BEST PRACTICES FOR A COLLABORATIVE APPROACH TO DATA

BEST PRACTICES FOR A COLLABORATIVE APPROACH TO DATA Sprockets Network Conference March 8, 2013

The role of data You are here Improved Outcomes For Youth Integrated Data System Supports all A/S system functions

The youth sector After School Program Summer Programs School Youth Family Health Services Social Services Religious Institutions Neighborhood

Integrated data systems A set of shared capacities and technologies that enables the collection, analysis, and utilization of information about youth and programs Data System Capacity Technology

What Integrated Data Can Add • 80% of students participated in the after school program How many students attended a particular after school program?

What Integrated Data Can Add • 80% of students participated in the after school program • 50% of students in the after school program also had parents in classes • English learners were least likely to be in leadership programs • Students in more than one program were more likely to score proficient or above

Components of a data system • Guiding principles • Framing questions, data use agreements, stakeholder buy-in • Technology • MIS, data aggregation • Data analysis and use • Data collection, data analysis, data dialogue, strategic communications, action

The Youth Data Archive Looks at youth data across agencies and settings Links individual-level data from partners to answer shared questions about youth served in common Is driven by the questions of community members to inform policy and programmatic changes

JGC is neutral third party Community partners own their data User-focused approach to developing questions, interpreting & presenting findings Long-term commitment to community partners—a design/build/revise approach Focus on actionable knowledge, proactive responses and community capacity building YDA’s guiding principles

YDA data School districts – school attendance, achievement scores, discipline Program providers – OST program attendance Public agencies – child welfare, probation, Youth survey data – school climate, health All data have to be individually identified to be linked across agencies

The YDA process

Case study: Community schools • Five schools in Redwood City, CA, that provide wrap-around service to students and families • Questions: • What are the participation patterns in services and combinations of services at the community schools? • What are the relationships between service participation and student outcomes?

Data and analysis • Linked data on 250 programs and services for youth and families to school data

Communicating the data Annual cycle of: Discussion of initial analysis Presentations to school board and funder “Data talks” with the site coordinators

Analysis findings and action • Increasing participation over time, with the majority of students accessing multiple types of services • Actions: Parent leadership and goal setting, program targeting, improving MIS • Family engagement linked to ELD scores, especially combined with extended learning • Actions: Policy to support more community schools, professional development on family engagement, more research

Challenges to shared data • Technical– incomplete, inaccurate, missing data; insufficient capacity • Organizational—leaders’ buy in & advocacy; churn; regulatory hurdles • Political—trusting university-based researchers, trusting each other

Discussion questions • What are the opportunities you see for using shared data in your organization? In the Sprocket network? Beyond? • Who are the stakeholders in your data system? How can we engage them? • What are some possible guiding principles for working together on shared data? • What challenges do you anticipate as we continue building a shared data system in Saint Paul? How can those challenges be addressed?

BEST PRACTICES FOR A COLLABORATIVE APPROACH TO DATA