FROM DATA COLLECTION TO GRADUATION: SUPPORTING STUDENT SUCCESS Christina Endres National Center for Homeless Education

GET TO KNOW NCHE  Operates U.S. Department of Education’s technical assistance and information center.  Comprehensive website:  Helpline: Call or  Listserv: visit for subscription instructionswww.serve.org/nche/listserv.php  Free resources: Visit

GET TO KNOW THE ROOM  Who’s in the room?  How comfortable are you with data?

WHAT DATA CAN TELL US  Where are we now?  Where do we want to go?  How will we get there?  How will we know we are there?  How can we keep it going?  Asking the Right Questions: Tools for Collaboration & School Change Edie L. Holcomb

DO YOU THINK ABOUT A LIST OF ACTIVITIES…  Every activity is equally important  No priorities; all must be done  Short term focus  Success measured by completion, not by achieved level of change  Often independent from district priorities or goals

…OR A PROGRAMMATIC APPROACH?  Limited set of goals  Focused on needs or areas for growth  Drive activities  Results in long-term planning  Eliminates the unnecessary; prioritizes time & energy  Success measured by level of change achieved

USE DATA TO DREAM BIG  Four simple ways to approach this task 1. Ask yourself what you want to know 2. Look at what you already know about students 3. Identify what bragging rights you want 4. Include program, grant, or district requirements  Just brainstorm- you can sort bad ideas out later

USE DATA TO MAKE THE DREAM REAL  Which things on your list are  Specific?  Measurable?  Attainable?  Reasonable?  Timely?  Once you cross the rest off your list, you’ll have the foundation for your goals

ONE LAST LOOK AT GOALS  I will train all teachers on homelessness.  100% of special education teachers will receive training on homelessness.  The district will lower suspensions related to IEP identified needs of students by 5%.

WHAT DATA TO USE  McKinney-Vento data  Districts submit to SEAs  SEAs submit to US ED via EDFacts or CSPR  NCHE reviews data, creates national summary  ESEA: collect, analyze, & use student achievement data to improve school outcomes  Includes requirement for state report cards

AVAILABLE EDFACTS & CSPR DATA  Suspensions & expulsions, with reasons for expulsions  Attendance & poverty rates  Participation in gifted and talented programs  Number of students with Individualized Education Plans & why  Number who graduated & type of diplomas earned  Number who dropped out & reasons why  Participation & performance in advanced placement classes  Participation in school meal programs  Number served by Title I, Part A

WHAT DATA TO USE  Hunger, poverty, unemployment, foreclosures  Bureau of Labor Statistics:  Kids Count: datacenter.kidscount.orgdatacenter.kidscount.org  Conference of Mayors: usmayors.org/publicationsusmayors.org/publications  Grants & programs  Which do you have  What outcomes do they report

REVIEWING DATA  Accurate, Complete, Timely (A.C.T.)  Avoid a skewed perspective  Look at multiple data sources  Look at comparison data  Talk to multiple stakeholders  Look for anomalies  Establish checks & balances  Who reviews data, when, & how

SKEWED OR ACCURATE DATA In reviewing your district’s data for homeless students, you notice that homeless students are doing significantly better on math assessments than reading. Additionally, in years that your homeless students improve in math, the state average on the same math assessments drops.  Is the data skewed or accurate?  Who might you need to talk to?

UNEXPECTED OUTCOMES Your district provides after school tutoring to homeless students. However, in reviewing the data on grades and academic performance, you notice they really aren’t improving. You’re baffled because you know you hired solid teachers as tutors.  What could be the issue?  What do you need to do next?

JUSTIFY ACTIVITIES Your district wants to provide school supplies because a large number of students do not have what they need when the school year starts. As you begin to send a message to the treasurer about the budget for this expense, you remember: DOE wants academic outcome data to support expenditures.  What data can you use?

WORK WITH OTHERS Your city gets HOME funds. The city has decided to take another look at how they are spending the funds. They can’t decide if they should build housing or use existing housing. They’re also deciding where the housing should be located and who should benefit from it. In the past, they focused the funds on single men.  What would you tell the city & how would you support your argument?

WORK WITH OTHERS Your district’s Title I director told you the homeless set-aside will be budgeted for tutoring, but only about 60% of the amount set aside last year will be budgeted for this year. You think the students need counseling services instead of tutoring & that the amount is too low.  How will you make your case?

WORK WITH OTHERS  What stands out to you?  What can you identify as a possible cause?  Who do you need to talk to & why? All StudentsHCY StudentsYour DistrictYour StateYour DistrictYour State With Disabilities (IDEA) 15%13%21%11%

PRESENTATION MATTERS Your DistrictYour State SubgroupHCY Percent of HCY HCY Percent of HCY With Disabilities (IDEA) 55527%200,95016% All StudentsHCY StudentsYour DistrictYour StateYour DistrictYour State With Disabilities (IDEA) 15%13%21%11%

LINKING DATA AND ACTIVITIES  Which activities will have the greatest impact?  Which activities are unrelated to your goals?  Which activities can be reasonably completed?  If an activity requires participation of anyone in addition to the liaison, is it realistic?  Is the activity concrete in nature?

USE DATA TO RE-EVALUATE  Change your goals if  You discover they are unreasonable  You achieve them  New, more pressing needs emerge  Change your activities if  Outcomes are undesirable  New, more effective practices become available

RESOURCES Needs Assessment Guide  center.serve.org/nche/pr/na_eval.php center.serve.org/nche/pr/na_eval.php Standards & Indicators for Quality Programs  center.serve.org/nche/downloads/st_and_ind_2006_rev.doc center.serve.org/nche/downloads/st_and_ind_2006_rev.doc Homeless Liaison Toolkit (Chapter 13)  center.serve.org/nche/pr/liaison_toolkit.php center.serve.org/nche/pr/liaison_toolkit.php Data Collection Guide  center.serve.org/nche/pr/fed_data_coll_guide.php center.serve.org/nche/pr/fed_data_coll_guide.php

CONTACT INFO Christina Endres Program Specialist or (336) National Center for Homeless Education or (800)