The basic purposes of the Colorado data reporting for school accreditation rules are:

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1 R-1.00 Statement of Basis and Purpose. These accreditation indicators are adopted under authority granted the State Board of Education in the Colorado Constitution Article IX, Section 1; and Colorado Revised Statutes (1) (a); (1) (c); The basic purposes of the Colorado data reporting for school accreditation rules are: To establish statewide formulas for calculating dropout rates, graduation rates, completion rates, mobility rates, freshman follow-up promotion rates, freshman follow-up continuing education rates, freshman follow-up mobility rates and freshman follow-up dropout rates. To provide specificity for consistency in data reporting for accreditation indicators across school districts To increase data accuracy by generating valid and reliable indicators of student success To encourage the improvement of public education through the use of these accreditation indicators 2.00 Definitions for the purpose of these rules: 2.01 (1) Adequate documentation of a transfer is a records request or a notification of enrollment from a private school, home-based educational program, or an out-ofstate/country educational entity. Students indicated to be transfers within Colorado public schools who do not return to public schools at the end of the dropout period as indicated by the State Assigned Student Identifier must be defaulted to the status of dropout, unless an investigation as to current educational status proves otherwise. Starting with the statistics reporting for the school year, transfers shall not include students who stay in the same school and who are retained at the same grade level for failing to accumulate adequate credit to advance to the next grade level (2) BOCES are Boards of Cooperative Educational Services (3) A cohort is a collection of people who jointly experience an event, or series of events, over a period of time. In the case of graduation rate, cohort refers to a group of students who completed 8th grade in the same school year (4) Completed all coursework means the student has completed the locally defined requirements for the current grade level and will be promoted into the next higher grade the following school year (5) A completer is a student who graduates, receives a certificate or other designation of high school completion such as a GED, or certificate of completion. The student has met the locally defined requirements for high school completion (6) Department is the Colorado Department of Education (7) A dropout is a person who leaves school for any reason, except for stated exceptions in 2.01 (1) (d), before completion of a high school diploma or its equivalent, and who does not transfer to another public or private school or enroll in a home-based education program (home school) pursuant to (8) An educational environment is a public or private school, a home-based education

2 program pursuant to , an educational program offered within a detention center or facility, an on-grounds educational program offered within a licensed eligible facility or state operated program, a General Education Development (GED) program, or a vocational education program (9) GED is General Educational Development and generally refers to programs, or certificates received after assessments are passed (10) A graduate is a student who has met the locally defined requirements for a high school diploma (11) A transfer is, for the purposes of the graduation rate and the completer rate a student who enrolls in another school that awards diplomas or a home-based education program (home school) ) pursuant to It does not include students who enroll in a GED program. For purposes of the dropout rate, a transfer is a student who enrolls in another school that awards a diploma, or who enrolls in a GED program, or enrolls in a home-based education program (home school) pursuant to Dropout Rate 3.01 (1) Definition. The annual student dropout rate is the percentage of students in grades 7 through 12 who drop out of school in a given year between July 1 and June 30 and have not returned to an educational environment on or before the end of the school year or June 30. This includes students in grades 7 through 12 who: 3.01 (1) (a) were enrolled in school at some time during the current reporting school year; and 3.01 (1) (b) were not enrolled at the end of the school year or June 30; and 3.01 (1) (c) have not graduated from high school or received a GED certificate, or completed a district-approved educational program; and 3.01 (1) (d) do not meet any of the following exclusionary conditions: 3.01 (1) (d) (1) transfer to another public school district, nonpublic or private school, home-based education program (home school) pursuant to , GED program, vocational education program, licensed eligible facility, state-operated program, detention center, or other education program operated by the Department of Youth Corrections or Department of Corrections; or 3.01 (1) (d) (2) temporary absence due to serious illness or injury, suspension or expulsion; or 3.01 (1) (d) (3) death (2) Numerator. Number of grade 7-12 students who dropped out 3.01 (3) Denominator. Cumulative enrollment for grades (4) Formula.

3 3.02 Dropout Rate Clarifications 3.02 (1) Any student whose transfer to another educational environment cannot be verified is a dropout for reporting purposes. Schools and districts must apply a default status of dropout to any student who does not have a written official notification of withdrawal on file with the school or district by the end of the school year given the further clarifications provided below (2) Mandatory school age legislation ( (1) C.R.S.) states that every child who has attained the age of seven years and is under the age of sixteen years shall attend public school. This mandatory school age legislation does not exempt a school district or BOCES from reporting any student regardless of age as a dropout. Students at any point in court proceedings to compel compliance with the compulsory attendance statute who have not yet returned to school are dropouts (3) Requests for records may or may not serve as adequate documentation for an educational transfer based on the following: 3.02 (3) (a) In-state school district requests for records are not adequate documentation that the student has begun attending classes at the district requesting the records. Students transferring to another school district who are identified through the department s post-collection process as not returning to another school district by the end of the current school year or June 30 are dropouts. The department can verify student attendance through end of year data submitted by other school districts and BOCES (3) (b) Records requests from other educational entities, if received, such as out-ofstate or country schools or private schools or home-based education programs (home school) pursuant to , are adequate documentation that the student has transferred into another educational program. The department cannot verify student attendance through the end of year data because these entities do not report (4) Determination of whether a student has completed the school year or is considered a dropout is based upon two factors, length of time absent prior to the end of the school year and coursework completion (4) (a) Students who leave school within three weeks of the last day of school or students who have completed all coursework early shall be recorded as completing the school year (4) (a) (1) Students who leave within three weeks of the last day of school or June 30th, whichever comes first, whether with excused or unexcused absences, are not dropouts, but non-exiting students (4) (a) (2) However, these early exiting students who are recorded as completing the current school year who are not documented to return to an educational program the following school year must be recorded as summer dropouts in the next reporting period. 3.02(4)(b) Students who do not meet the exclusionary conditions listed under 2.01 (1) (d) and are absent more than three weeks from the last day of school and have not completed all coursework, whether with excused or unexcused absences, are dropouts.

4 3.02 (5) Mandatory school age legislation ( (1) C.R.S.) which states that... every child who has attained the age of seven years and is under the age of sixteen years, except as provided by this section, shall attend public school... is the authority under which school districts and BOCES may request from the parent or guardian the specific type of educational environment to which a student will be transferring. Students indicated on a written notification of withdrawal to be transferring to another Colorado school district who do not show up in another school district in the current school year (as identified through the department s post-collection process) are dropouts, unless further investigation proves otherwise On-Time Graduation Rate 4.01 (1) Definition. The high school graduation rate is the percentage of students from an end of year 8th grade cohort, adjusted for verified transfers in and out with adequate documentation, who leave school as graduates as defined by the school district in four years or less (2) Numerator. Cohort members (students) who graduated in year X 4.01 (3) Denominator. Initial 8th grade cohort enrollment adjusted for verified transfers in and out 4.01 (4) Formulae (4) (a) Until : 4.01 (4) (b) and Beyond: 4.01 (5) On-Time Graduation Exceptions 4.01 (5) (a) Students will be assigned to an appropriate on-time graduation cohort according to the point at which the students complete 8th grade. Students may be placed in a non-standard on-time graduation cohort only if they meet one of the exceptions below (5) (b) The anticipated year of graduation/completion for each special education student will be provided by districts. Students will be placed in the appropriate on-time graduation cohort according to the expectations stated in their Individualized Education Program (IEP). Graduation expectations for certain special education students could change from one year to the next (5) (c) The Colorado English Language Assessment (CELA) will determine each English Language Learner student s language proficiency and appropriate graduation cohort. The anticipated year of graduation/completion for each English Language Learner will be determined by the department from CELA results. The amount of additional time to graduation granted to a student, if any, is dependent upon the point at which a student enters the 9th grade or when the student enters into the Colorado public education system, language proficiency level, and student date of birth (5) (c) (1) For Non-English Proficient (NEP) students entering the 9th grade

5 4.02 Graduation Rate Clarifications or first entering Colorado public schools in the 10th grade, two additional years will be added to the expected year of graduation (5) (c) (2) For Non-English Proficient (NEP) students first entering Colorado public schools in the 11th or 12th grades, three additional years will be added to the expected year of graduation (5) (c) (3) For Limited English Proficient (LEP) students entering the 9th grade, one additional year will be added to the expected year of graduation (5) (c) (4) For Limited English Proficient (LEP) students first entering Colorado public schools in the 10th or 11th grades, two additional years will be added to the expected year of graduation (5) (c) (5) For Limited English Proficient (LEP) students first entering Colorado public schools in the 12th grade, three additional years will be added to the expected year of graduation (5) (c) (6) English Language Learner students for whom the anticipated year of graduation exceeds the date of birth for their 21st year, will have their anticipated year of graduation adjusted accordingly (a) Graduation rates for a high school not containing a 9th grade will be adjusted according to the grades contained within the school. Notations will be made when the standard four-year graduation rates are not applied (b) District graduation rates will be held to a four-year standard regardless of the grade ranges of district schools (c) The on-time graduation rate will be the most prevalent graduation rate to be used for accountability and reporting purposes. All other expanded graduation rates, when used, should always be clearly labeled with the time span to differentiate from the standard four-year graduation rate Expanded Graduation Rates 4.03 (1) 3-Year Graduation Rate will first be reported in with Class of (1) (a) Formula (2) 5-Year Graduation Rate will first be reported in with Class of (2) (a) Formula (3) 6-Year Graduation Rate will first be reported in with Class of (3) (a) Formula.

6 4.03 (4) 7-Year Graduation Rate will first be reported in with Class of (4) (a) Formula Completion Rate 5.01 (1) Definition. The high school completion rate is the percentage of students from an end of year 8th grade cohort adjusted for verified transfers in and out with adequate documentation, who leave school as graduates or completers as defined by the school district. Students who do not meet specified graduation requirements, are not graduates, but completers. This includes students who: 5.01 (1) (a) receive a GED certificate through the completion of a GED program; 5.01 (1) (b) receive a certificate of completion; 5.01 (1) (c) complete a vocational program; or 5.01 (1) (d) are accepted into an institution of higher education to pursue either a bachelor s or associate s degree (2) Numerator. Cohort members (students) who graduated or completed in year X 5.01 (3) Denominator. Initial cohort enrollment adjusted for verified transfers in and out 5.01 (4) Formulae (4) (a) Until : 5.01 (4) (b) and Beyond: 5.01 (5) On-Time Completion Exceptions 5.01 (5) (a) The special education and English Language Learner exceptions applied to on-time graduation rates in 3.01 (5) will equally be applied to on-time completion rate calculations Completion Rate Clarifications 5.02 (a) Completion rates for a high school not containing a 9th grade will be adjusted according to the grades contained within the school. Notations will be made when the standard four-year completion rates are not applied (b) District completion rates will be held to a four-year standard regardless of the grade ranges of district schools (c) Completion rates are optional in the accreditation reporting process.

7 5.03 Expanded Completion Rates 5.03 ( 1) 3-Year Completion Rate will first be reported in with Class of (1) (a) Formula (2) 5-Year Completion Rate will first be reported in with Class of (2) (a) Formula (3) 6-Year Completion Rate will first be reported in with Class of (3) (a) Formula (4) 7-Year Completion Rate will begin in with Class of (4) (a) Formula Mobility Rate 6.01 (1) Definition. Mobility rates are indicators of turnover in the student population within a given school year. Any student in grades K-12 who enters or leaves a school between the start of the school year and the last day of school is counted in the mobility rate. This includes students who: 6.01 (1) (a) transfer into a district, 6.01 (1) (b) transfer within a district, 6.01 (1) (c) transfer to another public school district, nonpublic or private school, homebased education program (home school) pursuant to , GED program, vocational education program, licensed eligible facility, state-operated program, detention center, or other educational program operated by the Department of Youth Corrections or Department of Corrections, 6.01 (1) (d) have been expelled, or 6.01 (1) (e) have dropped out (2) Common Denominator. Cumulative enrollment for grades K Mobility Rate Clarifications 6.02 (1) Mobility rates will first be reported in when multiple detail records for students attending the same grade and school more than one time in a school year are reported by each school district or BOCES in the end of year automated data exchange process.

8 6.03 Student Mobility Rate 6.03 (1) Definition. The student (unduplicated) mobility rate is the proportion of students having moved during the school year. The student mobility rate measures the number of students who have moved (a count of one regardless of the number of times a student moves). The rate includes an unduplicated count of students who transfer into the school or district or out of the school or district during the regular school year (2) Numerator. Unduplicated count of grade K-12 students who moved into or out of a school or district during the school year 6.03 (3) Formula Occurrence Mobility Rate 6.04 (1) Definition. The occurrence (duplicated) mobility rate is the frequency with which student moves occur during the school year. The occurrence mobility rate measures the number of moves made by students (a count equal to the number of times a student has moved). The rate includes a duplicated count of students who transfer into the school or district, out of the school or district, or both into and out of the school or district during the regular school year (2) Numerator. Duplicated count of grade K-12 students who moved into or out of the school or district, or both into and out of the school or district during the school year 6.04 (3) Formula Freshman Follow-up Rates 7.01 (1) Definition. The freshman follow-up rates are indicators of success that will be used in accreditation reporting. The freshman follow-up indicators will consist of promotion (graduation) rates, continuing education rates, mobility rates and dropout rates (2) Common Denominator. The common denominator across all freshman follow-up rates will be the 9th grade pupil enrollment determined for purposes of the Public School Finance Act of 1994 four years prior to the collection year minus deceased students Freshman Follow-up Rates Clarifications 7.02 (1) The four freshman follow-up rates detailed below are not intended to be used in isolation. Each of the four freshman follow-up rates shall be used in conjunction with the others, together collectively as a unit. These rates are a measure of what happens to a group of students over a four-year period at two points in time (beginning of 9th grade and at end of 12th grade) and include factors which are not under school district or BOCES control (2) Freshman follow-up rates should always be labeled with Freshman Follow-up to differentiate from the standard annual dropout rate, standard cohort graduation rates, student mobility rate and occurrence mobility rate (3) The denominator for follow-up rates for high schools without 9th grade will be the

9 beginning grade pupil enrollment determined for purposes of the Public School Finance Act of 1994 the appropriate number of years prior to the collection year. Notations will be made when the standard freshman follow-up rates are not applied. Follow-up rates for a high school without 9th grade will be adjusted according to the grades contained within the school (4) District rates will always be determined as freshman follow-up regardless of the grade ranges of district schools. District follow-up rates will be held to a four-year standard regardless of the grade ranges of district high schools (5) Freshman follow-up rates will not consider students who have dropped out the summer prior to their 9th grade year (6) Freshman follow-up rates are snapshots at two distinct points in time. Student mobility and eventual return to the original school or district between snapshots will not be considered (7) Freshman follow-up rates do not include those students who have completed in four years or those students who are seriously ill. Therefore the four rates may not sum to 100 percent (8) Freshman follow-up rates will first be reported in once four full years of individual student level data is available for all expected 12th grade students Freshman Follow-up Promotion (Graduation) Rate 7.03 (1) Definition. The percentage of students from a static group of 9th graders four years earlier who graduate from the same school or district by the end of their anticipated 12th grade year (2) Numerator. Number of graduates from the Student October 9th grade pupil enrollment four years prior to the collection year (3) Formula Freshman Follow-up Continuing Education Rate 7.04 (1) Definition. The percentage of students from a static group of 9th graders four years earlier who continue their education in the same school or district after their anticipated 12th grade year (2) Numerator. Number of students continuing their education in the same school or district from the Student October 9th grade pupil enrollment four years prior to the collection year (3) Formula Freshman Follow-up Mobility Rate 7.05 (1) Definition. The percentage of students from a static group of 9th graders four years earlier who left their original school or district to enter another educational environment

10 before their anticipated 12th grade graduation (2) Numerator. Number of students who have transferred into another educational environment from the Student October 9th grade pupil enrollment four years prior to the collection year (3) Formula Freshman Follow-up Dropout Rate 7.06 (1) Definition. The percentage of students from a static group of 9th graders four years earlier who dropped out of or were expelled from their original school or district before their anticipated 12th grade graduation (2) Numerator. Number of dropouts or expulsions from the Student October 9th grade pupil enrollment four years prior to the collection year (3) Formula. 8.0 End of Year Automated Data Exchange Process 8.01 The department will calculate all rates called for within these rules using district data already submitted through the end of year automated data exchange process The reporting period for the end of year collection is from July 1st to June 30th annually. Districts are to mark the appropriate information as of the last day of school or June 30th which ever occurs first Districts may mark summer graduates or completers up until the date of August 31st each year. Districts should hold graduates and completers after that date for the next end of year reporting period Every district and BOCES with schools must initially approve submitted end of year files on or before September 15th annually Colorado school districts which provide educational programs to detention centers and facilities must continue to report accurate and complete data in terms of the 7th through 12th grade students served within the end of year reporting period (1) Detention centers include: 8.05 (1) (a) Adams Youth Service Center, Brighton 27J 8.05 (1) (b) Marvin W Foote Youth Services Center, Cherry Creek (1) (c) Gilliam Youth Services Center, Denver 8.05 (1) (d) Spring Creek Youth Services Center, Colorado Springs (1) (e) Mountview Youth Services Center, Jefferson County R-1

11 8.05 (1) (f) Robert DeNier Youth Services Center, Durango 9-R 8.05 (1) (g) Grand Mesa Youth Services Center, Mesa County Valley (1) (h) Pueblo Youth Services Center, Pueblo City (1) (i) Platte Valley Youth Services Center, Greeley (2) Facilities with district-run educational programs include: 8.05 (2) (a) Adolescent and Family Institute of Colorado, Jefferson County R (2) (b) Robert Brown Center, Montrose County RE-1J 8.05 (2) (c) Colorado Boys Ranch, East Otero R (2) (d) Kathleen Painter Littler Center, Greeley Post-Collection End of Year Process 8.06 (1) The department-run post-collection end of year process will identify for districts specific students who were indicated to be dropouts who transferred into another Colorado public school district by the end of year June 30th reporting period by another school district or BOCES (2) The department-run post-collection end of year process will identify for districts specific students who were indicated to be transfers into another Colorado school district who were not reported as such by the end of year June 30th reporting period by another Colorado school district or BOCES (3) Students indicated to be transfers within Colorado public schools who do not return to public schools by the end of the school year or June 30th, must be defaulted to dropout, unless an investigation as to current educational status proves otherwise (4) Districts and BOCES with schools will receive post-collection end of year reports no later than September 20th annually (5) Every Colorado district and BOCES with schools must approve final end of year files on or before October 1st annually.