National Evaluation and Technical Assistance Center for the Education of Children and Youth Who Are Neglected, Delinquent, or At-RiskThese FAQs reflect inquiries from the field regarding Title I, Part D reporting tables in the Consolidated State Performance Report (CSPR); responses have been updated since the 2004-05 collection and reflect the current reporting requirements. In some cases, questions and responses were revised to provide context or clarification. The questions are organized by topic area:
- General Reporting
- Facility and Student Counts
- Demographics
- Academic and Vocational Outcomes
- Academic Performance
- Additional Technical Assistance
NDTAC welcomes any additional questions from the field. State education agency (SEA) personnel may contact their State Liaison or Federal Program Manager John McLaughlin (john.mclaughlin@ed.gov) with additional inquiries. Facility, State agency, and local education agency personnel are encouraged to contact their State Title I, Part D Coordinator with reporting questions. Also, regularly check the NDTAC website for updates and further information regarding data collection.
General Reporting Questions
Q: What is the reporting date for the Consolidated State Performance Report (CSPR)?
The Federal deadline for reporting Part II of the CSPR, which includes Title I, Part D 2006-07 school year data, is February 22, 2008. Deadlines for agencies, facilities and programs will vary from State to State. ED’s online system (EdFacts) will open on January 22, 2008.
Q: Is the 2006-07 school year through June or through July?
As indicated in the CSPR Instructions, the reporting year is defined as July 1, 2006 - June 30, 2007.
Q: Should I report information only on Local Education Agency divisions that receive N or D funds or on all divisions in the State?
For the Title I, Part D Section of the CSPR, report ONLY on divisions that receive Title I, Part D funds.
Q. If the information provided by schools is not complete or fully accurate, what does that mean for me (the grant coordinator) or for the schools?
If coordinators or administrators receive incomplete or inaccurate information for the CSPR, please provide an explanation in the comments sections of the report. The manner in which each State handles incomplete or inaccurate data from schools may differ. The U.S. Department of Education performs several data checks prior to certifying a State's data. Revisions and/or updates may be requested as a result of these checks.
Q: In the facility count, demographics, and outcomes tables, is there a minimum length of stay, or should I report every student?
For these tables, report every student who received Title I, Part D services during the reporting year, regardless of their length of stay. The Juvenile Corrections/Detention columns within the outcomes tables allow States to include detention students that were in the facility long enough to achieve any academic or vocational outcomes.
Q: We have a program in which some students are adjudicated and some are not. I assume they should be put in the "Other" column?
Count and report on programs and students based on the manner in which they were classified in the original funding request. For specific program-level questions about where to report students and facilities, contact Federal Program Manager John McLaughlin at john.mclaughlin@ed.gov.
Q: How should students who received Title I, Part D services at a community day school be reported in the CSPR?
Students who are adjudicated (including those in non-secure facilities and group homes) should be counted under juvenile corrections or adult corrections, as appropriate. Students served by community day programs who reside in facilities for youth who are neglected or in detention facilities should be counted under neglected or juvenile detention, respectively. Students served by community day programs who are neither adjudicated nor reside in detention facilities or facilities for youth who are neglected should be counted under other programs.
Q: If definitions in the Instructional Guide vary from those in found in the legislation/regulations, which version should be used?
Definitions that appear in the statue or regulations supersede any that appear in the NDTAC Instructional Guide (PDF); definitions in the NDTAC Instructional Guide are included for the purpose of clarifying terms in the CSPR reporting forms only. The Instructional Guide is a product of NDTAC, not of the U.S. Department of Education.
Q: Under Subpart 2 in the Consolidated State Performance Report, how should we report students who receive their education through a local school?
For this response, the term "local school" is defined as a regular, comprehensive public school that primarily provides education to students who are not necessarily determined to be neglected, delinquent, or at-risk of educational failure. For Subpart 2 purposes, if students attend a regular, public school, their annual reporting data should be through that school and disaggregated for the categories for which they are eligible (e.g. disadvantaged, special education, LEP, etc.) Their scores do not need to be captured for Title I, Part D, Subpart 2 in the CSPR. These students can be included in the student counts and demographic tables, as these tables reflect the number of students served with Part D funds, overall.
The purpose of CSPR data for Part D, Subpart 2 is to capture information on students in alternative education settings, where such data is not reported by the school or LEA as part of the State's accountability system. As long as the regular public school participates in accountability reporting, the Title I status of the public school itself is not an issue.
Facility Counts and Length of Stay
Q: Where can I find formal definitions for the Facility/Program Types?
Count facilities based on how they were classified for funding purposes. If that information is not available, use the facility definitions provided in the Appendices of the NDTAC Instructional Guide to Reporting (PDF). Include the facility in multiple categories if the facility itself is multipurpose (containing programs serving more than one population), and both facility/programs receive Title I, Part D funds. Further instruction on categorizing multipurpose facilities is provided in the NDTAC Instructional Guide.
Q: When figuring the length of stay, how do we count the students who were already here at the beginning of the school year, and those who were still here at the end of the school year?
Average length of stay refers to the length of stay within the reporting year. If a student's stay extended beyond the current reporting year (either before July 1, or after June 30, or both) count only the days which occurred during the reporting year. No length of stay should exceed 365 days. Refer to the NDTAC Instructional Guide (PDF) for more information and instructions on computing an average length of stay.
Q: Should we report a weighted average for the average length of stay for both Subpart 1 and Subpart 2? What is the purpose of the weighted average?
Yes, the weighted average calculation applies to both Subpart 1 and Subpart 2. Weighting provides a more accurate calculation for the average length of stay. NDTAC provides more detailed directions regarding how to calculate the weighted average length of stay in the NDTAC Instructional Guide (PDF).
Student Counts and Demographics
Q: How should we report on neglected youth who are in programs funded solely by Title I, Part A?
The CSPR Title I, Part D reporting forms are solely for students who benefit from Title I, Part D funds. Do not include students who are only served under Part A 1113(c)(3)(B). However, if Part A and Part D funds were combined and distributed to neglect programs, the report should include students who benefited from such funds.
Q: Is the student demographics section a duplicated or unduplicated count?
The student counts, demographics, academic/vocational outcomes, and academic performance tables are all unduplicated counts of students.
Q: The demographic tables do not include an “other” category for ethnicity. How do we report students who are multiracial?
States may indicate “other” students in the comments section of the demographics table. Work with your data coordinator to ensure the note is added.
Q: Is there any guidance on how to report a student’s age? Is this the student's age at the beginning of the reporting period, or end, or at entry?
NDTAC recommends that States report on the age of students upon entry. If a student’s stay covers more than one reporting year, then use the student’s age at the start of the reporting year. For SY 2006-07, that would be the student’s age on July 1, 2006.
Academic and Vocational Outcomes
Q: In the vocational outcomes section, would “external job training” include a career exploration course with an off-site field component?
It depends. The primary purpose of this question is to count students who have “signed up” to take a job training course once they leave the facility (in lieu of returning to high school or going to a postsecondary school). “External” refers to offerings provided by an outside entity, not necessarily to the physical location of the course.
If such a job training program: 1) occurred during a student’s enrollment and 2) was provided by an outside entity, students may be included in the table. The course may be more appropriately reported under “enrolled in elective job training/programs,” if it was offered as an elective by the facility.
Q: What is the difference between “earned high school course credits” and “enrolled in elective job training courses/programs”?
“Earning high school course credits” refers to transferable high school course credits earned in any subject while enrolled.
“Enrolled in elective job training courses/programs” refers to “elective” job training courses during the enrollment period—meaning the training courses were not required, but the student chose to take them, and they were offered by the facility. If students earned transferable high school credit through a job-training course, States may count them as both having earned high school course credits and as having enrolled in elective job training courses/programs.
Q: What does “enrolled in their local district school” mean?
“Enrolled in their local district school” refers to the number of students who returned to or enrolled in a local district school upon leaving the facility or program or within 30 days after enrollment ended. To further clarify, the reporting form item is asking for the number of students who returned to a district school (that is not part of the juvenile justice system) after their enrollment at the N or D facility ended.
Academic Performance
Q: How can States account for facilities giving students one type of test as a pretest and then using the GED as a posttest?
Do not report on pre-post test results if different tests were used at pre- and posttest. Report GED achievements in the academic outcomes table. Further information on the use of pre-posttests is available in NDTAC’s A Brief Guide for Selecting and Using Pre-Post Assessments.
Q: Some of our programs do not conduct pre-posttests—they just offer tutoring services. Should they provide some sort of other data about academics?
If the programs don't conduct pre-post testing at all because they do not relate to the types of services they offer, they should leave that table blank and indicate the reason in the comments section of the academic performance tables.
Q: Should children attending a local school be pre- and posttested?
It depends on what is meant by “local school.” If students receive instruction in a community day school program, they should be pre- and posttested and included in the CSPR reporting tables.
If students reside in a home/facility but attend a regular local school (non-alternative program) they must be captured by the academic reporting within that school system either at the school or LEA level. Therefore, inclusion in the academic performance section of the CSPR Part D tables is not required. If this is the case, provide an explanatory note in the comments section of the academic performance tables.
Q: Should States require a single assessment? Otherwise how do States report numbers from various types of assessments?
Recognizing the benefits of administering and collecting data from a uniform assessment, several States have implemented new assessment policies or are in the process of doing so. However, the Federal Government does not require States to mandate a single Statewide assessment.
NDTAC has several resources on the topic of assessments and is willing to assist States reviewing their testing policies and procedures. NDTAC resources on the topic are available on the Data Corner. Resources include articles and presentations about Florida’s experience with implementing a uniform assessment, a guide to selecting an assessment, and other related materials.
Additionally, NDTAC and Federal Program Manager John McLaughlin are available to work with States that are moving toward a uniform assessment model on reporting requirements and related issues.
Q: How should States report students who took a pretest before the July 1 start date? Would those students who took a posttest after the June 30 end date also apply?
States can count students who are pretested before the July 1 start date if they are posttested during the reporting period, so long as the pretest was administered no less than 6 months prior to the start of the current reporting year. Similarly, States can count students who were pretested during the enrollment period and then posttested after the June 30 end date, provided the facilities/programs can provide that information in time for reporting. However, if students who were posttested after the reporting period ended are counted in the current report, they should not be included in the following year’s report; States may not report the same results from the same student across multiple years. NDTAC recommends that States develop uniform reporting policies for all facilities/programs in order to address these types of issues.
Additional Technical Assistance
Do you have unanswered questions for NDTAC related to the Title I, Part D program? Send an email to the Center's staff at ndtac@air.org.