Report on 2002 NW eSIS Users' Conference

By Hugh Ellis, Portland Public Schools Special Education Department 

Beaverton Schools hosted a conference November 14-15, 2002, to discuss implementation of eSIS (Electronic Student Information System), a system produced by AAL (Administrative Assistants, Ltd).  Attending districts from Washington were Seattle, North Shore, Tacoma and Vancouver, and from Oregon were Multnomah County districts, Beaverton, Bend/LaPine, Redmond, Eugene, Springfield and Coos Bay.  This conference addressed general eSIS concerns.

Portland Public Schools is sponsoring a website for updated information on eSIS implementation at http://www.oregonesis.org.  This site provides general documentation and links to each district for district-specific information.

Assistant Superintendent for Technology in Beaverton, Steve Carlson, reviewed lessons learned in training and implementation of eSIS in Beaverton.  He asserted that the teachers LOVE eSIS.  He said Beaverton was successful because they moved slowly, and gave he credit to Bend for piloting the system and sharing their experience with other school districts to learn from Bend’s experience.  Steve emphasized that support from all areas within the district is critical.  By this he meant that Instruction needed to support the implementation and not just Technology.  He worked closely with the instructional administration and principals to put the system in place. 

AAL provides limited technical support and coordination for clients across the nation  (http://www.aalsolutions.com/home.asp.  Each district must design internal training in the context of its own organization and priorities—political as well as technical management.  For instance every district has a number of “fugitive” databases containing information that will  need to be included in eSIS.  As you know, PPS has kept data in multiple standalone databases, some with software no longer supported or compatible with our current office systems.

Training is key to the successful implementation of a new work system, and it is an “all-consuming” process as reported by the districts that are implementing eSIS.  The resources for training are limited (money, time, attention span) and so the training must be phased in and repeated in order to stick.  As much as possible, training should be site-based.  Summer is a big problem for staff training, not only because people forget, but also because there are programs that need to be tracked during the summer, and people are needed to enter data to track those programs.  Tacoma phased in their training and implementation, but acknowledged that the problems with phased implementation include tracking mobile students.  On the other hand, when a system is implemented on an “all at once” basis it is a tremendous challenge for training and help desk support.

AAL will continue to provide updates to their software, as any software vendor does.  Also common with any software vendor, these software updates contain “bugs” that interfere with using the system.  So there is a constant process of testing the system.  The process of data conversion (migrating data from the present mainframe) is fairly straightforward.  However, migrating data from every computer (IMS 2002) into eSIS will require additional processes.

This is an enormous issue for districts.  (It was called “your worst nightmare”!)  (In Portland, there is still not a comprehensive solution for high schools regarding how to forecast students into Special Education classes, because each high school treats RC classes in different ways.)

“Teacher Assistant” is the program within eSIS used by classroom teachers to take roll.  The training for this module is not complex, and there have been few complaints as they started using this in Beaverton.  However, taking attendance in itself is a problem at the school level because of inconsistency among users of the system.  The “Grade Book” module of eSIS is yet to be implemented in Beaverton, but it will have to compete with several standalone systems currently in use that have very useful features.  Teachers in Portland will also undoubtedly have reservations about moving to a new system for recording grades.

Other districts have had to add staff to answer questions, and of course that costs money.  One way of providing support is through users’ groups, and these could be formed within schools, clusters or disciplines.  An “eSIS update” newsletter can be very helpful, as well as online support.

Each teacher needs to have access to his/her own computer that will run the system and preserve confidentiality of records.  There have been no problems using Macintosh computers.  There are legal issues regarding the implementation of “Parent Assistant,” a program that gives parents access to student grades, attendance, and assignments.  One feature demonstrated was the ability of parents to send instant messages to teachers and vice versa.  The software groups messages by class, so that (for instance) messages from the parents of students in first period will be grouped together.  Oregon school districts have not purchased the "Parent Assistant" module.

AAL’s contract with Oregon districts guarantees production of all required state and federal reports through eSIS.  However ODE is unwilling to negotiate directly with software vendors such as AAL, therefore AAL needs help from the districts to press ODE to determine what the rules are.  AAL is developing the reporting capacity to conform to No Child Left Behind legislation, and a new product will be joined with eSIS in September called “Executive Assistant.”  This product will support limited generation of ad hoc reports that will help us with many administrative and planning tasks.  AAL is making available a “data map” which shows the location of each kind of data in the system, and which shows the interrelationships  between screens and modules which use each kind of data.

Bend/LaPine and Redmond gave us an overview of their current implementation of the Special Education module.  They trained staff using “beta” versions of the software that were not in final form, and AAL is currently working out some “bugs” so that the complete software can be released to other districts.  Bend/LaPine plan to go live with this software on December 1, and they have no option to continue use of their present legacy software after January 1, so they are pretty much “under the gun.”

• The training consisted of five two-hour sessions: 1) introduction to eSIS, 2) the pre-referral process, 3) eligibility, 4) the IEP, and 5) Miscellaneous letters and reports.  We are working to adapt the training plan and timeline for PPS.
• Teachers can access the Special Ed module through Teacher Assistant or directly from the opening screen. 
• Staff will need to standardize on a consistent  format for all dates in the system (for instance “10/22/2002” for October 22, 2002). 
• One new feature is a “menu builder” function that allows each user to identify the functions needed for the job, so that people will not have to wade through screens of options that do not pertain to their work! 
• All reports when the “Print” command is executed become PDF files, which can be stored and printed. 
• A case manager is assigned to each student, and there is a “history” bar that allows viewing of all the case managers, past and present, for each student. 
• Information on demographics, attendance and grades is brought over from other modules and is available to the teacher. 
• The sections on pre-referral and eligibility have been redesigned on a “tab” system that is very linear and more intuitive for the user.  On the series of IEP screens there are only a small number of tabs on each screen, so the process is simplified. 
• Previous goals can be cut and pasted into a new IEP, but the default is blank.  This is to encourage teachers to not just press “continue” without really reviewing student progress on each goal. 
• The prompt for transportation sends the user to the Transportation request form.  Another added feature is the “draft IEP” which allows revisions before the “final IEP” is entered.  That “final IEP” cannot be altered, except of course by calling another IEP meeting. 
• In some districts only the teacher can enter data to the IEP document, and other team members must provide their input through that teacher.  However, this is a district option, and in Portland we can choose to give direct access to the IEP to each provider on the IEP team. 
• Word documents may be attached to the file.
• There are three “global teams” within the Special Ed consortium that are addressing compatibility and cost issues for Oregon districts.  These global teams are: 1) forms and processes, 2) system codes, and 3) reports.  (Justin Potts and I are on teams 1 and 3, and Elaine Bahr is on team 2.) 
• We had an ad hoc meeting regarding system codes at the conference, mainly because Bend has to go live on December 1, and we wanted some consistency in some of the pull-down menus.  The list of “kinds of meetings” was shortened to include referral, annual IEP, eligibility, placement, re-evaluation and IEP Review/Revision.  Obviously several of these functions can occur at one meeting, but we felt that we need these processes identified on the record.  On the other hand there are several other functions, such as the functional behavior assessment, the behavior plan, and the manifestation determination, that can be part of an IEP Review/Revision meeting.
• Another “system codes” topic had to do with the number and order of the services identified on the cover sheet of the IEP.  The state form does not predetermine the order of services as the old PPS form did.  However, the software can determine that order, and this will be helpful as we transfer data between districts.  We tentatively deleted “social work” and changed “medical” to “health services” although “counseling” was retained after some discussion.  We also deleted “recreation” as an area separate from “Transition Services.”  Keep in mind that these are not binding limits, but common decisions about how the software will route service to the ODE IEP form.
• The subject of “Provider” districts needs clarification.  ODE told PPS that “provider” means LEA or other agency, and not the role of the person who delivers the service.  Other districts have been told that it is appropriate to enter “psychologist” or “teacher” in that space on the cover sheet.  This matter, along with some others, will be taken to ODE for clarification.

• Information Technology and Special Education need to share decision-making on training, a   cyclical process between training and supervision: system testing, training documentation, legal issues and process management.  Revisions will be needed as legal, procedural and technical issues emerge.  So implementation requires a feedback system from Special Education users back to IT as well as Special Ed administration.  It is not effective to “train and let go.”  Training cannot be too thorough.
• It is essential that the staff is informed of the implementation timeline, in order to have a chance to express their concerns.  These concerns are best addressed through teamwork, and users need to be empowered on a site-by-site basis.
• Bend trained 130 Special Ed staff, and PPS has about 530 staff to train, not including paraeducators.  We need to determine how many hours of training each person needs for their functions, and how many hours we can get.  (In PPS, we are exploring multiple training options, including computer lab instruction, web-based instruction, instructional videos, manuals and site-based training.  We need to find a way to train teachers who do not have the flexibility to attend trainings during the school day.)
  

• The “Plan” function of eSIS can be used in a variety of ways to do educational planning for students beyond the IEP itself.  It can be used for 504 students, ESL students, modified diploma candidates, and “CDPs” (Career Development Plans, which may overlap with school-to-work transition plans. A history of all plans follows the student from school to school and grade to grade.  However, each program has an “expiration date” that must be renewed, to avoid students being followed by too many defunct plans.
• Presently the “alert” button does not come on for a 504 student who changes school.  However, because the “alert” button goes on so many things that it may become less useful.  Nearly every student could require an “alert” for some condition or concern!
• Parent Assistant provides access to grades and attendance, and provides for instant messaging.  There is considerable interest in making IEPs available online through Parent Assistant, and this is  being studied for a possible future enhancement. 
• Parents will be able to apply for transfers between programs and schools through Parent Assistant.  Of course, that presents special problems for students assigned to self-contained classrooms or special schools.  Parents can look to see what is for lunch each day as well, and other calendar events such as non-contact days.
  

To send information electronically between districts, to parents or to users working from their homes, the software uses an encryption  process called SSL (“Secured Socket Layer”).  Parents would need to be assigned usernames and passwords, and this is best done in person at the school level, so that we can assure that confidential information is going to authorized people, and that we can maintain a secure system.

This is a new enhancement of eSIS that allows us to have a multitude of curriculum models within the system, even by school and program.  Student performance in each curriculum can be tracked according to criteria specific to that curriculum, including effort as well as performance criteria.  We might explore using this capacity for our program curricula in lifeskills, autism, vocational education, etc.  Criteria can be set for each grade level within each curriculum.  Report cards can assess the areas for each grade that are assigned by the curriculum. 

• A new opening screen for eSIS will allow the creation of menus specific to each user’s job responsibilities.  A “menu-maker” function allows people to point and click functions they would like to appear on the screen, consistent with their role and level of security access. 
• A spell checker has been added to the system.
• A reports menu can now be embedded in the role menu, so each user can see the list of reports needed for his/her function.
• An “ad hoc fields button” has been added to provide for user-defined fields.  However, it is important that the data in a new field is not already in the system!
• The Medicaid Billing module (TPMR) is included in the Special Education module at no additional cost.  It provides information about doctor prescriptions, medical screenings, transportation to service (recoverable), nurse’s visits, and medication disbursement to Special Education students.  (Administrative claims for Medicaid is tracked separately, because it is not tied to individual students.)  AAL is working with the State of Oregon on the billing interface required for this process, and error-checking routines.  We need to be attentive to the confidentiality issue; it can be a violation of FERPA if a student’s Medicaid number appears on the screen because it indicates economic status.
• “Mobile Assistant” is a feature of eSIS that allows student information to be updated to a PDA (personal digital assistant, like Palm or Handspring).  Amazingly enough, five megabytes is enough to store student information—with photographs—of 2000 students!  This is valuable for administrators and possibly itinerants and teachers in community activities, who may not have easy access to an online laptop or desktop computer.
• “Executive Assistant” (mentioned earlier) will be available in September.  It has the capacity to create user-defined graphs and tables, or data can be mapped directly to another database without requiring an extraction process.  This is based upon an Oracle program running in the background called “Discoverer.”
  

Within eSIS the qualifications of each instructor can be mapped for each course being taught, even including expired qualifications for reference.  All required reports for NCLB will be produced by AAL through eSIS.

The next meeting of the Northwest eSIS Users Group will occur the first week of April 2003 and will be hosted by Seattle public schools.