D3M software speeds information access in Indiana

Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation in southwest Indiana, with 22,498 students, was like many other K-12 districts in the country – seeking a way to collect and organize test scores, grades and other data to quickly identify problems and accelerate interventions.  With “student achievement” headlining its 2009-10 Strategic Plan, the district stepped up the search for a data-driven decision making (D3M) product that would allow them to gain immediate access to multiple data points to demonstrate continuous improvement. Their search led them to implementing one of the most comprehensive custom TetraData warehouses undertaken by Follett Software Company.

“The data warehouse allows us to more fully understand the many variables influencing the achievement of our students, said David Dimmett, the district’s chief academic officer. “When we understand more about the way we teach and learn, we are better positioned to make the instructional and support decisions necessary to positively impact student achievement.”

Data is updated nightly to the Evansville district’s warehouse. The warehouse merges district-wide historical, factual and dimensional data across multiple variables, providing detailed longitudinal analysis, ad hoc queries and reports.  As a result, educators have the data they need sooner to make informed decisions that affect student performance. 

“In the past, we’ve had to request queries through our Information Systems Department,” said Susan McDowell Riley, the district’s assistant superintendent for assessment and research.  “Due to the volume of their work, the results may have taken several days, or more, to pull.  Our new TetraData warehouse now allows access to what we need with just a few clicks.  Best of all, what we obtain is based on where our students are enrolled at that point in time, rather than being dated information.”

TetraData is being rolled out in three phases at the Evansville district, with the next release–TetraData DASH–scheduled for the spring of 2010.  TetraData DASH is a K-12 education dashboard and data portal that delivers data using color-coded indicators that clarify where each school, grade, teacher, class and student stands in relation to a district’s strategic improvement goals.

Evansville Vanderburgh School Corp. previously adopted a combination of Follett Software Company’s Destiny Library Manager and Destiny Textbook Manager at 36 of its schools.