This toolkit is a resource for Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Part C (early intervention) and Part B 619 (early childhood special education) stakeholders, such as State Interagency Coordinating Council (SICC) and State Advisory Panel (SAP) representatives, whose role it is to provide input on issues and decisions that relate to or affect programs that serve young children with development delays and disabilities and their families.
Stakeholders can use this toolkit independently or Part C/Part B 619 staff can work through the toolkit with stakeholders in a facilitated manner. Facilitating stakeholders’ use of the toolkit may involve staff supplementing the content with state-specific contextual information, data, and/or policy guidance.
What is contained in this toolkit?
This toolkit contains information, activities, and other resources to increase stakeholders’ knowledge and understanding of Part C and Part B 619 program data and other data-related topics that are pertinent to the role of a systems-level stakeholder.
In this toolkit, users will find six topical sections:
- Data as Information
- IDEA Section 618 Data
- The State Performance Plan/Annual Performance Report (SPP/APR)
- The State Systemic Improvement Plan (SSIP)
- Data Privacy and Confidentiality
- Cross-Program/Agency Data Linkages
Each topical section is presented using the following structure:
- What is this topic about? Brief overview of the topic
- What do I need to know? Key points about the topic that stakeholders need know
- How do I build my knowledge? A content presentation providing more in-depth information about the topic
- How can I apply this to my state? Suggestions for how stakeholders can take what they learned about the topic and apply it to their state’s context
- What are some related resources? Supplemental resources on the topic
Why should I be interested in using this toolkit?
Data play a role in virtually every aspect of the administration of IDEA Part C and Part B 619 programs. When partnering with state staff to advise on activities and decision-making around lead agency responsibilities, stakeholders are often asked to review programmatic and policy data; however, they do not always feel that they have the needed knowledge about those data to participate fully and meaningfully in conversations. The table below outlines common responsibilities of Part C and Part B 619 systems-level stakeholders, and the data-related knowledge that they need to effectively carry out those responsibilities.
The responsibilities of IDEA Part C and Part B 619 systems-level stakeholders may include partnering with the state’s lead agency in:
- Developing program policies and procedures (e.g., legislative/regulatory policies);
- Collaborating with influential groups and government officials to achieve full participation, coordination, and cooperation of all appropriate private and public agencies; and
- Monitoring the implementation of the statewide system of services and addressing program quality issues.
Effectively fulfilling these responsibilities requires stakeholders to have knowledge about a variety of data-related topics, such as:
- How data are used as information for decision-making
- Federal and state data collection and reporting requirements for IDEA programs
- Data privacy and confidentiality considerations
- The ways and reasons why IDEA programs are linking data with data from other programs
Need assistance with using the toolkit?
DaSy Center staff are available to provide assistance with using this toolkit, including supporting IDEA Part C and Part B 619 state staff with identifying ways to use the toolkit with stakeholders. For technical assistance, please contact DaSy. We also invite users to email us with ideas for other featured topics to include in the toolkit.
Published June 2017.