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CALPADS Update Letter for Superintendents 10-5-09

Letter Head: Jack O'Connell, State Superintendent of Public Instruction, California Department of Education

October 5, 2009

Dear County and District Superintendents and Charter School Administrators:

CALIFORNIA LONGITUDINAL PUPIL ACHIEVEMENT DATA SYSTEM UPDATE

I am happy to share that as of October 5, 2009, local educational agencies (LEAs) will be able to start using the California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement Data System (CALPADS) to find and submit data about students enrolled in California public schools. This is a major milestone toward fully implementing California’s longitudinal education data system, and is the first major set of functionalities that will be rolled out this year.

As of this date, LEAs may use CALPADS to acquire and maintain Statewide Student Identifiers (SSIDs), submit fall data, and identify dropout and graduate counts from the previous year. This functionality is critical to our ability to calculate more accurate dropout and graduate counts and to track student enrollment longitudinally. It is particularly important for LEAs to update student enrollment data in CALPADS on an ongoing basis, as tracking students’ enrollments and exits will help identify students who have fallen through the cracks of our education system.

The California Department of Education (CDE) is committed to ensuring that the CALPADS system is of the highest quality. However, we are aware there are a number of minor and cosmetic issues within this new system that need attention. We are actively working to address these items. As functionality is added to CALPADS throughout this year, the system will become more and more valuable. CALPADS will also become more effective as LEAs populate the system with more data, and as they begin to use and update the system on an ongoing basis. Please see the enclosure for an overview of the CALPADS roll-out schedule.

I am pleased that the CDE has already approved LEA CALPADS Administrators for more than 80 percent of the state’s LEAs and independently reporting charter schools. These LEAs have access to CALPADS. If your LEA has not yet designated an LEA CALPADS Administrator, you should do so immediately. Your LEA must have an approved LEA CALPADS Administrator to access CALPADS to conduct SSID activities and submit fall enrollment counts. Remember that many categorical funding formulas are based on fall enrollment counts, and without that data the CDE will not be able to allocate such funding to your LEA. To receive a copy of the LEA CALPADS Administrator application, please send an e-mail to the CALPADS Operations Office at calpadsaccess@cde.ca.gov.

I also ask that you support your staff as they learn to use the new system. One of the first important tasks that they will undertake is to review and reconcile the data that were converted from the California School Information Services (CSIS) system into CALPADS with the data in your local student information system (SIS). This is an important activity that can be complex. I encourage your LEA to work with your Student Information System vendor and the CALPADS Project Team, which includes CSIS staff.

It is also critical that your staff participate in the CALPADS training modules. The majority of training is being offered via WebEx, which will enable your staff to receive CALPADS training at their desks. Your staff should register for and participate in each of the four distinct training classes that are offered. You can find information about the classes, including registration, on the CSIS CALPADS Training Schedule and Registration Web page at http://www.csis.k12.ca.us/e-learning/calpads-registration/ (Outside Source).

I will continue to keep you updated as new CALPADS functionality is rolled out. The amount of functionality that will be introduced this year is extremely ambitious. In other states such functionality has typically been implemented over the course of several years. Because a comprehensive longitudinal education data system is key to our continued efforts to raise student achievement and close our current achievement gap, California cannot afford to delay. As with any transition, we fully expect there to be some challenges and bumps along the road throughout this first year. I therefore ask for your patience, persistence, and commitment to this system. With our working together, I am confident that when fully implemented, CALPADS will be a valuable tool that will benefit our work to improve student achievement.

If you have any questions regarding the CALPADS system or implementation process, please contact Keric Ashley, Director, Data Management Division, by phone at

916-324-1214 or by e-mail at calpads@cde.ca.gov.

Sincerely,

 

JACK O’CONNELL

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Enclosure

Enclosure

Overview of Data in California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement Data

Once data are fully populated by local educational agencies (LEAs) and test vendors, LEAs will have access to longitudinal data on students and staff in their jurisdiction. These data will be available as reports and in files that can be downloaded to local systems. LEAs also will have immediate access to information on students newly transferring to their districts, providing them the information they need to serve students appropriately. When fully populated, California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement Data (CALPADS) data available to LEAs will include:

Student Data

  • Demographic data (i.e. gender, grade, race/ethnicity)
  • Program participation or eligibility data (i.e. Title I, special education or Gifted and Talented Education [GATE])
  • Enrollment status and grade level
  • Course enrollment and completion data
  • Discipline data (i.e. suspensions, expulsions, and truancies)

Staff Data

  • Demographic data (i.e. gender, race/ethnicity)
  • Assignment data (i.e. courses taught: Algebra, Music, Grade 3, etc.)

Assessment Data

  • California English Language Development Test (CELDT)
  • California High School Exit Examination (CAHSEE)
  • Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) Program

Overview of California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement Data Rollout Schedule

California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement Data (CALPADS) functionality for reporting of the above data will be rolled out during 2009–10, consistent with existing reporting cycles. Once CALPADS activates the functionality to accept specified data, LEAs will be able to update the data at any time. The general schedule for the rollout of CALPADS functionality is outlined below.

August 24, 2009-Training Begins (IBM and California School Information Services [CSIS] staff conduct trainings)

August 31, 2009-LEA Administration Functionality is Activated (LEAs assign roles to their staff of who will access CALPADS)

October 5, 2009-Fall 1 Submission Begins

  • Statewide Student Identifier (SSID) data: gender, birth date, race/ethnicity, birth city/country, address
  • Current enrollment, graduates, completers, and dropouts
  • Subgroup data (Special Education, Migrant, National School Lunch Program [NSLP], GATE, English learner [EL])
  • Title III Immigrant program eligibility (Student National Origin Report [SNOR])

November 30, 2009-Fall 2 Submission begins

  • Course enrollment by student and SSIDs
  • Course section data (course codes, EL, Advanced Placement [AP], Highly Qualified Teachers [HQT], Independent Study, Career Technical Education [CTE], etc.)
  • EL services
  • Certificated Staff demographic data by Statewide Educator Identifiers (SEIDs)
  • Certificated Staff assignments

November to December 2009

  • Direct Certification for NSLP eligibility is available through CALPADS
  • Pre-ID files available from CALPADS

January to March 2010

  • Prior years’ assessment data is converted to CALPADS

March to Spring Submission Begins

  • EL counts by SSID, including students redesignated as fluent English proficient     (R-FEP)
  • Title III Immigrant program eligibility (SNOR)

June 2009 to End-of-Year (EOY) Submission Begins

  • EOY 1: Course completion, grades, and credits (includes CTE information)
  • EOY 2: Program participation (Title I, California School Age Families Education  [Cal-SAFE], Partnership Academy)
  • EOY 3: Title IV Discipline data (suspensions, expulsions, and truancies)
  • EOY 4: CAHSEE Waivers

(Note: In 2009–10 EOY 1, 2, and 3 submissions are optional through CALPADS.)

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