Data for Student Success

RISE partners with teachers, counselors, and administrators to understand what information educators need to support and advance student success. We support educators in using data to understand student strengths and growth areas, and to then organize personalized and equitable support for each student.

Network Data Tools and Resources

[RISE] provides a lot of really important data that drives the way in which we conduct our meetings, that drives the interventions that we put in place for students, and that drives the way that we think about the work that we do. They provide support in terms of the protocols and the ability to touch base with those in the RISE Network as we’re looking at the data dashboard, making sense of where our students need additional support.

Justin Taylor, Assistant Principal, Hartford Public High School

Together, RISE educators have co-designed a series of secure and user-friendly dashboards and web applications to inform student support. For example, these tools help attendance teams pinpoint students who may need additional attention in order to re-engage with school. Other tools support grade-level teams in collaborating around the needs of their cohort, and the postsecondary app supports students as they pursue their college and career goals and complete access milestones to pursue their plans.

Importantly, we work to combine data with educators’ expertise and qualitative experiences to ensure students’ holistic strengths and needs are fully addressed. For example, in on-track data team meetings, educators use strengths-based protocols to go through a process of reviewing data, discussing students’ strengths and positive connections to school, reviewing and prioritizing growth areas, and identifying actionable next steps to support the student’s success. A strategic data calendar also supports educators in identifying key moments when school teams should use specific data to inform decisions and actions. Data alone will not improve outcomes; however, when educators collaborate with actionable information, then we can more ably support student needs and improve student outcomes.

Dashboard Design Principles

RISE’s data tools—collaboratively designed with teachers, counselors, and administrators—reflect the following design principles:

1. Access: Provide educators with access to timely and relevant information necessary to support and personalize student learning.
2. Integration: Connect data housed in multiple, disconnected source systems, allowing for holistic and one-stop analyses.
3. Focus: Prioritize key performance indicators and displays with immediate utility and connections to evidence-based research.
4. Functionality: Provide educators with user-friendly tools that simultaneously spark questions and provide new insights.
5. Security: Maintain the highest standards for student privacy, allowing educators to access data through secure means.
6. Action: Provide educators and teams with tools that facilitate collaboration, problem solving, and personalized supports.

Principles for Responsible and Effective Data Use

RISE maintains data-sharing agreements with partner RISE districts that allow RISE to securely access data exclusively for the purpose of supporting the school and district in improving student outcomes. By building and maintaining tools designed for and by educators, RISE seeks to improve data access to promote action in support of student learning. Information previously housed in disparate systems are now integrated and accessible to educators, consistent with best practices for protecting data security while improving educational outcomes for all students.

Through the RISE Network, we safeguard student information and protect student privacy by complying with all state and federal laws, using secure data tools designed by Connecticut educators and administrators, and restricting access and use only for educational purposes to advance student learning and development.

As a network, we embrace the following principles to guide our work in advancing student outcomes, while also safeguarding student privacy.

1. All students deserve an excellent education, and public school systems must promote access and equity. Data shine a light on achievement gaps and other inequities, allowing educators to deliver on the promise of an excellent education for all students, especially for historically underrepresented and vulnerable student populations.
2. Protecting student privacy is our fundamental responsibility. Data security and student privacy are of paramount importance and educators with data access have a responsibility to maintain the security and privacy of student information.
3. Every student is unique, and data help us to support their success. Students are defined by their passions, goals, and experiences, not by statistics and test scores. When used responsibly and purposefully, data help educators to understand students’ needs and support their learning and development.
4. Educators and administrators deserve access to data about the students they serve. Educators and administrators need access to timely, accurate, and actionable data to best support all students’ holistic growth.
5. Data support continuous learning, improvement, and collaboration. We believe in schools empowering students, families, educators, and administrators with information to promote achievement. Everyone must collaborate to support student success, and dat