CALPADS Update FLASH #111

To:            Local Educational Agency Representatives

From:       California Department of Education – CALPADS Team

Date:        December 7, 2015

Subject:  CALPADS Update FLASH #111

Reminder for Updating Browsers for California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP) Administration

LEAs are reminded that Version 7.2 of the secure browser used for most desktops, laptops, and netbooks during the 2014–15 CAASPP administration is set to expire on December 31, 2015. Version 7.2 will not be operable after that date; therefore, it is important that LEAs begin their upgrade to version 8.0 to ensure their readiness for the 2015–16 administration of the Smarter Balanced Online Summative Assessments.

Fall 2 Submission Updates

The Fall 2 snapshot reports are now being generated. Fall 2 snapshots will be updated in near-real time when relevant data have changed (i.e., have been posted), meaning that updated snapshots will generally be available the same day that changes are posted. The initial deadline for Fall 2 is March 4, 2016, and the final amendment window closes on April 8, 2016. The training schedule has been posted. Please register for

Fall 2 training here: http://csis.fcmat.org/Pages/Trainings.aspx . Additional training sessions will be posted as needed.

Reminder: Course Enrollment Required for All School Types

Beginning in 2015–16, LEAs and schools previously exempt from providing course enrollment records will be required to provide student course enrollment records for Fall 2. The certification validation CERT077, No Student Course Section Data for a Primarily Enrolled Student, will no longer exempt charter schools and alternative education schools. Additionally, CERT081, No Course Section Data for a Secondarily or Short Term Enrolled Student, will remain a warning but will now apply to education option schools and charter schools; therefore, these school types may receive new CERT081 warnings.

Fall 1 Submission

The certification deadline for Fall 1 is December 18, 2015. All LEAs that certify by the deadline will have the opportunity to preview cohort graduation and dropout counts as well as Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) Unduplicated Pupil Counts that are the basis for the LCFF supplemental and concentration grant calculations. LEAs are strongly encouraged to certify by the December 18 deadline.

Mini Tutorial for Same-day Snapshot Report Refreshes

The overnight snapshot process in CALPADS has been changed to update snapshots when any relevant data have been posted. The Snapshot Redesign mini tutorial clip is now available to assist LEAs with understanding the changes. This tutorial may be accessed from this link: http://csis.fcmat.org/Pages/Mini-Tutorial-Clips.aspx .

Report 1.17, LCFF Age Eligibility Clarification

Recently enacted legislation allows LEAs to enroll students who turn 5 after

December 2 in a Transitional Kindergarten (TK) program at the start of the school year, but disallows these students from being included in the Unduplicated Pupil Percentage used to determine funding under the LCFF Supplemental and Concentration grant. Also note that an LEA may not claim average daily attendance (ADA) for these students until the student turns 5.

The 1.17 FRPM/English Learner/Foster Youth report in CALPADS has an Age Eligibility filter to assist LEAs in forecasting LCFF funding. The Age Eligibility filter defaults to “LCFF.” The three filter options are:

• LCFF – includes grades KN–12, UE, US and excludes students with grade level KN and whose 5th birthday (Student Birth Date) is greater than December 2nd of the selected Academic Year based on the “As of Date” of the report
• All (KN–12, UE, US) – includes grades KN–12, UE, US based on the As of Date of the report
• Title 1 (5–17 year olds only) – includes ages 5–17 in whole years based on Student Birth Date and the “As of Date” of the report

Homeless Data in CALPADS

Since the 2014–15 academic year, information identifying homeless students with a qualifying enrollment at a school has been collected in CALPADS through the Student Program File (SPRG). For homeless students, LEAs submit program code 191 – Homeless Program, program start and end dates, and the Homeless Dwelling Type (100 Temporarily Shelters, 110 Hotels/Motels, 120 Temporarily Doubled-Up, and 130 Temporarily Unsheltered).

Required Documentation for Identifying Homeless Youth

LEAs may submit homeless records for students who self-identify as homeless. Homeless children, youth, and their families are not required to submit any sort of documentation, such as the Shared Residence Affidavit, to verify that they are homeless. The affidavit is merely a tool for LEAs to use to assist with identification and is not required.

Certification of Homeless Data and Program Start and End Dates

Homeless data are certified twice annually, during the Fall 1 and End-of-Year (EOY) 2 submissions, and these data are used for different purposes. The Fall 1 submission certifies counts of homeless students enrolled on Census Day as categorically eligible for free meals, which generates supplemental and concentration grant funding under the LCFF. The EOY 2 submission certifies counts of homeless students for federal reporting. Homeless students who were identified anytime between July 1 and June 30 of the academic year are counted and certified in the EOY certification reports 5.4 and 5.5. LEAs are only required to update a student’s homeless status in CALPADS at least once in the academic year, however, changes in a student’s homeless status may be updated anytime throughout the academic year.

LEAs should reconfirm students’ homeless status at the beginning and at the end of each school year to ensure that they are properly identified. When enrolling students for the new school year, if a student who was homeless in the prior academic year is still homeless, no updates to CALPADS are necessary and the LEA should not submit a SPRG record with a program end date. However, if a student is no longer homeless then the LEA should submit a SPRG record with a program end date.

Providing Homeless Liaisons Access to Data

Homeless children, youth, and their families are quite mobile and it is important that LEAs have the most current and accurate information about these students so that they can be appropriately served. LEAs should have business processes in place to ensure that homeless students are properly coded and updated in their student information systems. One critical component of this business process is ensuring that the county or district homeless liaison is involved in the identification of homeless students. Involving the homeless liaison and maintaining local data will also help ensure that these students are accurately reported to CALPADS.

Should you have any questions, please contact the CALPADS Service Desk by:

• Submitting a service request ticket, or
• E-mailing calpads-support@cde.ca.gov