September 2005 — Applications
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Conquering NCLB with Technology
Impact
What impact has this had, thus far, on the business side of our district operations? Although the student data maintained in our StudentPlus system was already in very good condition, the BI solution revealed some issues that were easily corrected, resulting in more accurate information being reported to the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction.
As it stands now, our schools can see their student data in a whole new light. The ability to easily compare one demographic parameter versus a multitude of other parameters—all on the same table or graph—has been very enlightening and invaluable to the district. As well, the ability to cross-reference items and change reporting elements on-the-fly has delivered even more functionality than was expected at the onset of the project. Our schools can now quite easily take a very broad look at many aspects of their student data—including program and grant data such as free and reduced lunch status, English as a Second Language, and Title I—and then drill into the details at the click of a mouse. Administrators and their support staff have a much more thorough understanding of their student data, empowering them to confidently make more informed decisions.
Today, our Information Systems and Technology department’s staff continues to develop valuable analytical cubes. These cubes analyze data that span the district, including human resources demographic data, budget data, human resources employee attendance data, and standardized assessments data. Not so surprisingly, at Everett, the new catchphrase regarding data analysis is, “Let’s cube it up and take a look.”
Going forward, our school district is looking to broaden its Business Intelligence initiatives with another of Cognos’ performance management solutions, Cognos ReportNet. Everett sees the combination of Cognos PowerPlay and Cognos ReportNet as a real one-two punch in delivering critical data analysis and reporting that will ultimately help facilitate decision-making, and improve performance management across the entire district. These solutions are enabling us to gather data in order to better understand and meet the needs of our students, and—importantly—meet the requirements set out by NCLB.
Newel S. Rice is Operations and Development manager at Everett Public Schools in the state of Washington.
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