Transcript OKAIRP March 26, 2010 Changes in UDS WHAT WE ARE DOING     When I was a young hippie, my friends and I, college students in.

OKAIRP
March 26, 2010
Changes in UDS
WHAT WE ARE DOING
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When I was a young hippie, my friends and I, college
students in the late Sixties and early Seventies, sought
change---change in society, in politics, change in the
universities.
We studied Piaget and Montessori and A.S. Neill’s
Summerhill School. We studied the pedagogical systems of
foreign countries and sometimes advocated their ways. We
believed in education. For a time, we shared the visions of
American reformers since the foundation.
Those who believe in the power of government to effect
positive change—and I stipulate that educators do believe
this---want those who make policy to be informed by the
best data available.
Our task---we who keep the records and report the facts--is to provide those data as well, as reliably and consistently,
as we possibly can. This is a worthwhile challenge.
EVOLVING STANDARDS
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From the first U.S. Census, established in the Constitution,
the effort to base public policy on accurate data has carried
down to this day. When Herman Hollerith built his
punched-card tabulating system to record 1890 Census
responses, he created a standard in applied technology that
lasted over 80 years. Punched cards, data tapes and floppy
discs have come and gone, but the nature of demographic
and educational data has endured.
Oklahoma’s Unitized Data System was created in the mid1970s as the second state-level unitary student data
system in U.S. higher education. Its first collection, in
1976, used the best technology of its time: mainframe
computers, COBOL programs on punched cards and
magnetic data tape. Record formats were based on the 80column standard of the punched card. Data were encoded
using a minimum of bytes to save costly storage space.
EVOLVING STANDARDS
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The UDS code sets of 1976 were the
standards of that day---HEGIS codes to
describe fields of study, FICE codes to
label institutions, ethnic codes used by the
Census Bureau. Data tapes were
delivered by U.S. mail or hand-carried by
couriers. Some of the smallest institutions
submitted data on hand-written paper
record forms.
All of that has changed.
EVOLVING STANDARDS
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By 1995, punched cards had seen their day. UDS record
formats were changed from 80 to 200 columns. The
number of record types decreased from 10 to 6.
The type of information being collected remained much the
same.
The information industry moved forward. Mainframes
yielded to client-server systems, flat file datasets were
supplanted first by flat databases, then by relational
databases. Data transfer was accomplished electronically by
ftp and sftp. Object-oriented programming languages
predominated in commercial data shops. XML became the
standard for educational data exchange. Web-based data
marts replaced hardcopy report printing. National code
sets for educational data changed.
EVOLVING STANDARDS
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Behind the scenes, UDS adapted and
adopted many of these changes.
Though most of the data elements
collected since the early 1980s have
not changed significantly, an
accumulated need to update
methods and formats must now be
answered.
THE NEEDED CHANGES
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Update Code Sets
Update Formats
More Automation
Modern Reports
Timeliness
Financial Aid
Participation in Larger Data Worlds
CODE SETS
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HEGIS  CIP
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FICE  UNITID
FORMATS
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Full Name
Full Birth Date
Join Enrollment and Course Descriptions
Extra Space for Course and Section
Numbers
Campus ID Number
Department Name
Revise Professional Staff Reporting
Separate Degree Reporting
XML
AUTOMATION
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Under consideration is a software product
that would import UDS data files via a web
interface, apply business rules and return
edit reports in moments. The revision and
resubmission process would continue until
the file was clean and signed off by the
institution.
In theory, it would then be finished and
usable for published reports.
MODERN REPORTS
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Remember the days when end users were
grateful and a little impressed to receive a
massive binder containing a report in all
caps on continuous green bar paper?
Those were good days, but they are no
more.
Under consideration is a front end for UDS
data using BI. Web-based aggregate
reports would be generated from the
relational database that contains UDS data
and updated automatically or on demand.
TIMELINESS
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Under increased calls from all quarters for more timely
data, we tried a plan to collect a census-date version of
UDS with a view to replacing the Preliminary Enrollment
Report. It proved to be unwieldy and not complete enough
to serve the purpose.
A policy adopted by the State Regents last year and
implemented with the recent collection of Fall 2009 end-ofterm data has improved timeliness by curtailing lengthy
rounds of editing with a finite window for UDS submissions
to be final and approved by institutions.
Following the IPEDS practice, we will accept revisions to the
data after one year. Alternately, the institution may request
a needed revision through the State Board of Regents.
FINANCIAL AID
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Noel-Levitz and the Financial Aid
Data Collection
PARTICIPATION IN LARGER DATA
WORLDS
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UDS data are used to report to national
organizations and databases:
IPEDS, SREB, CSRDE, ATD.
We link a file of graduates to the OESC
database for an important Employment
Outcomes Report.
P-20: Nationwide, states are creating
longitudinal databases linking prekindergarten to elementary to secondary
to higher education and workforce data.
Oklahoma is working on this as well. UDS
data are essential to this system.
LET’S LOOK AT THE REVISED
LAYOUTS
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Record S: Student
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Record E: Enrollment and Course
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Record M: Multiples of Course
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Record D: Degree
AVE ATQUE VALE
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UDS is an organic, living being. It doesn’t belong to the State
Regents; it’s a shared creation of the institutions. It takes a
village to support it and train it. We know, from the many
conversations we have with you, our ongoing discussion about this
project, how dedicated you are and how deeply you care about
doing it right.
We’ve listened to you, asked for your ideas and concerns through
a focus group, and applied many of your contributions to the
revisions we’re making now and planning for the future.
Through all of this, let’s remember that the game is worth the
candle. We are supporting the policymakers and informing the
public. This is the foundation for improvement, and this is our
contribution to it. We’re striving for a better world.
On behalf of the agency, the Chancellor, our departmental staff
and ourselves, we thank you for all your good work.