Narrative: d. 1. A.

At both the secondary and postsecondary levels, Minnesota has a long established tradition of having and using good data systems. The presence of such systems has enabled Minnesota to regularly collect data from eligible recipients, standardize definitions, and develop consistent approaches for core indicator performances at the secondary and postsecondary levels. Even while Minnesota will be collecting, negotiating and reporting performance levels separately for secondary and postsecondary local eligible recipients, there will need to be more coordination at the State level on data sharing, on aligning student definitions, and on a common dissemination strategy as Minnesota shifts to having secondary and postsecondary local eligible recipients submit a single plan under the new consortium structure.

Secondary: The Minnesota Department of Education has developed an on-line, web-based system for all districts to provide their local school district/building data. This system was developed under Perkins III and has been improved to include all the elements of the federal Core Indicators. Student data from various district submissions are accessed to gather information on ethnicity, gender, and special population categories as well as the enrollment data and testing data that are kept longitudinally for students from grade 8 though high school completion. The state compiles the data from multiple sources and provides those data through the EDEN collection system. It is Minnesota’s plan to use both state negotiated performance targets and prior year local performance targets in negotiating acceptable local levels of performance under Perkins IV. Local districts have been notified of the intent to use academic performance and graduation rates as established under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.

Postsecondary: With one primary source of all student information, called the Integrated Student Record System (ISRS), the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system (www.mnscu.edu) is able to access, summarize and report a wide variety of information covering demographic, performance and other student characteristics. Additionally, using information already available in ISRS, Minnesota decided early under the 1998 Carl D. perkins Act (Perkins III) to construct a unified database and collect all specific postsecondary CTE-related information for two-year college students within the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system in one location.

Known as the Perkins Brio database, the primary purpose so far has been to meet the Perkins III accountability requirements for compliance. However, with an increased focus on accountability under Perkins IV, the Perkins Brio database continues to be made more integral and dynamic and is positioned as an evidence-based accountability system. The ability to link certain information in ISRS to the Perkins Brio database has led to the alignment of the Perkins accountability measurement definitions and approaches with those developed under the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities System Accountability Measures, particularly those that relate to student success and licensure pass rates.

By using ISRS to create the Perkins Brio database used for CTE reporting helps to ensure that the postsecondary accountability data generated are valid and reliable. The automated system for extracting CTE data into the Perkins Brio database permits the reporting of accountability data using the same standards and definitions and that these standards and definitions are consistent across reporting periods.

ISRS contains the student’s official record and transcript information and significant resources and substantial efforts are undertaken to ensure the accuracy of the data. These efforts include a wide array of user groups (e.g., registrars, institutional researchers, and finance staff), as well as groups specifically dedicated to improving the accuracy and consistency of student data. In addition to a systemwide Student Data Integrity Group to develop and review standards related to the accuracy and completeness of data in ISRS, campuses have data integrity liaisons responsible for communicating these standards on their campus and are responsible for helping address data integrity issues at their institution.

The Minnesota State Colleges and Universities System Office of the Chancellor (OOC) has an official agreement with the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) to share the Wage Detail Data, which has in it the quarterly wage and employment information of all individuals working in covered employment in Minnesota. Since the data exchange is at the agency level, both the OOC and DEED have undertaken the requisite steps to ensure validity and reliability but also those required for upholding all statutory requirements regarding data privacy.

In July 2007, a postsecondary accountability task force was created. The task force consisted of Office of the Chancellor Perkins accountability staff and accountability specialists from system colleges. The primary goal of the task force has been to develop valid and reliable measurement definitions and approaches for establishing baselines, performance targets and quantifiable improvement levels for all Perkins IV accountability indicators. These included:

• Reviewing trend data from Perkins III to set the stage for establishing baseline measures for each Perkins-eligible college for each of the Perkins IV accountability indicators.
• Creating measurement approaches that are consistent with those already in existence with the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system.
• Seeking input from several Perkins coordinators, who under Perkins III served as peer technical advisors on the Perkins Brio data, to determine the extent to which colleges can feasibly meet different levels being considered as realistic for improvement.

The Minnesota State Colleges and Universities Office of the Chancellor Perkins Accountability task force has developed a strategy for CTE student definitions and measurement approaches that is consistent with the System Accountability Indicators, particularly the Student Success Indicator and the Licensure Pass Rate Indicator. During the deliberations of the task force, the following items came in the discussions and these were incorporated into the recommendations:

• Using a student cohort method to determine concentrator status.
• The timing of reporting the cohort data.
• Separating the retention from transfer to obtain a more precise measure for each.
• The pros and cons of using the concentrator as the denominator in the nontraditional completion measure.
• How to move beyond licensure pass rates in a limited number of fields as a measure of technical skill attainment.

The original recommendation of the task force, as included in the state plan, was to use the same entry cohort year for reporting all indicators and to report data in the year following the ending year of the cohort. The time lag in obtaining employment data, however, results in a significant delay in reporting information. As a result, data for indicator 4P1 (Student Placement) will continue to be reported in the year following the ending year of the cohort. Data for all other indicators will be reported at the end of the calendar year of the ending year of the cohort. For example, the FY2008 entry cohort will be tracked through July 1, 2010 (FY2008, FY2009 and FY2010) and all indicators submitted in December 2010, except 4P1, will be based on these data. The data for indicator 4P1 will be based on the FY2007 entering cohort in order to accommodate the lag in the availability of employment data.

The task force recommended the development of an entry-level cohort Perkins postsecondary database. The database enables the measurement of all postsecondary accountability indicators, other than technical skill attainment (described separately below). Part C provides the precise measurement definition and approach for each of the Perkins IV indicators.

Joint Secondary/Postsecondary Accountability Workgroup: Beginning in 2010 a joint secondary/postsecondary workgroup will provide additional input and recommendations on issues related to accountability under Perkins IV. The workgroup will consist of both secondary and postsecondary accountability staff from local consortia, MDE and MnSCU and will provide input and recommendations on issues related to accountability in general and on the specific topics of the negotiation of local performance levels and the provision of technical assistance and accountability training to be provided to local consortia.