The Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE), with continued strong support from the Governor and in partnership with other agencies, Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL), Department of Labor and Industry, Pennsylvania Commission for Community Colleges, Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE), is pleased to submit this proposal to the U.S. Department of Education (ED), Institute of Education Science’s State Longitudinal Data System (SLDS) grant competition (#84.384). In this proposal, we seek funds to accelerate our plans to expand and improve the Pennsylvania Information Management System (PIMS), which is Pennsylvania’s SLDS. Specifically, PDE has identified the following ten tasks for which we seek funding through this grant opportunity:
Task 1: Connect to workforce data
Task 2: Connect to Adult Basic Literacy Education (ABLE) data
Task 3: Expand postsecondary database
Task 4: Expand existing student and teacher data in PIMS
Task 5: Link kindergarten assessment outcomes and demographic data to PIMS
Task 6: Link PA Federal Head Start program data into Early Learning Network (ELN)
Task 7: Implement eTranscripts and Electronic Student Record Exchange
Task 8: Conduct feasibility connectivity studies across all agencies and states
Task 9: Establish rigorous data use policy and data audit plans, procedures and training
Task 10: Ensure and enhance access to and use of data
Our vision for PIMS is to become a critical tool to improve education and workforce outcomes for all of the Commonwealth’s children, adolescents, and adults. To this end, we have designed PIMS to be the consolidated hub of a comprehensive statewide longitudinal data system— comprising individual student, faculty and other relevant data from birth to high school, college, and career—that interfaces with an integrated statewide online portal with role-based accessibility and reporting applications. Coupled with tools to facilitate accuracy, accessibility, and analysis in the classroom and beyond, PDE will provide state policymakers, local education officials, teachers, parents, and students timely, understandable and useable data through a host of applications and reports customized for different audiences and information needs. With features such as Pre-Kindergarten through workforce data integration, implementation of a rigorous data audit policy and development of reports and publications meeting the diverse needs of stakeholders, PIMS will become a critical resource that guides policy and practice to improve educational opportunities and achievement for all students at every level of education in Pennsylvania. In short, this grant will provide Pennsylvania the opportunity to accelerate our pace significantly, meeting the RFA specifications and designing tools and applications within three years, moving us swiftly toward our vision.
