The National Longitudinal Transition Study 2012 (NLTS 2012) will inform policy, practice, and future research by examining the high school and post-high school outcomes of youth and how these outcomes are related to their high school experiences and to the services and supports they receive. The study will describe the secondary and postsecondary education trajectories of youth with an Individualized Education Program (IEP), in comparison with the trajectories of youth with a Section 504 plan and youth with no identified disability. The current effort, Phase II of the study, will combine data from multiple sources to create a comprehensive picture of students’ progress through high school and into college, training, and employment.

Your district was scientifically sampled for NLTS 2012 from all districts listed in the Common Core of Data (CCD) universe of local education agencies (LEAs). To be eligible for selection, your district must have served at least 30 students with an Individualized Education Program (IEP) around the time of selection. As part of the Phase I collection in 2011, your district provided lists of enrolled students so that a sample of students both with and without disabilities, including those with 504 plans under the Rehabilitation Act, could be selected. Those students and their parents were surveyed between Spring 2012 and Summer 2013. The current round of the study, Phase II, includes all districts that participated in the Phase I collection, and involves collecting transcripts and other student records for the students selected from your district.

More than 2.7 million youth with disabilities between the ages of 13 and 21 receive special education services funded under Part B of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). A major challenge in developing policies and improving practices to assist transition-age youth is securing reliable and complete information on their diverse needs, school experiences, and postsecondary paths. NLTS 2012 is the only source of information that can provide a national picture of the experiences or youth with and without disabilities in the same school districts. The data collected under Phase II of the study are essential to shaping policy for youth with disabilities and are part of a congressionally mandated assessment of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). While NLTS 2012 is entirely voluntary, the participation of every district is critical to ensure the completeness and accuracy of results.

Your district is asked to provide data on course-taking, attendance, and assessment data, such as courses, credits, grades, statewide 8th grade and high school state assessment scores, dates of enrollment, attendance, suspensions, expulsions, whether a youth completed high school, and, if so, the type of credential earned. A full list of the data elements requested may be found here.

In addition to the data provided by your district, the study will collect college enrollment information from the National Student Clearinghouse, college financial aid information from the Department of Education’s Federal Student Aid (FSA) data files, employment and earnings maintained by the Social Security Administration (SSA), and information about vocational rehabilitative services and supports from the Rehabilitative Services Administration (RSA).

No. Student or parental consent is not required for release of student record information for the purposes of these studies. The data request conforms fully to the requirements of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA) (34 CFR Part 99). Under FERPA’s general consent rule, ED is authorized to obtain student level data from districts for any study-eligible student, without prior consent, if the disclosure is to authorized representatives of the Secretary of Education [34 CFR § 99.31(a)(3)]. Student data are subject to strict protections that are adhered to by ED and its contractor organizations. You can review this legislation on the U.S. Department of Education's website at http://www2.ed.gov/policy/gen/reg/ferpa.

Section 617(c) of IDEA, 20 U.S.C. 1417(c) and its regulations in 34 CFR sections 300.610 through 300.626 incorporate this FERPA provision for students with disabilities. You can review this legislation on the U.S. Department of Education's website at http://www2.ed.gov/policy/gen/reg/ferpa.

FERPA regulations also stipulate that all disclosures be reported in the student record, with an indication of who received the information and their legitimate interests in the information. For schools without electronic student record systems, we have provided a Disclosure Notice for inclusion in students’ records. These notices fulfill the requirements of 34 CFR 99.32(a) pursuant to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (20 U.S.C. 1232g). Electronic student record systems will require the insertion of a similar statement.

First, we ask that you upload students’ transcripts to the secure study website. If you are not able to upload transcripts, we also provide the following options:

• Faxing hard-copy transcripts to a secure eFax (electronic) account;
• Sending redacted hard-copy transcripts by overnight express delivery service.

We anticipate that much of the requested data elements will be available on students’ transcripts. For any requested data that are not on transcripts, we ask that you provide the data in a spreadsheet template.

NCEE is required to follow strict procedures to protect the confidentiality of persons in the collection, reporting, and publication of data. All information that could be used to identify individuals may be used only for statistical purposes and may not be disclosed or used in a way that identifies individual participants, except as required by law (ESRA 2002, 20 U.S.C. § 9573). When reporting the results, data will be presented so that individuals cannot be identified. When reporting the results, data will be presented only in aggregate form so that individuals and institutions (e.g., schools, school districts, colleges, workplaces) cannot be identified.

Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) protocol will be used to encrypt the data uploaded to the study website. Computer accounts used to access data will be password protected with multilevel access controls to ensure that only authorized individuals are allowed access to confidential data. All members of the study team having access to confidential data have been trained on the importance of confidentiality and data security and have signed affidavits of nondisclosure.

The National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance (NCEE), in the United States Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences, has contracted with RTI International to collect data for this study. RTI International is an independent, nonprofit research organization located in Research Triangle Park, NC that was established as a joint action of the three major universities in North Carolina: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, North Carolina State University, and Duke University. RTI International began operations in 1958 and has provided contract support to the Department of Education on education research since 1971.

The Help Desk at RTI International is available to answer your questions about NLTS 2012. Please call (855) 500-1436 or e-mail nlts2012@rti.org with your concerns. Help Desk staff are available from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. EST Monday - Friday.