Data Institute Presentations Available Online

Thanks to the efforts of the Central DSAC and the FLLAC Collaborative, several of the presentations from the March 16 Southeast Data Institute are now available as online videos. Please visit the Data Institute Materials page for links to the following video presentations and related materials:

• Using Data and New Tools for Decision-Making and Continuous Improvement (Bob Bickerton)


• School Interoperability Framework (SIF) Project Update (Valentin Torres and Teri DeFilippo)


• Collecting and Reporting Student Course Schedules (SCS) (Maryann Donie,
  Rob Curtin, Craig Finley) - includes a preview of classroom-level reports!

Special thanks to the presenters for their willingness to share their knowledge in this format so that this important and timely information can be shared beyond those that were able to attend the March 16 event.

Southeast Data Network Meeting 5/4

The Southeast Data Network meeting will be held this Wednesday, May 4, from 8:30-11:00 am at the North River Conference Center, 525 Beech Street, Rockland.

This meeting will serve to continue the important conversations started at the March 16 Southeast Data Institute (for both those that attended and those that did not) by:

• Following up on the “data visions” that teams developed during the institute. What are next steps and needs?


• Prioritizing data-related topics for further discussion, resource sharing, and professional development


• Establishing a meeting schedule and guidance for future networking meetings
  

Formal registration for this meeting has closed, although we certainly welcome all interested folks to attend. Please email me laura.tilton@dsacma.org if you plan to attend and have not yet registered.

Developing a Data Vision

At the March 16 Southeast Data Institute, morning presenter Robb Geier from PCG Education led district-based teams through an investigation of Data Quality, Data Capacity, and Data Culture within the context of their own settings. He talked about the "Fizzle Factor" - the place that many districts seem to get stuck on their way from superficial data use to systemic data use.

Teams worked hard to investigate a framework for thinking about data use, identify related strengths and limiting factors, develop draft vision statements for data use, inventory data systems and available data, and embark on the development of an action plan for district data use. [Robb has graciously made the materials from the workshop available for districts who were not able to attend.]

We hope that ALL districts in the Southeast region will register for one of several upcoming networking sessions where we will have an opportunity to continue these discussions and share common needs and best practices related to data use.

Data Institute and Follow-Up Resources

I am looking forward to seeing many of you at the Lassoing Local Data institute this Wednesday at Stonehill College. (Please note that the conference is completely filled with a wait list - registered participants received confirmations via email last week.)

For those that aren't able to attend, please know that we will be posting as many of the resources from the institute on the Resource page on the event web site. In addition, there will be follow-up networking sessions held in April and May, hosted through our region's collaboratives. These will be open to ALL districts in the region, regardless of whether or not your district attended the institute.

Additional information will be posted later this week so stay tuned!

Regional Data Institute Details

The “Lassoing Local Data: Creating Systems that Support a Culture of Inquiry” event will be held March 16, 2011 at Stonehill College in Easton and will be open to teams from school districts in the Southeast region of Massachusetts. Teams must be coordinated through the superintendent's office, as spots for this free event are limited.

For details, please visit https://sites.google.com/site/southeastdatainstitute/.

Save the Date: March 16, 2011

The Southeast DSAC (District and School Assistance Center), the Cape Cod Collaborative, and MassCUE (Massachusetts Computer Using Educators) will be sponsoring a no-cost, one-day institute entitled, “Lassoing Local Data: Creating Systems that Support a Culture of Inquiry.” The Institute will be held on March 16, 2011 at Stonehill College in Easton and will be open to teams from school districts in the Southeast region.

Please see the attached flyer for additional details and watch for registration information in January 2011. Thank you, and Happy Holidays!