Information Services

2010-2011 Data Collection Schedule

To:	Superintendents and Charter School Leaders
From:	Mitchell D. Chester, Ed.D., Commissioner
Date:	September 21, 2010

The data collection schedule for the 2010-2011 school year contains the state-wide release of a new collection and the pilot implementation of a new automated collection method. The Department's rollout of the Student Information Management System (SIMS) Expansion Project is scheduled for October 2010. This project expands the current SIMS collection to include a Student Course Schedule (SCS) file, which in conjunction with EPIMS, will link our students to their teachers. This will allow the Department, districts and educators to answer many critical questions including the relationship of courses taken, class size and teacher course load on student performance, what preparation and instructional models are most effective, and more. We are better prepared for this new collection because of the dedication and hard work of the data coordinators in the SIMS Expansion pilot districts. The March and June 2010 pilot collection was very successful with 50 districts (73%) completing the full collection cycle. Thanks to the pilot districts we were able to improve and implement our October statewide collection on time. Based on district feedback, it was decided that the frequency of these data collections be reduced from three times to twice: For the current school year, the March 1st EPIMS and SCS collections have been eliminated. The school year 2010-2011 collection schedule for SIMS, EPIMS, and SCS is as follows:

	October 1, 2010	March 1, 2011	EOY 2011
SIMS
open	October 4, 2010	March 1, 2011	June 1, 2011
closes	October 29, 2010	March 31, 2011	July 8, 2011
extensions N	ovember 5, 2010	April 8, 2011	July 15, 2011
edits/updates	November 5-12, 2010	April 8-22, 2011	July 15-29, 2011
EPIMS
opens	October 4, 2010	-	June 1, 2011
closes	December 16, 2010	-	August 12, 2011
SCS
opens	October 4, 2010	-	June 1, 2011
closes	December 16, 2010	-	August 12, 2011

During the month of September the data collection office will be conducting information sessions in Hudson, Bourne, Peabody, Duxbury, Pittsfield, Sturbridge, and at the ESE. Staff can go to: http://www.doe.mass.edu/conference/?ConferenceID=964 to register for a session and invitations will be emailed to the district data coordinators. During this school year the method of collecting information will also begin to change. The implementation of the SIF (Schools Interoperability Framework) Initiative is moving full speed ahead, easing district data collection burden while enabling educators at every level near real time access to their data. Competitive "Longitudinal Data Systems" (LDS) grants were awarded to 19 districts in FY2010. They have successfully installed the SIF infrastructure and are currently in test mode. Stage 1 of the SIF project (Education Data Warehouse - Student Claiming) will be launched in September and SASID assignment this winter. We are in the process of reviewing the FY2011 grant proposals and the awards will be announced at the end of the month. ESE and district Race to the Top funding combined with these LDS funds will provide resources for all MOU districts to transition to SIF. Please contact the Data Collection Office at 781-338-3282 if you have questions about these initiatives. Thank you.

Last Updated: September 21, 2010