April 5, 2010
To the Administrator Addressed:
Subject: Local Education Agency (LEA) Requirement to Collect and Submit Data for the State Performance Plan (SPP)/Annual Performance Report (APR) and Public Reporting of LEA Performance Against State Targets
The purpose of this letter is to inform districts and charter schools of the requirements to collect and submit data for the SPP/APR for the 2009-2010 school year and the State’s requirement to publicly report district and charter school performance against the state targets in the SPP/APR on an annual basis.
Data Collection
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 2004 (IDEA 2004), Section 616(b)(2)(B), requires states to collect data from LEAs in order to respond to many of the SPP/APR indicators on an annual basis. Part of the data for the SPP indicators is collected through the Public Education Information Management System (PEIMS). Data not included in PEIMS are collected online through Texas Education Agency Secure Environment (TEASE) Applications. TEASE applications have been developed and are all available this spring to collect data for SPP Indicators 7 (Early Childhood Outcomes), 11 (Compliance with Timely Initial Evaluation Timelines), 12 (Compliance with Early Childhood Transition Timelines), 13 (Compliance with Secondary Transition Individualized Education Program (IEP) Requirements), and 14 (Grade 12 Exit Survey).
All districts and charter schools are required to participate in the annual collection of data for SPP Indicators 7, 11, 12, 13, and 14. Even if districts and charter schools do not have students who meet the data collection criteria on any of the indicators, they are still required to report to the Texas Education Agency (Agency) through the appropriate TEASE Application that they do not have students who meet the data collection criteria for the current reporting period.
States and LEAs are obligated to provide valid and reliable data responsive to the measurement for each SPP indicator. This requirement is an element in the annual state and local determination processes. Additional information about the LEA Determination process is available on the Agency’s website at http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/special.ed/spp/leadetermin.html.
Action Related to Failure to Report Data
Performance Indicators 7 and 14
Data certified and submitted by districts and charter schools through the TEASE applications for Indicators 7 and 14 are considered final and will be used by the Agency in the annual Determinations analysis on whether or not districts and charter schools are reporting valid and reliable data. District and charter school’s performance on Indicators 7 and 14 will be reflected in the LEA public reporting on SPP Indicators in the spring. Any issues related to the submission of inaccurate data or the non-submission of data will be addressed by the Division of IDEA Coordination.
Compliance Indicators 11, 12, and 13
Data certified and submitted by districts and charter schools through the TEASE applications for Indicators 11, 12, and 13 are considered final and the district and charter school’s performance on the compliance indicators will be used by the Agency in the annual Determinations analysis. District and charter school’s performance on the compliance indicators will be reflected in the district public reporting on SPP Indicators in the spring. Any issues related to the submission of inaccurate data or the non-submission of data will be addressed by the Division of Program Monitoring and Interventions.
Additional guidance on the data collection requirements for the SPP/APR is available on the Agency’s website at http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/special.ed/spp.
If you have questions or need assistance with training on the TEASE applications (SPP 7, SPP 11, SPP 12, SPP 13, and/or SPP 14), please contact your regional education service center special education contact.
Public Reporting
The IDEA 2004, Section 616(b)(2)(C)(i)(II), requires states to publicly report district and charter school performance against the state targets in the SPP/APR on an annual basis. Every spring, no later than May 1, of each year, the Texas Education Agency posts a report that includes individual District Profile of State Performance Plan Indicators for each district and charter school. The purpose of this report is to provide districts and charter schools with information they can use for making decisions on continuous improvement activities. The District Profiles can be accessed on the Agency’s website at: http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/special.ed/spp/publicreport.html.
Additional information on public reporting and the state targets in the SPP/APR is available on the Agency’s website at http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/special.ed/spp.
If you have questions about accessing TEASE or concerns about the reporting requirements stated in this letter, please contact the Division of IDEA Coordination at (512) 463-9414.
Sincerely,
Ann Smisko
Associate Commissioner
School Improvement and Support
