Forces

Attendance Task Force
Purpose: To develop an exhaustive and mutually-exclusive list of attendance codes to provide the basis for accurate comparisons between districts and states. The attendance codes will also categorize reasons for nonattendance.

William Smith (chair), Sioux Falls School District (SD)
Janet Emerick, Lake Central School Corporation (IN)
M. Francie Gilmore-Dunn, Mississippi Department of Education
Patricia High, Oklahoma State Department of Education
Lee Hoffman, National Center for Education Statistics
Kristina Martin, Macomb Intermediate School District (MI)
Janice Petro, Colorado Department of Education
Linda Rocks, Bossier Parish Schools (LA)
Consultant: Alyssa Alston, Council of Chief State School Officers
Project Officer: Ghedam Bairu, National Center for Education Statistics

Crisis Data Management Task Force
Purpose: To develop guidelines that can be used by elementary and secondary education agencies to establish policies and procedures for collecting and managing education data before, during, and after a crisis. This includes scenarios in which the agency is directly or indirectly (e.g., only receiving displaced students) impacted by a disaster.

Linda Rocks (co-chair), Bossier Parish Schools (LA)
Earl Watkins (co-chair), Jackson Public School District (MS)
Challis Breithaupt, Maryland State Department of Education
Derrick Lindsay, Mississippi Department of Education
Allen Schulenberg, Louisiana Department of Education
Steve Shiever, Crescent Public Schools (OK)
Pat Sullivan, Texas Education Agency
Consultant: Beth Young, Quality Information Partners
Project Officer: Ghedam Bairu, National Center for Education Statistics

Data Ethics Task Force
Purpose: To develop a Code of Ethics for a broad range of stakeholders in the education data community. The Code will address ethical issues focused on the management and use of education data, with particular emphasis on individually identifiable student and staff data. This Code of Ethics will be philosophical enough to complement, and be customizable to, a wide range of state statutes and regulations. Supporting text will be specific enough to make ethical principles understandable and actionable for staff in an education organization.

Tom Purwin (chair), Jersey City Public Schools (NJ)
Cheryl McMurtrey, Mountain Home School District 193 (ID)
Stephen Metcalf, Montpelier School District (VT)
Janice Petro, Colorado Department of Education
Lee Rabbit, North Kingstown School Department (RI)
David Uhlig, Charlottesville City Public Schools (VA)
Consultant: Tom Szuba, Quality Information Partners
Project Officer: Stephen Cornman, National Center for Education Statistics

Longitudinal Data Systems Task Force
Purpose: To develop a document with lessons learned and effective approaches to designing, implementing, maintaining, and using longitudinal data systems - including various aspects of the project, such as governance, stakeholder involvement and feedback, communications, staffing, RFP writing, and bid evaluations. This resource is intended to tie together the many existing resources available on LDSs and to offer SEA and LEA perspectives to help decisionmakers, education experts, and system developers to effectively assemble the many pieces of the LDS puzzle.

Bruce Dacey (chair), Delaware Department of Education
Nancy Burke, Century Elementary Grafton Public School District (ND)
Corey Chatis, Tennessee Department of Education
Laurie Collins, Schools Interoperability Framework Association
Thomas Cosgrove, Office of the State Superintendent of Education (DC)
Khaled Falah, Office of the State Superintendent of Education (DC)
Beth Juillerat, Ohio Department of Education
Maureen Matthews, Council of Chief State School Officers
Pat Sherrill, U.S. Department of Education
Nancy Smith, Data Quality Campaign
Steve Smith, Cambridge Public Schools (MA)
Susan VanGorden, Lakota Local School District (OH)
Consultant: Anthony Garofano, Quality Information Partners
Project Officer: Tate Gould, National Center for Education Statistics

Metadata Task Force
Purpose: To develop a document with best practice concepts, definitions, implementation strategies, and templates/tools for an audience of data, technology, and program staff in state and local education agencies. It is hoped that this resource will improve this audience's awareness and understanding of metadata and, subsequently, the quality of the data in the systems they maintain.

Tom Ogle (chair), Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
Sonya Edwards, California Department of Education
Kathy Gosa, Kansas State Department of Education
Tom Saka, Hawaii Department of Education
Steve Smith, Cambridge Public Schools (MA)
Mike Strozeski, Richardson Independent School District (TX)
Consultant: Tom Szuba, Quality Information Partners
Project Officer: Ghedam Bairu, National Center for Education Statistics

PK-12 Data Model Task Force
Purpose: To develop a conceptual education data model that will focus upon teaching, learning, and the business of schools districts. The model will take into account data elements, categories of data elements, the education process, definitions and semantics, as well as relationships among data elements. The task force will also develop a methodology for utilizing, maintaining and communicating about the data model so that it will have maximum utility for stakeholders.

E. Glenn McClain (co-chair), Platte Valley School District, Weld Re-7 (CO)
Jeff Stowe (co-chair), Arizona Department of Education
Shawn Bay, eScholar
Pam Birkeland, Helena Public Schools (MT)
Bethann Canada, Virginia Department of Education
Les Daenzer, Lower Kuskokwim School District (AK)
Alicia Diaz, Southern Regional Education Board
Bertha Doar, Rockwood School District (MO)
Sonya Edwards, California Department of Education
Patricia Eiland, Alabama Department of Education
Larry Fruth, Schools Interoperability Framework Association
Ed Goddard, Clark County School District (NV)
Kathy Gosa, Kansas Department of Education
Stephen Hockett, U.S. Department of Education
Lee Hoffman, National Center for Education Statistics
Steve King, ESP Solutions Group
Derrick Lindsay, Mississippi Department of Education
Blair Loudat, North Clackamas Schools (OR)
Stephen Metcalf, Orange-Windsor Supervisory Union (VT)
Deborah Newby, Council of Chief State School Officers
Lee Rabbitt, North Kingston School Department (RI)
Linda Rocks, Bossier Parish Schools (LA)
Robert Rodosky, Jefferson County Public Schools (KY)
Michael Strozeski, Richardson Independent School District (TX)
Charlene Swanson, New York State Education Department
Dave Uhlig, Charlottesville City Public Schools (VA)
David Weinberger, Yonkers Public Schools (NY)
Ray Wilson, Poway Unified School District (CA)
Connie J. Wise, Illinois State Department of Education
Raymond Yeagley, Northwest Evaluation Association
Consultant: Vicente Paredes, Schools Interoperability Framework Association
Project Officer: Kashka Kubzdela, National Center for Education Statistics

Race/Ethnicity Task Force
Purpose: To develop a tool to help SEAs and LEAs implement USED's recent changes to the way state education agencies (SEAs) and local education agencies (LEAs) will be expected to maintain, collect, and report data on race and ethnicity changes. This tool will aim to reduce redundant efforts within and across states, improve data comparability, and minimize reporting burden.

Bethann Canada (chair), Virginia Department of Education
Helene Bettencourt, Massachusetts Department of Education
Garnet Lavan Dukes, Florida Department of Education
Carol Jones, Michigan Center for Educational Performance and Information
Carmen Jordan, Arkansas Department of Education
Blair Loudat, North Clackamas Schools (OR)
Eric McCormick, Alaska Department of Education & Early Development
John Metcalfe, Fremont County School District #1 (WY)
David Patton, Omaha Public Schools (NE)
Madalyn Quinlan, Montana Office of Public Instruction
Thomas Stella, Everett Public Schools (MA)
Consultant: Oona Cheung, Quality Information Partners
Project Officer: Lee Hoffman, National Center for Education Statistics

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Special Task Order Awards 2008

NCES has selected three states this year to receive State Cooperative System Special Projects awards, advancing its effort to improve federal-state cooperation in data collection, processing, analysis, and reporting. The FY 2008 awards, each in the amount of $50,000, seek to enhance the quality of education and the performance of all students by promoting the development of statewide longitudinal data systems (LDSs). The FY 2008 State Cooperative System Task Order Awards were awarded to:

• Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction
  LDS Progress and Summary Report Integration
  This task order will support the integration of a set of progress and summary reports into Wisconsin's LDS. The reports have been used in both internal and external reviews to ensure data quality, but due to their cumbersome and time-consuming nature, they have been underutilized. Ultimately, the project is expected to provide the state with a fully integrated quality collection and reporting system for their LDS system. As part of the system, the reports will serve as the source of a wide variety of data, feeding the state's EDEN submission, and will serve LEAs by providing NCLB School Performance reports and more options for the display of data as well as easier conduct of data quality checks.
  
  
• Idaho Department of Education
  Idaho Basic Education Data System Assessment
  This task order will fund a detailed assessment of the state's primary state-level data system, IBEDS, which has been inefficient and ineffective due to problems such as existing data silos, table duplication, disparate program elements, and reliance on manually edited spreadsheets. With a focus on data architecture, applications, and interfaces, the assessment will provide Idaho with the critical information needed to develop a plan to replace IBEDS with a K-12 LDS. The assessment project, which will consist of requirements gathering, business and technical analyses, and user interviews, will produce a report that detailing findings on the current system along with recommendations and resource estimates for developing a replacement system. Upon completion, the report will be made available to other states in the Forum and CCSSO.
  
  
• Iowa Department of Education
  Data Warehouse Needs Assessment
  This task order will support the creation of a statewide data warehouse to provide better access to the state's data. The warehouse will integrate data from multiple sources within the Iowa and will enable the state to provide educators in area and local education agencies as well as the public with easy access to timely data necessary for effective data-driven decisionmaking. While Iowa has been collecting student-level data through its Project EASIER since 2004, these data have thus far been used only to assist in state and federal reporting and the transfer of individual student records among districts and post-secondary institutions. The data warehouse project will begin with a needs assessment phase to ascertain how each stakeholder group would like to view and use the data. Findings will be used to develop the system requirements for the design phase of the data warehouse, which will be accompanied by a portal for education data and reports to meet stakeholder needs.

Member Activities

• The Forum welcomed the Regional Education Laboratories Northeast and Islands as a new associate member. The organization is a collaboration of the Education Data Center, Inc., the American Institutes for Research, and WestEd, working under contract with the Institute of Education Sciences. It works to promote the use of scientific evidence to help PK-16 educators at all levels make sound decisions and policies that will improve student achievement and reduce performance gaps among student groups.
  
  
• The Forum welcomed the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) as a new associate member. CoSN, a non-profit organization that includes education and technology leaders and policymakers, as well as leaders from the private sector, has worked since 1992 to advance K-12 education through the use of information technology. The organization has advocated for policies that facilitate effective use of technology in the classroom. CoSN has been a leader in many efforts including the enactment and funding of E-rate and recent legislation dealing with copyright laws and distance learning.

Meetings

• Summer 2007 Meeting: July 23-25, 2007 in Washington, DC
  
  
• Winter 2008 Meeting: February 20-21, 2008 in San Francisco, CA
  
  
• Summer 2008 Meeting: July 28-29, 2008 in Bethesda, MD

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Publications of the National Forum on Education Statistics do not undergo the formal review required for products of the National Center for Education Statistics. The information and opinions published here are the product of the National Forum on Education Statistics and do not necessarily represent the policy or views of the U.S. Department of Education or the National Center for Education Statistics.