DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT: FY 2022 October 1 Data Collection

DATA MANAGEMENT ALERT   

FY 2022 October 1 Data Collection

The Exceptional Student Services (ESS) Special Education (SPED) October 1 Data Collection (ODC) child count is a key process that is consequential for federal reporting, determining federal allocations and providing information for the state to make educational determinations over time. Public education agencies (PEAs) are required to verify the count of students receiving SPED services over October 1. Verification will be completed through the web-based ESS October 1 Data Collection application, available through the ESS Portal via ADEConnect.

The October 1 Data Collection consists of three phases:

• Phase I: Verification & Personnel
• Phase II: Reconciliation
• Phase III: Non-Reconciliation (if applicable)
   

For a complete ODC timeline, please review the ESS Data Management Important Dates document.

Phase I: Verification

The ESS ODC application will open on Wednesday, October 6, 2021. PEAs must login to the application to submit the October 1 verification and personnel counts. All technical assistance documents and FAQs will be available by accessing the “Help tab” on the home page of the ESS ODC application.

Please note that October 1 is the count date, not a due date or deadline.

October 1 falls on a Friday this year. If October 1 is a non-session day for your PEA (i.e., fall break), be mindful of the following information. To ensure an accurate count, include students who were enrolled on the last day school was in session before October 1 as long as they are known to have continued in special education on the first day school was in session following October 1 (whether it be in your school in your PEA or another PEA). The PEA that should count the student is the PEA the student was enrolled in prior to October 1.

Resources

ODC Manual – This manual includes documentation of the entire process of ODC, including frequently asked questions.

Please note the Important Dates document shows that Phase II of the October 1 Data Collection is due earlier this year than previous years. Ensure your SPED data in AzEDS is accurate and passing integrity regularly to ensure a smooth Phase II submission.

IDEA Conference (Conference Registration | Recording coming soon)

Special Education October 1 Processes, Report Out, and Upcoming Changes

This session will review the current processes of the child count requirement, report out on different perspectives in SPED placements and elaborate on significant upcoming changes moving forward.

To access ESS Data Management ODC training videos, please visit our ODC or YouTube webpages.

We highly encourage all PEAs to subscribe to ESS Data Management Alerts to receive ODC and other important SPED data reporting announcements.

Please join us at our monthly Special Education Data Updates (SEDU) webinars to discuss a variety of ESS data topics, updates, and live Q&A. Please visit the  Data Management website under Training Opportunities for more information.

For questions regarding ODC requirements or anything else, please email us at [email protected].