Education Commission of the States has researched Statewide Longitudinal Data Systems (SLDS) policies and resources in all states and the District of Columbia to provide this comprehensive resource. Click on the questions below for 50-State Comparisons that show how all states approach specific SLDS policies. View a specific state’s approach by selecting the state profiles page.
Defining Statewide Longitudinal Data Systems and Core Agencies:
Four state agencies are designated as core agencies within any SLDS: early learning, K-12, postsecondary and workforce. For the purposes of this 50-State Comparison, an SLDS is defined as a data system with formal connections across two or more of these core agencies. States with at least two of these core agencies in their data systems are designated as having established an SLDS. As such, the data systems that meet this definition might not always be those systems associated with the federal SLDS Grant Program.
50-State Comparisons
System Information
- Does the state have a Statewide Longitudinal Data System?
- What is the name of the SLDS?
- Which of the four core agencies (early learning, K-12, postsecondary, workforce) are included in the SLDS?
- How are the connections structured?
- Does the SLDS include a publicly available data dictionary?
System Establishment
- How was the SLDS established?
- Did the state receive a federal SLDS grant?
- In which years did the state receive a grant, and how much funding did the state receive?
System Governance and Privacy
- Does the state specify how the SLDS is governed?
- Who makes up the membership of the SLDS governing board/committee?
- Are individuals, organizations or agencies from sectors outside of education and workforce included in SLDS governance?
- Does the state publish formal data privacy policies for the SLDS that expand upon federal and state privacy laws?
All data points for all states
Key Takeaways
- Forty states currently connect data between at least two of the four core systems (early learning, K-12, postsecondary and workforce).
- Forty-nine states and the District of Columbia received a federal SLDS grant, with 26 states receiving a grant during the 2019 round of funding.
- We designated four state agencies as core agencies within any SLDS: early learning, K-12, postsecondary and workforce.
- Thirty states incorporate early learning data into the SLDS.
- Thirty-nine states incorporate K-12 data into the SLDS.
- Thirty-five states incorporate postsecondary data into the SLDS.
- Twenty-seven states incorporate workforce data into the SLDS.
- Nineteen states have a full pre-K through workforce SLDS.
- Thirty-three states feature a publicly available data dictionary for their data system.
- Thirty states have published formal data privacy policies or guidelines for the SLDS that go beyond federal and state privacy requirements.
