April 2010

Minnesota’s P-20 Statewide Longitudinal

Education Data System (SLEDS)

Minnesota Office of Higher Education

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What is SLEDS?

• The Statewide Longitudinal Education Data System (SLEDS) will:Compile student education data from pre-kindergarten

through completion of postsecondary education and into workforce.

Match data from: oMinnesota Department of Education, oMinnesota Office of Higher Education, and oMinnesota Department of Employment and Economic

Development.

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Why create SLEDS?

• Creating a statewide student longitudinal data system has been a goal for Minnesota state legislators, state agencies and the governor for several years.

• National organizations have supported state efforts to create these data systems.

• The federal government required states to create these data systems to receive fiscal stabilization funds in 2009.

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What are federal requirements?

Federal requirements specify state systems must be able to:

(i) identify factors that correlate to students' ability to successfully engage in and complete postsecondary-level general education coursework without the need for prior developmental coursework;

(ii) identify factors to increase the percentage of low-income and minority students who are academically prepared to enter and successfully complete postsecondary-level general education coursework; and

(iii) use the data in the system to otherwise inform education policy and practice in order to better align State academic content standards, and curricula, with the demands of postsecondary education, the 21st century workforce, and the Armed Forces.

The America Competes Act

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What is the vision of SLEDS?

• To link currently available data K-12 enrollment and high school graduation dataPostsecondary enrollment and completion dataEmployment / workforce data

• To conduct research Identify predictors of long-term student successDesign targeted improvement strategies in programs Improve data driven decision makingMeet federal funding requirements

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What types of student data will be included?

• Attendance (school or college name)• Demographic (age, gender, race)• Enrollment (grade level, year of graduation)• Academic performance and testing (test scores, #

of credits enrolled)• Special Services (free and reduced price lunch

eligible, gifted/talented, English language learner)

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What research can be done using SLEDS?

• System Performance AnalysisWho participates in higher education upon high

school graduation? Who does not participate? Why?

• Educational Attainment Gap AnalysisWhat are the retention, graduation and completion

rates by racial/ethnic groups? Geographic areas?• Program and Intervention Analysis

What courses, curriculum and programs lead to college participation and completion?

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What are the legal issues?

• Minnesota Data Practices Act Identifies categories of individual data that can be shared

• Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)Restricts an education institution’s ability to disclose dataRestricts MDE and OHE’s ability to redisclose student data

• MDE and OHE Data Sharing AgreementDefines student data to be provided by each agencySpecifies linkage and usage of student data as required by FERPA

• OHE Enrollment Data Sharing Agreement with higher education institutionsDefines data to be provided by higher education institutionsSpecifies OHE’s usage of the data as required by FERPA

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Who will govern SLEDS?

SLEDS Governance Committee

SLEDS Research

Committee

SLEDS IT Staff

SLEDS Data Advisory

Committee

SLEDS System

Coordinators

SLEDS State Data

Center

Minnesota Office of Higher

Education

Minnesota Department of Education

P-20 Education

Partnership

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What are SLEDS committee responsibilities?

• Governance CommitteeEvaluate research requestsAppoint research and data advisory committee members

• Research CommitteeDevelop and evaluate proposed researchProvide technical expertise

• Data Advisory CommitteeReview technical specifications of data requestsProvide technical expertise on data structure, linkages,

user interfaces

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What are the organizational responsibilities?

• State Agencies – MDE, OHE, DEED, OETMaintain student confidentiality during data linkageMaintain data integrity of new data system Identify and conduct research for state level policy

making using SLEDS data

• Postsecondary Institutions Provide postsecondary education data to OHEServe as objective reviewers of state level research Identify and conduct research using SLEDS data

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What are the next steps?

• Share the vision of a longitudinal data system• Appointment of committee members by

Minnesota’s P-20 Education Partnership• Establish data sharing protocols • Develop technical specifications and construct

data system• Formalize research agenda

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Need more information?

Minnesota Office of Higher Educationhttp://www.ohe.state.mn.us

Agency initiatives: Minnesota P-20 Statewide Longitudinal Educational Data System