Data Reporting Support Specialist Position Available

The Data Reporting team is looking for a support specialist that is interested in joining our team to support all schools in the state of Indiana report required staff and student data. The job was posted last evening. If interested you may access the posting via the link provided here Data Support Specialist or if you have questions about the position reach out to Linda Turner, Senior Support Specialist Data Reporting, lturner@doe.in.gov.

NEW: LINK Portal Setup Requirements

The LINK Portal is able to recognize all public, charter, and accredited non-public schools’ local Google G-Suite or Microsoft 365 accounts. IDOE configures the organization’s leader as the first account, and the organization leader must log in to designate up to two security coordinators responsible for overseeing the setup of roles for others in the organization. All superintendents and leaders of non-public schools need to log in to the LINK Portal and review/update their security coordinators. Failure to do so will result in access issues to IDOE systems. 

• Instructions for organization leaders on how to review/designate the security coordinators can be found here.

• New public and Choice schools registration process for the LINK Portal can be found here. 

• New superintendents or organization leaders of non-public schools who need the first account configured should email link@doe.in.gov.

 NEW: Designation of Key Contacts

Security coordinators for all traditional public, charter, and accredited non-public schools are responsible for ensuring their organization’s key contacts for the 2024-2025 school year are set. Key contacts including the roles of Superintendent, Financial Contact, Special Education Director, Principal, Data Exchange Contact, etc. are needed for the 2024-2025 school year even if those contacts were provided last school year. 

For school corporations that have an ed-fi student information system (SIS), key contacts and other staff role assignments should be entered and managed in the local SIS, and then provided to Data Exchange/LINK for the new school year. However, all three options below are available:

1. Provide staff classifications in the local SIS per vendor’s instructions,

2. Add a staff type manually for the 2024-2025 school year via the Security Portal, or

3. Upload templates 008_StaffAssociation_StaffEdOrgAssignmentAssociation and 009_StaffOrganizationContactAssociation into Data Exchange. 

Schools utilizing options two and three may cause overriding or loss of data. Schools should connect with their SIS vendor to better understand how to avoid data loss when providing data via multiple methods. 

IDOE will recognize active staff assignments/roles during the summer months from both the previous and upcoming school years and will begin recognizing only the 2024-2025 school year assignments beginning Sunday, September 1. Security coordinator instructions can be found here. Contact IDOE’s Data Exchange Team with any questions.

 NEW: SIS Vendor Changes

IDOE-issued Data Exchange credentials (key and secret) are tied to the supporting SIS vendor. If your corporation will be changing or adding an SIS vendor for the upcoming school year, please email link@doe.in.gov with these changes. Your organization will receive a new set of credentials for the new vendor. A SIS vendor certification status list can be found here. Additional information on the implementation of Data Exchange can be found on the Data Exchange webpage. Contact IDOE’s Data Exchange Team with any questions.

NEW: STN Application Center Retirement

IDOE will be retiring the STN Application Center in the second quarter of 2025. This system is being replaced by newer systems including Data Exchange, Ed-ID, a new Choice Voucher Application, and an EdData report called Student Data Backpack. Local data administrators should login to the STN Application Center and download any certified roster data that your school requires under Administration > Retrieve Data, as historic data will not be available via any tool in the future. IDOE’s Data Exchange Team is also compiling feedback on which current-year reports are still being utilized by Data Administrators for state reporting purposes, other than the STN Lookup. Please submit this information here. Contact the Data Exchange Team with any questions.

Data Exchange (DEX) 2025 Now Available to Receive Data

• IDOE completed the DEX roll from 2023-2024 to 2024-2025 Tuesday morning, July 16, 2024.

• Nightly validations began Wednesday, July 17, 2024.

• Be certain that your SIS is set and ready to send 2024-2025 data. If not certain SIS is ready, reach out to your vendor for support.

• Vendor documentation for 2025 IDOE EdFi 6.1 is posted to Knowledge Hub > Vendor Support Hub > Documentation as well as the 2025 Vendor Badging document if needed.

• Don’t Forget!!! You must first have Calendar data submitted for the 2024-2025 school year before any other data can be sent and land in the ODS

Office Hours for 2024-2025

For the month of August, 2024, weekly DEX Office Hours sessions will be available on Tuesday mornings at 10:30 am to noon and Thursday afternoons at 1:00 pm to 2:30 pm ET.

Beginning in September, 2024, weekly DEX Office Hours sessions will return to a Tuesday only schedule. The session times will alternate weekly between a morning session and an afternoon session.

Access to the Office Hours Submit Question button and Office Hours Question Responses button as well as a button providing connection to the Office Hours session can be found in Knowledge Hub > Communications Hub > Upcoming Events.

Office Hours August 2024 Schedule

Tues, Aug. 6 - 10:30 am - Michelle Tubbs will lead this session with focus on 2025 DEX updates

Thurs, Aug. 8 - 1:00 pm - Michelle Tubbs will lead this session with focus on DEX navigation how-tos

Tues, Aug. 13, 20, 27 - 10:30 am

Thurs, Aug. 15, 22, 29 - 1:00 pm

2024-2025 DEX Submission Cycles

The 2024-2025 DEX Submission (Certification) Cycles has been posted to Knowledge in School Support Hub > General Resources and Vendor Support Hub > Documentation.

Moodle Data Exchange Training and Community Closing

Be advised that the Moodle Data Exchange Training and Community will be closed as of Monday, August 5, 2024. All guidance documentation has been moved to the Data Exchange Knowledge Hub including DEX University trainings.

From Office of School Building Physical Security and Safety

NEW: Updated Attendance Resources - Enrollment Restrictions/Denial & McKinney-Vento Online Registration

Updated state attendance resources are now available on IDOE’s State Attendance Officer webpage. 

• Enrollment Restrictions & Denial of Enrollment Memo

• Online Registration Process Memo

Contact State Attendance Officer Catherine Danyluk with additional questions.

From Office of School Finance

NEW: Residency Requirement Reminder

As the school year starts for many, please ensure that your school is following the requirements for verification of Indiana residency. Please see this memo for the requirements. Contact IDOE's Office of School Finance with any questions.

From Office Of Nutrition -

2024-2025 Alternate Household Application and Notification Letters - CEP

The application has been approved by SBOA and now it is on our webpage: Alternate Household Application and Notification Letters under the drop-down titled Alternate Household Application and Notification Letters. When you click English for the application it will download as a Word document so schools edit with their own information. The Parent Letter/Instructions are updated as well. The notification letters are still getting some updates. We will be submitting the app and instructions to our translation services to get them translated into Spanish. 

2024-2025 Free & Reduced Forms - Non-NSLP

Find the Free and Reduced Application for Meals and Parent Letter/Instructions posted here. When you click English for the application it will download as a Word document so schools can remove the SUN Bucks section and edit with their own information.

Questions may be directed to Allie Caito-Sipe, School Nutrition Specialist, acaito@doe.in.gov

From Office of School Support and Transformation

REMINDER: School Improvement Plan (SIP) Submissions Due Friday, October 4

IDOE’s Office of School Support and Transformation is accepting Comprehensive Need Assessment (CNA) and SIP submissions through Friday, October 4, on this JotForm. In accordance with IC 20-31-5-1, public and state-accredited non-public schools must develop a strategic and continuous three-year SIP, and review these plans annually. All schools identified as Comprehensive Support and Improvement (CSI), Additional Targeted Support and Improvement (ATSI), or Targeted Support and Improvement (TSI) are required to submit SIPs and CNAs annually. All other schools must submit SIPs during the 2025-2026 school year. Use of IDOE’s ESSA-aligned SIP template is recommended, however, schools may use any template as long as all required portions are included. This memo provides additional information. Contact IDOE’s Office of School Support and Transformation with any questions.

Summer PCG Nightly Upload Guidance

To provide availability in PCG for students that need a Special Education Evaluation over the summer or for students transferring to your corporation from another Indiana corporation that you have a need to access the IEP, the following guidance has been established.

Prior to 7/1/2024

• Create SSA False with entry date after 2024 calendar and before 7/1/24 the record should be included in nightly update to PCG.

  • Create single-day SSA record on the last day of the school year, primary false, If unable to provide enrollment date after last day of school

After 7/19/2024

• It is anticipated that by 7/19/24 schools can submit an SSA True record with entry date the first day of 2025 school calendar (future date) if student for students transferring from another Indiana corporation.

  • Be advised that the exiting school corporation must have exited both the SSA and SE program record before access to IEP at new corporation is provided.

  • NOTE:  Be advised that once a primary true enrollment record is created and provided to DEX, the new corporation becomes the responsible corporation for the student.

• For SE evaluation or SE walk-in purposes, primary False.

This guidance will be posted to Data Exchange Knowledge Hub > School Support Hub >General Resources.