Listen and Learn From IDC's Podcast A Date with Data
Special education staff have been asking to hear from staff in other states and districts about what they're doing that's working and lessons they've learned, so we're throwing a spotlight on your IDEA data stories. Join your host, Amy Bitterman, as she chats with state and district special education staff, who, just like you, are dealing with IDEA data every day. We hope that by sharing these real experiences, you'll be able to feel more connected to colleagues in other states doing the same work, grow together, and, ultimately, improve your data quality.
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New!Nothing for Granite: New Hampshire Takes the Long View on Indicator 8 Data Quality
Episode 17
Release Date: January 26, 2023
Guests: Mary Lane, Education Consultant with the New Hampshire Department of Education’s Bureau of Special Education Support, and Michelle Lewis, Executive Director of the New Hampshire Parent Information Center
Sometimes an up-close perspective requires us to step back and take in the long view first. That’s what happened in New Hampshire, the Granite State, where Mary Lane, Education Consultant with the New Hampshire Department of Education’s Bureau of Special Education Support, and Michelle Lewis, Executive Director of the New Hampshire Parent Information Center, were on a mission to improve the quality of their state’s Indicator 8 data. In this episode of A Date with Data, host Amy Bitterman learns more about how their process of capturing the close-up family perspective first required them to step back to consider the “why” behind this indicator.
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Data Informed Decisionmaking Is Evergreen: A Date with Date in Washington State
Episode 16
Release Date: January 12, 2023
Guests: Julie Dean, Early Childhood Special Education Inclusion Specialist; Ryan Guzman, 619 Coordinator and SSIP Lead,with the Washington Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction; and Kathy Lenihan, Inclusionary Projects
Coordinator with ESD 105How states go about data informed decisionmaking is as diverse as the states themselves. In this episode of A Date with Data, host Amy Bitterman chats with Julie Dean, Early Childhood Special Education Inclusion Specialist; Ryan Guzman, 619 Coordinator and SSIP Lead with the Washington Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction; and Kathy Lenihan, Inclusionary Projects Coordinator with Educational Service District 105. Join them to learn more about their State Systemic Improvement Plan’s (SSIP) unique focus on social emotional learning in early childhood.
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A Heartland Heart-to-Heart: A Date with Data in Nebraska
Episode 15
Release Date: December 22, 2022
Guests: Kelly Wojcik, Director of Accountability, and Jamie Chambers, Part B Data Manager, with the Nebraska Department of EducationNebraska. The Cornhusker State. Where wide-open spaces and big ideas go hand-in-hand. In this episode of A Date with Data, host Amy Bitterman has a heartland heart-to-heart with Kelly Wojcik, Director of Accountability, and Jamie Chambers, Part B Data Manager, with the Nebraska Department of Education. Join us to learn more about their hopes and dreams for the state’s data processes and their plans for moving beyond a “that’s how it’s always been done” mentality to one as wide-open as the Nebraska plains.
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Data Without Borders: A Date with Date in American Samoa
Episode 14
Release Date: December 8, 2022
Guests: Herbert Boat, Assistant Director, and Jessica Tuu, Data Manager, with the American Samoa Department of Education’s Special Education DivisionOne thing we’ve learned: The search for high-quality data is bound by no border, no distance, no ocean. In this far-flung episode of A Date with Data, host Amy Bitterman travels to the heart of Oceania to sit down with the American Samoa Department of Education’s Herbert Boat and Jessica Tuu for a chat about challenges, triumphs, and their own unique journey toward becoming data-quality influencers.
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Islands in the (Data) Stream: A Date with Data in the CNMI
Episode 13
Release Date: November 23, 2022
Guests: Donna Flores, Program Director, and Nora Fujihira, Program Manager- Data & Compliance Monitor with the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) Public School System (PSS)"Data is everything and everywhere," and to prove it this installment of A Date with Data travels to the middle of the Pacific Ocean and the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). Join island-hopping host Amy Bitterman as she sits down with the CNMI public school system's Donna Flores and Nora Fujihira to talk about their journey to improve data quality; support students, teachers, and families; and work with their SEA to develop ever improving data governance policies. Pack your bags; you've got a date tonight.
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Keystones of Improvement: A Pennsylvania SSIP Story, Part 2
Episode 12
Release Date: November 10, 2022
Guests: Barbara Mozina, Special Education Adviser for the Pennsylvania Department of Education’s Bureau of Special Education and Dr. Laura Moran, Ph.D., Educational Consultant with the Pennsylvania Training and Technical Assistance NetworkCollaboration. Communication. Continuation. These are just a few keystones of improvement. In this second part of our deep dive into Pennsylvania’s ongoing efforts to increase the state's graduation rate and reduce its drop-out rate, guests Dr. Laura Moran and Barbara Mozina share how they helped develop the ability of stakeholders—especially families and students—to provide feedback by creating and maintaining a continuous flow of information and hosting focus groups. It’s the culmination of our double date in the Keystone State, so don’t miss out.
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Keystones of Improvement: A Pennsylvania SSIP Story, Part 1
Episode 11
Release Date: October 27, 2022
Guests: Barbara Mozina, Special Education Adviser for the Pennsylvania Department of Education’s Bureau of Special Education and Dr. Laura Moran, Ph.D., Educational Consultant with the Pennsylvania Training and Technical Assistance NetworkStop us if you’ve heard this one: A state wishes to increase its graduation rates, decrease its drop-out rates. That’s what happened in Pennsylvania, where Dr. Laura Moran and Barbara Mozina applied lessons learned to the second iteration of their state’s SSIP. In the first episode of this two-part A Date with Data, host Amy Bitterman hears all about it, including their efforts to establish an online “early warning” data platform, develop protocols for creating and sustaining data teams, and move districts beyond being “data rich and information poor.” You’ll be the richer, too, for tuning in.
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Rookie Season Recap: A Date with Data Meets Two New Data Managers
Episode 10
Release Date: October 13, 2022
Guests: Alyssa Kramer, Special Education Regional Coordinator, North Dakota Department of Public Instruction; and Traci Tuttle, Part B Data Management Coordinator, West Virginia Department of EducationAt some point, every one of us has been new at something. A hobby. A job. A relationship. On this episode of A Date with Data, host Amy Bitterman talks about first steps and initial impressions with the North Dakota Department of Public Instruction’s Alyssa Kramer and Part B data management coordinator with the West Virginia Department of Education, Traci Tuttle. From internal data collection and reporting to strategies for other new data managers, together Alyssa and Traci discuss tips, resources, and EDFacts file specifications, all from the newbie perspective. Whether you’re a rookie listener or seasoned veteran, this is one play-by-play you won’t want to miss.
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Commonwealths, Common Cause: Influencing the Quality of Significant Disproportionality Data
Episode 9
Release Date: September 22, 2022
Guests: Brian Coonley, Special Education and Equity Inclusion Specialist, Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education; Jarrod Slone, Exceptional Child Specialist, Kentucky Department of Education
“Improvement begins with data.” These are words to live by and a philosophy held in common by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education’s Brian Coonley and the Kentucky Department of Education’s Jarrod Slone.
In this episode of A Date with Data, host Amy Bitterman gets to the bottom of these two commonwealths' not-so-common strategies to support districts, which include a focus on increased transparency and data stewardship. Jarrod and Brian also discuss how root-cause analyses and long-term strategic planning can lead to meaningful, substantive improvement.
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Shine On, Data-Quality Influencers: A Date with Data in Idaho
Episode 8
Release Date: August 25, 2022
Guests: Alisa Fewkes, Part B Data Manager and Debi Smith, Special Populations Coordinator, Idaho Department of Education
When it comes to high-quality data, there are some questions we all ask ourselves. What does it mean to be a data-quality influencer? Am I a data-quality influencer? And, if not, what must I do to become one? To unearth the answers, our latest episode of A Date with Data visits the Gem State, where host Amy Bitterman discusses this multi-faceted issue with the Idaho Department of Education’s Alisa Fewkes and Debi Smith. They talk about polishing up a school’s and district’s ability to read and analyze data through drill-down trainings that the department offers around the state.
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Influencing the Quality of IDEA Data, from Data Collection to Communication and Use
Episode 7
Release Date: August 11, 2022
Guests: Brandon Myers, Data Specialist, Indiana Department of Education
On the newest episode of A Date with Data, we “Wander Indiana” as Host Amy Bitterman sits down with Brandon Myers, Part B Data Manager with the Indiana Department of Education. Listen in as they discuss Brandon’s work as a data-quality influencer: collecting, organizing, monitoring, and communicating information about data. Brandon also shares how he ensures that schools and stakeholders understand how the data they are required to report get used. Join us in the Hoosier state, won’t you?
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On Stage in Nashville, Tennessee: A Date with Data at ii22
Episode 6
Release Date: July 28, 2022
Guests: Amy Patterson, IDEA Part B Data Manager with the Kentucky Department of Education and Richelle Davis, Education Program Specialist with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Special Education Programs
In this episode of A Date with Data, we’re on stage at the 2022 IDC Interactive Institute in Music City, USA. Join us as host Amy Bitterman performs a duet with Amy Patterson, IDEA Part B Data Manager with the Kentucky Department of Education, to learn more about her role as a data-quality influencer. Up next, Amy two-steps with Richelle Davis from the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Special Education Programs for her perspective on the importance of states and districts understanding the “why” behind collecting high-quality data—including how the data drive policy and decisionmaking.
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