FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)

What is the VDC?

The Vermont Data Consortium (VDC) is a collaborative of supervisory unions/districts partnering with the Vermont Department of Education (DOE) and TetraData Corporation to deliver an Education Data Warehouse (EDW), data analysis tools and training for data-driven decision making for its members. The function of the VDC is to ensure that Vermont supervisory unions/districts have cost-effective, timely and accurate student and educational data available to address continuous school improvement as well as state and federal accountability and reporting requirements.

Click here for a VDC Brochure, a presentation about the VDC Organization and a VDC membership list and map.

Is the Education Data Warehouse (EDW) the same thing as our Student Information System ?

No. Student information systems (SIS) or student management systems (SMS) are not data warehouses. These systems are called 'transactional' or 'operational' systems and are used for transactions related to your school's day-to-day business. A data warehouse is part of a data repository that holds all of the mission-critical data that your supervisory union/districts wants to use for data-driven decision-making. Although it is not limited to any specific set or type of data, an education warehouse typically contains student demographic data, assessment data, attendance data, discipline data, and course grades as well as teacher-related data. The SU/SD defines the data contained within the warehouse. Student information systems are typically one source of data for a data warehouse. The short paper, "Data Tools", by Dr. Victoria Bernhardt helps explain the differences between student information systems, instructional management systems and data warehouses.

What does my SU/SD receive for our VDC membership?

The VDC has a two-tiered membership structure detailed below.

Basic ($2K)	Premium ($5K, $7K or $9K)
5 EDW User Accounts for any staff in the SU/SD that the superintendent approves	"Unlimited" EDW User Accounts for any staff in the SU/SD that the superintendent approves
Training for each EDW user account	Training for each EDW user account
Support throughout the year for each user account (typically phone & email support)	Support throughout the year for each user account (typically phone & email support)
Free attendance at an VDC-sponsored workshops that focus on specialty topics like NECAP or Special Education data	Free attendance at an VDC-sponsored workshops that focus on specialty topics like NECAP or Special Education data
NECAP roster and individual reports and enrollment reports based on EDW data	NECAP roster and individual reports and enrollment reports based on EDW data
Collaborate with other SUs/SDs	Collaborate with other SUs/SDs
	Creation and maintenance of a Local Data Warehouse based on the Common District Model and linked to the state warehouse by the state student id#
	8 days of VDC staff time (up to 5 on-site) to work on creation/maintenance of the local warehouse, facilitate customized trainings or workshops, and build customized reports based on EDW and local data

What is the EDW?

The Education Data Warehouse (EDW) is a large, consolidated database with a set of analysis tools that allow users to access data from the system through a secure, internet connection. The EDW was built as a collaborative project between the VDC, the Vermont Department of Education (DOE) and the TetraData Corporation and first went online in October 2005. The EDW contains data submitted by Vermont schools to the DOE through the Student Census, Child Count, State Assessment system, Educator Census, Financial Stat report and other data collections. The EDW is the one place that all this data is consolidated in one system. In addition, the EDW allows VDC members to add additional local data such as student schedules, course grades, local demographics and local assessments to the system and relate it to the DOE data. Click here for a presentation about the EDW Analysis Suite (6.5MB).

Who uses the EDW?

Currently, the primarily users of the system are supervisory union/district and school administrative staff such as superintendents, principals, curriculum coordinators, special education/student services directions and teacher leaders/content specialists.

Can we analyze the data from any computer over the Internet?

Yes. VDC members who have undergone training and received EDW user accounts can access the system from any computer through a secure internet connection. (Note: If you use the Analyzer PC tool to access the EDW, a short software download will occur first if the computer you are using has never accessed the EDW before.)

Can the Education Data Warehouse accept local data from my student information system as well as our local assessment data?

Yes. The VDC has worked with TetraData along with assistance from the Vermont Department of Education to create a local Common District Model (CDM) that contains data on students, teachers, courses, class sections, student schedules, course grades and local assessments. This model has recently expanded to allow data on attendance, discipline, programs/interventions, standards-based report cards and other important items to be submitted. The data extract specifications that are provided to VDC-member districts make it possible to create files based on data stored in virtually any student
information system. Click here to for a diagram of all the data included in the CDM.

When was the Education Data Warehouse (EDW) first up and running?

The EDW was built in two phases. Phase I loaded data that is housed at the Vermont Department of Education. The first data load was completed for testing and training in July 2005, and the system went 'live' with secure user accounts in October 2005. It has been updated with new data many times since then. Phase II of the project focused on creating local data warehouses that would supplement the data already provided by the Department of Education. The system to support local warehouses was built and put in place in the winter/spring of 2006. The first local warehouse was accessible in March 2006. Approximately a dozen VDC-member districts have created their initial local data warehouses that can function as stand-alone systems or as ones integrated with the state data.