Secretary of State - SIS Commission Meetings Page / Link to the Legislation Forming the SIS Commission / Final Report

One of the Commissioner's priorities for transforming Rhode Island education is to develop user-friendly data systems that drive continuous improvement.  Therefore, as part of RIDE's strategic plan for transforming education, RIDE will take steps to establish an integrated statewide data system that links education, demographic, and human-services data across state agencies for every student from grades PK through 20.

To advance this initiative, and to meet the requirements of legislation that the General Assembly passed in June (link to legislation above), RIDE is convening a study commission to investigate options for the development of a single statewide student information system (SIS).  The members of this commission will include:

• a designee representing RIDE;
• the executive director of the R.I. Association of School Committees, (or designee);
• the president of the R.I. Association of School Business Officials, (or designee);
• the president of the R.I. School Superintendents Association, (or designee);
• the president of the R.I. Society of Technology Educators (RISTE), (or designee);
• a member of the House of Representatives appointed by the Speaker; and
• a member of the business community.

The Statewide Student Information System Study Commission will review various models of statewide data systems, identify standardizations and efficiencies, brainstorm about options and solutions, and offer recommendations.  The commission will issue its report to the Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education in April 2010.  The Commissioner will then review the recommendations, ensure that they align with the goals of RIDE's strategic plan, and report to the House of Representatives.

Meetings will take place on a bi-weekly basis starting on February 4.  Starting March 11, meetings will take place on a weekly basis or as determined by the Commission.  The meeting scheduled for April 1 was canceled due to the historic flooding.  There will be no meeting on April 22 due to school vacation.  The meeting for Thursday, April 29 is rescheduled for Wednesday, April 28.  The meeting for Thursday, May 6 has been canceled.
Click on the date for documents provided at that meeting as well as an audio recording of the meeting (exceptions: February 4 and April 28 have no audio recording).

Meetings and Documents Provided

February 4, 2010
	Agenda for the February 4, 2010 Meeting	A PDF of the agenda from the first meeting.
	Secretary of State - SIS Commission Page	Public Meetings page on the Secretary of State's web site.  Contains schedule as well as agendas of upcoming meetings.  Also linked at the top of this page here.
	Legislation Forming the SIS Study Commission	The online bill text which delineates the purpose and duties of the SIS Commission.  Also linked at the top of this page here.
	Legislation Forming the SIS Study Commission - PDF	A PDF of the legislation which delineates the purpose and duties of the SIS Commission.
	Recent RI SIS History	A bulleted timeline listing past studies and recent history on efforts toward a statewide SIS.
	Needs Analysis	A bulleted list of needs as expressed by RIDE and by districts in regards to access to data and ease of use of that data.
	SIS Study Commission Members	A list of the Commission members and contact information.
	Meeting Overview/Minutes	Official Meeting Overview and Notes/Minutes of the first meeting, approved by the Commission for posting.
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February 11, 2010
	Agenda for the February 11, 2010 Meeting	A PDF of the agenda from the second meeting.
	Requested Background Information	A packet containing the following: a brief explanation of the current Data Collection System in place at RIDE; a definition of "student information system" and a list of components included in the ideal student information system; a table containing the student population and the SIS used in each district, as well as the number of years that SIS has been in place; a list (organized by SIS) of the various SIS's used in RI and the districts and student populations they serve; and a table of other states who have or who are going towards statewide SIS.
	Functionality Checklist from 2009 SIS Consortium Study	A comprehensive list (approx. 65 pages) of questions and components which were sent to SIS vendors in 2009 for them to complete and send back to the consortium of districts conducting a study on student information systems.  Each worksheet (27 worksheets total) is the "header" for a list of questions and needs relating to that particular topic.
	Meeting Overview/Minutes	Official Meeting Overview and Notes/Minutes of the second meeting, approved by the Commission for posting.
	Recording of February 11 Meeting	Click to play mp3 file of the entire meeting (approx. 2 hours).
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February 25, 2010
	Agenda for the February 25, 2010 Meeting	A PDF of the agenda from the third meeting.
	Questions for States	A list of potential questions to ask the states.
	Meeting Overview/Minutes	Official Meeting Overview and Notes/Minutes of the third meeting, approved by the Commission for posting.
	Recording of February 25 Meeting - Introduction	Click to play an mp3 of the first part of the meeting (approx. 32 minutes).
	Recording of February 25 Meeting - Tennessee	Click to play an mp3 of the Tennessee Phone Interview (approx. 33 minutes).
	Recording of February 25 Meeting - Oklahoma	Click to play an mp3 of the Oklahoma Phone Interview (approx. 36 minutes).
	Recording of February 25 Meeting - Closing	Click to play an mp3 of the final minutes of the meeting (approx. 5 minutes).
	Recording of February 25 Meeting - ALL	Click to play an mp3 of the entire meeting (approx. 1 hr, 48 minutes).
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March 11, 2010
	Agenda for March 11, 2010 Meeting	A PDF of the agenda from the fourth meeting.
	Updated Agenda Handout	Updated agenda for the fourth meeting.
	Testimonies from States	A PDF packet of the states' answers to questions that was handed out at the meeting.  States include Maine, Mississippi, North Dakota, Oklahoma, and Tennessee.
	SIS Information Gathered from All States	A table handed out at the meeting that includes each state's SIS or data collection system.
	Draft Outline of SIS Study Commission Report (Headings Only)	Draft outline of the report; headings only, no content.
	SSIS Advantages and Challenges PowerPoint	Powerpoint (in PDF form) illustrating an SSIS (data transfer only model and fully integrated model), and the advantages and challenges to each.  Please note: the list of advantages and challenges is not all-inclusive, but was based on research, Commission comments from prior meetings, and other states' and districts' testimonies.
	District Consortium Report on SIS Findings for 2009 RFP Process	The final report of how the consortium of districts proceeded to select the SIS that best met the matrix/functionality checklist of criteria (see the Functionality Checklist from 2009 SIS Consortium Study for a 65-page list of criteria).  The RFP they sent out is included in the second half of this document.  After reviewing all of the vendors and their presentations, they graded every element that they were looking for to find the best SIS for their needs.
	Meeting Overview/Minutes	Official Meeting Overview and Notes/Minutes of the fourth meeting, approved by the Commission for posting.
	Recording of March 11 Meeting	Click to play an mp3 of the entire meeting (approx. 2 hr, 45 minutes).
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March 18, 2010
	Agenda for March 18, 2010 Meeting	A PDF of the agenda from the fifth meeting.
	Meeting Overview/Minutes	Official Meeting Overview and Notes/Minutes of the fifth meeting.
	RI SLDS Grant Application	Link to the 2009 RI SLDS grant application.
	Recording of March 18 Meeting	Click to play an mp3 of the entire meeting (approx. 2 hr, 17 minutes).
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March 25, 2010
	Agenda for March 25, 2010 Meeting	A PDF of the agenda from the sixth meeting.
	Meeting Overview/Minutes	Official Meeting Overview and Notes/Minutes of the sixth meeting.
	Recording of March 25 Meeting	Click to play an mp3 of the entire meeting (approx. 2 hr, 35 minutes).
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April 8, 2010
	Agenda for April 8, 2010 Meeting	A PDF of the agenda from the seventh meeting.
	Meeting Overview/Minutes	Official Meeting Overview and Notes/Minutes of the seventh meeting.
	Recording of April 8 Meeting	Click to play an mp3 of the entire meeting (approx. 2 hr, 30 minutes).
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April 15, 2010
	Agenda for April 15, 2010 Meeting	A PDF of the agenda from the eighth meeting.
	Meeting Overview/Minutes	Official Meeting Overview and Notes/Minutes of the eighth meeting.
	Recording of April 15 Meeting	Click to play an mp3 of the entire meeting (approx. 2 hr, 30 minutes).
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April 28, 2010
	Agenda for April 28, 2010 Meeting	A PDF of the agenda from the ninth meeting.
	Meeting Overview/Minutes	Official Meeting Overview and Notes/Minutes of the ninth meeting.
	Recording of April 28 Meeting	There is no audio recording available for this meeting due to a technical glitch.
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May 13, 2010
	Agenda for May 13, 2010 Meeting	A PDF of the agenda from the tenth meeting.
	Meeting Overview/Minutes	Official Meeting Overview and Notes/Minutes of the tenth meeting.
	Recording of May 13 Meeting	Click to play an mp3 of the entire meeting (approx. 1 hr, 21 minutes).
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Final Report - June 8, 2010
	SSIS Study Commission Final Report and Recommendation	This PDF (30.3 MB) includes both the Final Report and glossary (approx. 30 pages) and the appendices (approx. 425 pages).  The Commission presented this report to Commissioner Gist on June 14, 2010.
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