OMB commends the
Department for collaborating internally and with external federal
partners to make this data collection a robust and sound survey.
OMB agrees with the Department that the CRDC could serve as the
base for a system of surveys. We also expect OCR and NCES to
continue their strong collaboration. The Department’s external
discussions have brought to light that more work needs to be done
before the Department can collect valid and reliable data on the
numbers of students in juvenile detention facilities. OMB expects
that by 2016, the Department will have had opportunity to make
sufficient progress to decide whether it can expand the collection
to include these facilities, and also will have completed quality
assessments of different content areas in the survey; and therefore
it gives this collection a two-year clearance.
Inventory as of this Action
Requested
Previously Approved
02/29/2016
36 Months From Approved
17,620
0
0
1,510,075
0
0
0
0
0
The collection, use and reporting of
education data is an integral component of the mission of the U.S.
Department of Education (ED). EDFacts, an ED initiative to put
performance data at the center of ED's policy, management, and
budget decision-making processes for all K-12 education programs,
has transformed the way in which ED collects and uses data. For
school years 2009-10 and 2011-12, the Civil Rights Data Collection
(CRDC) was approved by OMB as part of the EDFacts information
collection (1875-0240). For school years 2013-14 and 2015-16, the
Office for Civil Rights (OCR) is clearing the CRDC as a separate
collection from EDFacts. ED's CRDC information collection is
modeled after the most current EDFacts information collection
approved by OMB (1875-0240). As with previous CRDC collections, the
purpose of the 2013-14 and 2015-16 CRDC is to obtain vital data
related to the civil rights laws requirement that public local
educational agencies (LEAs) and elementary and secondary schools
provide equal educational opportunity. ED has extensively analyzed
the uses of every data element collected in the 2011-12 CRDC and
sought advice from experts across ED to refine, improve, and where
appropriate, add or remove data elements from the collection. The
2013-14 and 2015-16 CRDC redesign effort ensured that, while
several new indicators were added to the collection, data elements
also were removed where appropriate. ED also made the CRDC data
definitions and metrics consistent with other mandatory collections
across ED wherever possible. The proposed additions and changes to
the 2013-14 and 2015-16 CRDC reflect the need for a deeper
understanding of and accurate data about the educational
opportunities and school context for our nations students. ED seeks
OMB approval under the Paperwork Reduction Act to collect from
school districts, the elementary and secondary education data
described in the sections of Attachment A. In addition, ED requests
that LEAs and other stakeholders respond to the directed questions
found in Attachment A-5.
US Code:
20
USC 3411 Name of Law: Department of Education Organization
Act
US Code: 20
USC 3412(g) Name of Law: Department of Education Organization
Act
US Code: 20
USC 3471(a) Name of Law: the Department of Education
Organization Act
US Code:
20 USC 3413 (C)(1) Name of Law: Department of Education
Organization Act
US Code: 20
USC 3472 Name of Law: the Department of Education Organization
Act
US Code: 20
USC 7913 Name of Law: Elementary and Secondary Education Act of
1965 (ESEA)
US Code: 20
USC 7914 Name of Law: Elementary and Secondary Education Act of
1965 (ESEA)
Recent administrations of the
CRDC 2004, 2006, and 2009-10 were conducted primarily on-line
through a survey tool in partnership with EDFacts. As such, through
2011, it was cleared under OMB control # 1875-0240. However,
beginning with the 2013-14 CRDC, OCR is submitting this new
separate clearance package for the CRDC. Therefore, the entire
amount of the burden associated with the 2013-14 CRDC is
attributable to OCR. Additionally, the SY 2013-14 CRDC survey
content will increase by approximately 17 percent (over the 2011-12
CRDC) as a result of program change due to agency discretion. OCR
relies on CRDC data as it investigates complaints alleging
discrimination, determines whether the federal civil rights laws it
enforces have been violated, initiates proactive compliance reviews
to focus on particularly acute or nationwide civil rights
compliance problems, and provides policy guidance and technical
assistance to educational institutions, parents, students, and
others. The proposed additions and changes to the 2013-14 and
2015-16 CRDCs reflect the need for a deeper understanding of and
accurate data about the educational opportunities and school
context for our nations students. Although there is a net increase
to the number of burden hours, this net increase includes an
estimated reduction of 59,000 burden hours above what the burden
would have been due to the burden reduction initiative that ED is
undertaking through implementation of a new survey tool, which will
allow for additional opportunities to minimize the amount of
responses that school districts and schools will be required to
make (by skipping questions that are not applicable to a particular
school or district).
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that
the collection of information encompassed by this request complies
with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR
1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding
the proposed collection of information, that the certification
covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a
benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control
number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of
these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked
and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.