CALPADS Differentiated Assistance

Legislation

Senate Bill (SB) 114 (Chapter 48, Statutes of 2023) requires that districts and County Offices of Education (COEs) who do not meet the requirements for submitting data to the California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement System (CALPADS) be provided with technical assistance focused on the district’s or the COE’s data management processes. The release of the 2024 California School Dashboard (Dashboard) marked the first year of Differentiated Assistance (DA) based on CALPADS reporting.

CALPADS statute (California Education Code [EC] 60900(f) ) states that “local educational agencies shall submit data to the department according to the processes and timelines established by the department.” This includes submitting accurate and complete data by each certification deadline.

For CALPADS DA, EC Section 52071 states that “the county superintendent of schools shall provide technical assistance focused on the school district’s data management processes.”

Eligibility Criteria for CALPADS Differentiated Assistance

SB 114 (Chapter 48, Statutes of 2023) establishes new DA eligibility criteria in Education Code (EC) Section 52071 for School Districts and County Offices of Education (COEs) that fail to meet the requirements of EC 60900(f).

Pursuant to California Education Code (EC) Section 52071 and 52071.5, districts and COEs (excluding charter schools) that do not submit data to CALPADS according to the processes and timelines established by the California Department of Education (CDE) will be eligible for support. While charter schools are not specified in this requirement, districts and COEs are encouraged to support charter schools to certify accurate data in a timely manner. In working with key educational partners, the CDE has refined the eligibility criteria and has developed a phased-in approach to implementing CALPADS DA by moving from a focus on certification to a focus on certifying accurate data by final deadlines.

The 2023–24 academic year marked the first year of implementation for CALPADS DA. For this year, any district or COE that did not certify any End of Year (EOY) CALPADS data submission would have been eligible for CALPADS DA. Based on these criteria, no districts or COEs were eligible for DA in this academic year.

For the 2024–25 academic year, any LEA that fails to meet a CALPADS certification deadline for the Fall 1, Fall 2, or EOY 1, 2, 3, or 4 data submissions may be eligible for CALPADS DA.

For the 2025–26 academic year, in addition to the eligibility requirements for districts and COEs that did not certify any one or more of the CALPADS data submissions by the certification deadline, districts and COEs that are identified as having a data quality issue will be eligible for CALPADS DA. The CDE and California School Information Services (CSIS) are currently identifying the parameters regarding when a district or COE would become eligible for CALPADS DA based on data quality.

CALPADS Differentiated Assistance Eligibility Requirements: Timeline (Phased In)

2023–24 Academic Year

• Districts and COEs that failed to certify EOY data submissions.
• No districts or COEs were eligible for DA in this academic year.

2024–25 Academic Year

• Districts and COEs that fail to certify data by final certification deadlines will be eligible for DA.

2025–26 Academic Year

• Districts and COEs that fail to certify data by final certification deadlines will be eligible for DA.
• Districts and COEs identified with a data quality issue will be eligible for DA.

Data Submission Best Practices

To support best practices around data management, submission, verification, and certification, the CDE now publishes target dates by which LEAs should have zero fatal errors prior to the certification deadlines for each CALPADS submission. The CDE strongly encourages LEAs to meet these zero fatal error target dates to ensure that LEA staff and leadership have sufficient time to review their data, make any necessary corrections, and certify accurate data by the final certification deadlines.

Resources

Universal Supports Toolkit

Together, the CDE and CSIS have created a Universal Supports Toolkit to serve as a proactive universal support for all LEAs, regardless whether they are eligible for CALPADS DA. This toolkit can also serve as a remediation plan template for use when any district or COE becomes eligible for CALPADS DA. The toolkit includes:

• A data management needs assessment.
• A root cause analysis template to address reasons for any district or COE that becomes eligible for CALPADS DA.
• A data management practices evaluation tool.
• Ideas for integrating goals and objectives into local accountability practices which address the reason(s) a district or COE became eligible for CALPADS DA.

CALPADS Calendar

The CDE CALPADS Calendar web page includes CALPADS data submission windows, certification deadlines, and recommended milestone dates by which LEAs should have zero fatal errors in order to meet certification deadlines.

System of Support

The CDE System of Support web page includes a link to LEA Criteria for Differentiated Assistance. This web page is maintained by the CDE's Analysis, Measurement & Accountability Reporting Division (AMARD).

California’s System of Support exists to help LEAs and their schools meet the needs of each student they serve, with a focus on building local capacity to sustain improvement and to effectively address disparities in opportunities and outcomes. The CDE California's System of Support web page is maintained by the CDE's Student Achievement and Support Division (SASD).