Electronic High School Transcript System Best Practices - PESC

Electronic High School Transcript SystemBest PracticesJanuary 2010

Data Standards - Best PracticesOverview of Presentation• Brief description of statewide collaborative partnership• North Carolina’s statewide approach to implementingelectronic high school transcripts (eHSTs) using nationalstandards• System infrastructure overview focusing on current datastandards and usage• Sustainability• Future Developments

Statewide Collaborate Partnership• CFNC is a joint effort of the North Carolina StateEducation Assistance Authority, College Foundation,Inc., and Pathways of North Carolina.• The Pathways partnership was requested by theUNC Board of Governors, funded by the 1999General Assembly, and includes the:• NC Department of Public Instruction (K-12)• NC Community College System (58)• NC Independent Colleges and Universities (36)• UNC System (16)

Statewide Collaborate Partnership501(c)(3)nonprofit -administersgrants, loansand savingsprogram onbehalf of thestateState agencyresponsible forstatewide college aidprograms – grantsscholarships, loans, 529savingsState-fundedK-16partnership(NCDPI,NCCCS,NCICU, UNC)administeredby UNCGeneralAdministration

North Carolina – Statewide Approach• North Carolina’s eHST initiative beganon/before 1999 - funding provided for thepublic schools to convert to a common SISSystem, “NCWISE”• Requirement of funding -> electronic highschool transcripts (eHSTs)• Capitalize on resources & technologyCommon SIS System (NCWISE)NC Standardized HS TranscriptCentral Repository

Statewide College Access Portal – CFNC.orgElectronic High School Transcript OrderingStudents can submitonline admissionsapplications to any ofthe 110 participatingcampuses on CFNC.orgElectronic transcripts canbe requested with onlineapp submittal or withinTranscript Manager

Transcript Manager - studentprovides login credentials anddata criteria before requestcan be madeData provided for therequest:•First and Last Name•Date of Birth•NCWISE Student ID•Gender•High School•E-mail Address

Transcript Manager - providestracking•All transcript activity(current and final)

System Infrastructure Overview*3 NCWISE data repositories2 Electronic High School Transcript Processes1. NCDPI Main – host for 480 public/charter HSs (eHST process usesANSI X12 EDI transaction sets with the UT Austin SPEEDE Server)2. Wake County – host for 26 public HSs (eHST process uses PESC XMLhigh school transcript schema and web services)3. Charlotte-Mecklenburg County – host for 32 public HSs (eHST processnot yet implemented)

System Infrastructure OverviewNCDPI - StandardsNCDPI – Data CenterNCWISE DataWarehouse• ANSI X12 data standards:– TS146– TS147– TS130– TS131– TS997HighSchoolHighSchoolHighSchool• UT SPEEDE Server• 2 Trading Partners – DPI & CFNC• High School transcript requestsfrom 440 high schools; delivered to110 NC Colleges and Universitiesvia CFNC.org

Electronic Document Exchange - UsageHigh School Transcripts – NCDPI Main Data CenterSystem went live in 2003 with 33 high schools – added schools to CFNCTranscript system as they were converted to NCWISE•Fall 2003 – 33 high schools•Fall 2009 – 440 high schools•Process approximately 5,200 transcripts / month•Heavier traffic in fall and early summer

Electronic Document ExchangeHigh School Transcripts – NCDPI Main Data CenterAdvantagesCurrent transcript request created & processedwith about a 24-72 hour turnaround time fromrequest to deliveryFinal transcript request automatically created –released when final grades and diplomareceived dates are posted at the high schoollevelStudent TrackingCounselor TrackingDisadvantagesSystem is complex and sometimes difficult totrack errorsIncrease in turnaround time when errors occurFinal transcript requests get created BEFOREsystem knows the current transcript processedsuccessfully – creates additional unnecessarywork and bandwidth on the systemIncreased usage over the years – system notequipped to handle large files

System Infrastructure OverviewWake County Public School System (WCPSS) - StandardsWake Co – Data Center• PESC XML high school transcriptschema version 1.0NCWISE DataWarehouse• Web Services for point-to-point deliveryHighSchoolHighSchoolHighSchool• 2 Trading Partners – WCPSS & CFNC• High School transcript requests from27 high schools; delivered to 110 NCColleges and Universities viaCFNC.org

Electronic Document Exchange - UsageHigh School Transcripts - Wake Co. Data CenterSystem went live in May 2009 with 8 high schools•Fall 2009 – 26 high schools•Process approximately 2,200 transcripts / month•Heavier traffic in fall and early summer

Electronic Document ExchangeHigh School Transcripts – WCPSSAdvantagesReal-time delivery of current transcriptDisadvantagesHad to write mapping for XML to EDI toconform to current systemFinal transcript request automaticallycreated AFTER successful response fromcurrent transcript requestStudent TrackingCounselor Tracking

Electronic Document ExchangeHigh School TranscriptsCharlotte-Mecklenburg Data CenterCMSS– Data Center• Future development for electronictranscriptsHighSchoolNCWISE DataWarehouseHighSchoolHighSchool• PESC XML high school transcriptschemas and web servicesinfrastructure

System Infrastructure OverviewCFNC.org 110 Participating Colleges & Universities• 110 Colleges & Universities on CFNC.org• Authenticated Administrative Center to download CFNCdata– Prospects– Applications– Transcripts• Transcript download formats for collegesPDFTS130PESC XML•Manual load•Import to imaging systemImport to SISImport to SIS

SustainabilityStudent interface for high school transcript ordering built onstatewide college access web portal that is mostly fundedby NC General AssemblyExclusive Agreement between CFNC and NCDPI forelectronic high school transcript processingPESC and ANSI Standards utilized in all electronictranscript document exchangesANSI X12 EDIPESC XML SchemasFile Transfer ProtocolWeb Services

Sustainability (continued)Increased usage/volume as high schools are added to theCFNC Transcript SystemConsistent encouragement for use of data standards whenenhancements, upgrades and new development occurs

Future DevelopmentUpgrade NCDPI’s EDX system from ANSI X12 and FileTransfer Protocol to PESC XML and Web ServicetechnologiesImplement electronic transcripts among the 110 CFNCparticipating colleges using PESC XML and Web ServicetechnologiesEnhance existing high school electronic transcripts toprovide capability to send eHSTs out-of-state

Summary• Statewide electronic high school transcript system built on collegeaccess web portal, CFNC.org, serving over 500 public high schoolsand 110 colleges and universities• 3 Trading Partners (CFNC, NCDPI, WCPSS) which are all entities ofa unique collaborative partnership that make up CFNC• Electronic high school transcripts delivered in variousformats/standardsPDFTS130PESC XML•Manual load•Import to imaging systemImport to SISImport to SIS• Future enhancements to develop statewide electronic collegetranscript system

AcknowledgementsName Title OrganizationAdam Andruchowitz Information Technology Director Wake County Public SchoolSystemBetsy Baugess Software & Data Manager NC Department of PublicInstructionDawn Castonguay Senior Director, Information Systems Wake County Public SchoolSystemKent Cooper Database Administrator College Foundation,IncorporatedRobin GreeneStephanie WhittenSenior Associate Director, Technologyand Internet Services for CFNC.orgProgrammer/Analyst,NCWISE Data ManagementUNC General AdministrationNC Department of PublicInstruction

ContactRobin GreeneSenior Associate Director of Technology & Internet ServicesCollege Foundation of North CarolinaUNC General Administrationgreeners@northcarolina.edu