Dear Charter School Administrators and Charter School Authorizers:

CALPADS and CBEDS Charter School
Data Reporting Policy and Status Change Window

Each year, charter schools are given the opportunity to specify the method by which they will report data through the California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement Data System (CALPADS) and the California Basic Educational Data System (CBEDS), which are data systems that collect individual student and teacher level data, as well as aggregate school, student, and staff data. This letter provides information about the CALPADS and CBEDS data reporting policy, available data reporting options, the period for changing reporting statuses, and resources for the CALPADS and CBEDS data collections.

CALPADS and CBEDS Data Reporting Policy

The California Department of Education (CDE) provides charter schools with the opportunity to specify the method by which they will report CALPADS and CBEDS data. The reporting method will be the same for both CALPADS and CBEDS data collections and cannot be changed outside of the annual reporting status change window, which is July 1 through August 31.

The data reporting method does not impact, nor have any association with, the charter school funding model. In determining their data reporting method, charter schools and their authorizing agencies are strongly encouraged to have open dialogue about local practices, procedures, and data system logistics to ensure that CALPADS and CBEDS reporting requirements can be met by published deadlines.

Please refer to the CDE CALPADS/CBEDS Charter School Data Reporting Policy web page at https://www.cde.ca.gov/ds/sp/cl/charterschools.asp for additional data reporting policy information including, data reporting responsibilities for charter schools and authorizing agencies, information and options for changing or designating reporting methods, consequences for failing to meet certification deadlines, and available assistance and resources.

Data Reporting Options

There are two data reporting options available to charter schools. Options are as follows:

1. The charter school reports CALPADS and CBEDS data directly to the CDE, independent of its authorizing agency. Charter schools electing this option are referred to as independently reporting charters (IRCs).
   
   Note: Charter schools that are their own local educational agency (LEA) for special education purposes must report their data independently.
   

2. The charter school’s authorizing agency reports CALPADS and CBEDS to the CDE on behalf of the charter school.
   
   Note: Charter schools that are authorized by the State Board of Education have their own district codes and are considered their own LEA; therefore, they should not apply to report independently. Rather they will report data on their own behalf directly to CDE.
   

Annual Period for Changing/Designating Reporting Status

For existing charter schools, charter school administrators may change their reporting status during the annual reporting status change window, which occurs July 1 through August 31. Charter schools electing to change their reporting status for the 2025–26 school year must submit the Charter Reporting Status Change Form to the CALPADS/CBEDS/CDS Office at calpads@cde.ca.gov by August 31, 2025. Change requests from existing charter schools submitted after August 31 will not be accepted and these charter schools must continue to report data as they had in the previous year. Charter schools may re-submit the change request form during the next annual window to request a reporting status change.

For new charter schools, charter school administrators are asked to designate their reporting status by submitting the Charter Reporting Status Change Form to the CALPADS Office once they obtain a county-district-school (CDS) code and prior to the school’s start date. New charter schools must also designate their reporting status by August 31, when possible. If a new charter school is not assigned a CDS code until after August 31, they must submit the reporting status form as soon as possible after receiving a CDS code. There is no default reporting status; therefore, the status for a new charter school must be designated as soon as possible, but prior to the start of the CALPADS and CBEDS data collections, which is Census Day, the first Wednesday in October.

Charter Reporting Status Change Form and Reporting Status

The Charter Reporting Status Change Form, which is the form used by charter schools to change or designate their data reporting method, is available on the CDE CALPADS/CBEDS Charter School Data Reporting Policy web page at https://www.cde.ca.gov/ds/sp/cl/charterschools.asp. Completed forms should be sent to calpads@cde.ca.gov.

Reporting Requirements, Resources, and Contact Information

We encourage you to review the CALPADS and CBEDS data collection information when making decisions about how to report charter school data. It is critical that charter schools and authorizing agencies thoroughly discuss the two reporting options, come to an agreement on what option to use, and actively support the chosen option. Charter schools and their authorizing agencies may wish to jointly reconfirm or change the chosen option each year.

For more information about the CALPADS data collection, including reporting requirements, system documentation, listserv subscriptions, and training opportunities please visit the CDE CALPADS web page at https://www.cde.ca.gov/calpads. Questions regarding CALPADS, shall be directed to the CALPADS Service Desk by phone at 916‑325‑9210 or by email at calpads-support@cde.ca.gov.

For information about the CBEDS data collection, including forms, instructions, file specifications, and training, please visit the CDE CBEDS web page at https://www.cde.ca.gov/ds/dc/cb/. Questions regarding CBEDS shall be directed to CBEDS/CDS Support Office by email at cbeds@cde.ca.gov.

We appreciate all your hard work in maintaining and reporting high-quality student, school, and teacher data to the CDE. Should you have questions about this letter, please contact the CALPADS Office by email at calpads@cde.ca.gov.

Sincerely,

Liberty Van Natten, Director
Education Data Management Division

cc: District and County Superintendents