§ 15

Establishment of the longitudinal data system and data warehouse. (a) The State Education Authorities shall jointly establish and maintain a longitudinal data system by entering into one or more agreements that link early learning, elementary, and secondary school student unit records with institution of higher learning student unit records. To the extent authorized by this Section and Section 20 of this Act: (1) the State Board is responsible for collecting and maintaining authoritative enrollment, completion, and student characteristic information on early learning, public school (kindergarten through grade 12), and non-public school (kindergarten through grade 12) students; (2) the Community College Board is responsible for collecting and maintaining authoritative enrollment, completion, and student characteristic information on community college students; and (3) the Board of Higher Education is responsible for collecting and maintaining authoritative enrollment, completion, and student characteristic information on students enrolled in institutions of higher learning, other than community colleges. (b) On or before June 30, 2013, subject to the availability of funding through appropriations made specifically for the purposes of this Act, the State Education Authorities shall improve and expand the longitudinal data system to enable the State Education Authorities to perform or cause to be performed all of the following activities and functions: (1) Reduce, to the maximum extent possible, the data collection burden on school districts and institutions of higher learning by using data submitted to the system for multiple reporting and analysis functions. (2) Provide authorized officials of early learning programs, schools, school districts, and institutions of higher learning with access to their own student-level data, summary reports, and data that can be integrated with additional data maintained outside of the system to inform education decision-making. (3) Link data to instructional management tools that support instruction and assist collaboration among teachers and postsecondary instructors. (4) Enhance and expand existing high school-to-postsecondary reporting systems to inform school and school district officials, education policymakers, and members of the public about public school students' performance in postsecondary education. (5) Provide data reporting, analysis, and planning tools that assist with financial oversight, human resource management, and other education support functions. (6) Improve student access to educational opportunities by linking data to student college and career planning portals, facilitating the submission of electronic transcripts and scholarship and financial aid applications, and enabling the transfer of student records to officials of a school or institution of higher learning where a student enrolls or seeks or intends to enroll. (7) Establish a public Internet web interface that provides non-confidential data reports and permits queries so that parents, the media, and other members of the public can more easily access information pertaining to statewide, district, and school performance. (8) Provide research and reports to the General Assembly that assist with evaluating the effectiveness of specific programs and that enable legislators to analyze educational performance within their legislative districts. (9) Allow the State Education Authorities to efficiently meet federal and State reporting requirements by drawing data for required reports from multiple State systems. (10) Establish a system to evaluate teacher and administrator preparation programs using student academic growth as one component of evaluation. (11) In accordance with a data sharing agreement entered into between the State Education Authorities and the Illinois Student Assistance Commission, establish procedures and systems to evaluate the relationship between need-based financial aid and student enrollment and success in institutions of higher learning. (12) In accordance with data sharing agreements entered into between the State Education Authorities and health and human service agencies, establish procedures and systems to evaluate the relationship between education and other student and family support systems. (13) In accordance with data sharing agreements entered into between the State Education Authorities and employment and workforce development agencies, establish procedures and systems to evaluate the relationship between education programs and outcomes and employment fields, employment locations, and employment outcomes. (c) On or before June 30, 2013, subject to the availability of funding through appropriations made specifically for the purposes of this Act, the State Board shall establish a data warehouse that integrates data from multiple student unit record systems and supports all of the uses and functions of the longitudinal data system set forth in this Act. The data warehouse must be developed in cooperation with the Community College Board and the Board of Higher Education and must have the ability to integrate longitudinal data from early learning through the postsecondary level in accordance with one or more data sharing agreements entered into among the State Education Authorities. The data warehouse, as integrated with the longitudinal data system, must include, but is not limited to, all of the following elements: (1) A unique statewide student identifier that connects student data across key databases across years. The unique statewide student identifier must not be derived from a student's social security number and must be provided to institutions of higher learning to assist with linkages between early learning through secondary and postsecondary data. (2) Student-level enrollment, demographic, and program participation information, including information on participation in dual credit programs. (3) The ability to match individual students' elementary and secondary test records from year to year to measure academic growth. (4) Information on untested students in the elementary and secondary levels, and the reasons they were not tested. (5) A teacher and administrator identifier system with the ability to match students to early learning, elementary, and secondary teachers and elementary and secondary administrators. Information able to be obtained only as a result of the linkage of teacher and student data through the longitudinal data system may not be used by a school district for decisions involving teacher pay or teacher benefits unless the district and the exclusive bargaining representative of the district's teachers, if any, have agreed to this use. Information able to be obtained only as a result of the linkage of teacher and student data through the longitudinal data system may not be used by a school district as part of an evaluation under Article 24A of the School Code unless, in good faith cooperation with the school district's teachers or, where applicable, the exclusive bargaining representative of the school district's teachers, the school district has developed an evaluation plan or substantive change to an evaluation plan that specifically describes the school district's rationale for using this information for evaluations, how this information will be used as part of the evaluation process, and how this information will relate to evaluation standards. However, nothing in this subdivision (5) or elsewhere in this Act limits or restricts (i) a district's use of any local or State data that has been obtained independently from the linkage of teacher and student data through the longitudinal data system or (ii) a charter school's use of any local or State data in connection with teacher pay, benefits, or evaluations. (6) Student-level transcript information, including information on courses completed and grades earned, from middle and high schools. The State Board shall establish a statewide course classification system based upon the federal School Codes for Exchange of Data or a similar course classification system. Each school district and charter school shall map its course descriptions to the statewide course classification system for the purpose of State reporting. School districts and charter schools are not required to change or modify the locally adopted course descriptions used for all other purposes. The State Board shall establish or contract for the establishment of a technical support and training system to assist schools and districts with the implementation of this item (6) and shall, to the extent possible, collect transcript data using a system that permits automated reporting from district student information systems. (7) Student-level college readiness test scores. (8) Student-level graduation and dropout data. (9) The ability to match early learning through secondary student unit records with institution of higher learning student unit record systems. (10) A State data audit system assessing data quality, validity, and reliability. (d) Using data provided to and maintained by the longitudinal data system, the State Education Authorities may, in addition to functions and activities specified elsewhere in this Section, perform and undertake the following: (1) research for or on behalf of early learning programs, schools, school districts, or institutions of higher learning, which may be performed by one or more State Education Authorities or through agreements with research organizations meeting all of the requirements of this Act and privacy protection laws; and (2) audits or evaluations of federal or State-supported education programs and activities to enforce federal or State legal requirements with respect to those programs. Each State Education Authority may assist another State Education Authority with audit, evaluation, or enforcement activities and may disclose education records with each other for those activities relating to any early learning through postsecondary program. The State Education Authorities may disclose student information to authorized officials of a student's former early learning program, school, or school district to assist with the evaluation of federal or State-supported education programs. (e) In establishing, operating, and expanding the longitudinal data system, the State Education Authorities shall convene stakeholders and create opportunities for input and advice in the areas of data ownership, data use, research priorities, data management, confidentiality, data access, and reporting from the system. Such stakeholders include, but are not limited to, public and non-public institutions of higher learning, school districts, charter schools, non-public elementary and secondary schools, early learning programs, teachers, professors, parents, principals and administrators, school research consortiums, education policy and advocacy organizations, news media, the Illinois Student Assistance Commission, the Illinois Education Research Council, the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, the Illinois Early Learning Council, and the Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability. (f) Representatives of the State Education Authorities shall report to and advise the Illinois P-20 Council on the implementation, operation, and expansion of the longitudinal data system. (g) Appropriations made to the State Education Authorities for the purposes of this Act shall be used exclusively for expenses for the development and operation of the longitudinal data system. Authorized expenses of the State Education Authorities may relate to contracts with outside vendors for the development and operation of the system, agreements with other governmental entities or research organizations for authorized uses and functions of the system, technical support and training for entities submitting data to the system, or regular or contractual employees necessary for the system's development or operation.

Legislative History

(Source: P.A. 100-1148, eff. 12-10-18.)