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Report Says Newsom's Education Data Plan Should Have Role for CDT

The state Legislative Analyst's Office calls Gov. Gavin Newsom's database proposal "troubling" in that it omits the California Department of Technology.

The state Legislative Analyst’s Office says Gov. Gavin Newsom has the right idea in proposing an integrated statewide education data system. But the agency faults his plan because, among other things, it includes only a small role for the state Legislature — and no role at all for the California Department of Technology.

In his budget proposal this week, Newsom asks for $10 million for the creation and implementation of a unified database designed to benefit California policymakers, teachers, student advisers, parents, students, and researchers, as well as health and human services providers. 

California is one of only eight states that have either not planned or not implemented an integrated education data-sharing system. While California does track student data, it does so in “siloes,” the report notes.

“Such a data system could give the Legislature a more holistic view of the state’s education system and allow policymakers to make more informed budget and policy decisions,” says the LAO report, which was published Monday. “An integrated data system also could provide more information to educators about what happens to their students after leaving their particular education segment, thereby providing greater insight into the effectiveness of current practices,” the report says.

Under Newsom’s proposal, the Legislature’s only responsibility would be to appropriate the $10 million in startup funds.

“All other core responsibilities — including choosing the work group representatives, reviewing work group reports, deciding on the governance structure, selecting the data system structure, and approving $6.7 million in funds for project implementation — would fall exclusively to the Governor or Department of Finance,” the LAO report says.

“In effect, the Legislature would be appropriating funds for a project without knowing what it would get in return and without any assurance that the final product would be consistent with its priorities.”

The lack of a role for CDT is “troubling,” LAO says.

“According to the Department of Finance, the project would not include CDT’s involvement due to the administration’s desire to move quickly,” the report notes. “Given the state’s historically mixed track record with IT projects, we question the prudence of bypassing CDT’s planning and oversight functions. Completing CDT’s project approval process could improve the quality of the project and provide the Legislature with a more complete plan before funding the project. CDT’s independent oversight also could highlight risks and alert stakeholders (including the Legislature) to any significant changes in the cost, schedule, and scope of the project.”

LAO makes several recommendations, including:

  • Authorize creation of a joint powers authority (JPA) for the project and have it focus initially on gathering data from K-12 and post-secondary education sources and also from the Employment Development Department. Only later would it be expanded to include data from early childhood education sources and health and human services agencies.
  • Instruct the JPA to develop a centralized data warehouse and follow CDT’s project approval process.
LAO advises that the Legislature grant the $10 million in initial funding, which would keep it running through June 2023, but it urges lawmakers to make the funds contingent on certain accountability milestones:

  • Submitting a multi‑year work plan to the Legislature by March 1, 2020.
  • Submitting a budget to the Legislature by May 1, 2020.
  • Progressing in a timely manner through CDT’s planning phases.
  • Developing protocols for maintaining data privacy and security.
  • Developing protocols for making the data available for research purposes.
LAO’s full report can be found online.

Dennis Noone is Executive Editor of Industry Insider. He is a career journalist, having worked at small-town newspapers and major metropolitan dailies including USA Today in Washington, D.C.