The Ideal State Postsecondary Data System 15 Essential Characteristics and Required Functionality

1. The Ideal State Postsecondary Data System15 Essential Characteristics and Required Functionality Hans P. L’Orange State Higher Education Executive Officers Camille Brown South Carolina Commission on Higher Education John Porter State University of New York April 18, 2008

2. Framing thoughts… Moving from a sorting and selecting system of higher education to…… ….An environment designed to increase overall capacity.

3. Data are needed to document the achievements of students, schools, and colleges: • What does the overall “flow” of students through the pipeline look like? • What experiences affect student success? • What facilitates successful student transitions?

4. State Student Unit Record Systems • An individual electronic record for each student enrolled for each term • Collect a range of demographic and performance data at regular intervals • Can be merged with other files to investigate student behavior and success • Certain characteristics and functionality are essential in the ideal system • Interest is high and growing

5. DQC 10 Essential Elements • Unique statewide student identifier • Student-level enrollment, demographic and program participation information • Ability to match individual students’ test records from year to year to measure growth • Information on untested students • Teacher identifier system with ability to match teachers to students • Student-level transcript information, including information on courses completed and grades earned • Student-level college readiness test scores • Student-level graduation and dropout data • Ability to match student records between the Pre-K-12 and post-secondary systems • State data audit system assessing data quality, validity, and reliability

6. Characteristics of an Ideal State Postsecondary Data System Student Characteristics • A unique privacy protected id • Common Enrollment, Completion, and Demographic data • Financial Aid data • Transfer data • Persistence and Graduation data

7. Characteristics of an Ideal State Postsecondary Data System Course Characteristics • Remediation data & Development Education participation and success • Course / Transcript level data • Assessed Achievement

8. Characteristics of an Ideal State Postsecondary Data System Operational Characteristics • Privacy protection • Link to K-12 • Link to Labor and Workforce Development • Includes Independent and For-Profits • Single system for all Public Institutions

9. Characteristics of an Ideal State Postsecondary Data System Data Governance Characteristics • Data Audits: quality, validity, and reliability • Alignment with State Goals and Demonstrating Usability and Sustainability

10. Recommendations • Very challenging but attainable • If you ask for average, that’s what you get • Sets goals without requiring specific steps • Requires state-specific decisions • Common characteristics lead to a level of commonality

11. Panel Response • Reactions to the proposal • Is it worth trying? • Can it be done? • What should be different? • How close is your state to the ideal? • What would it take to make it happen?

12. A unique privacy protected id • Enrollment, Completion, and Demographics • Financial Aid data • Transfer data • Persistence and Graduation data • Remediation data & Development Education • Course / Transcript level data • Assessed Achievement • Privacy protection • Link to K-12 • Link to Labor and Workforce Development • Includes Independent and For-Profits • Single system for all Public Institutions • Data Audits: quality, validity, and reliability • Alignment with State Goals, Usability and Sustainability

13. Questions? Hans P. L’Orange hans@sheeo.org Thank You!