2019–20 NATIONAL POSTSECONDARY STUDENT AID STUDY (NPSAS:20)
Appendix A: Technical Review Panel Member
Appendix B: Endorsing Organizations for NPSAS:20
Appendix C: Confidentiality for Administrative Record Matching
OMB # 1850-0666 v.25
Submitted by
National Center for Education Statistics
U.S. Department of Education
August 2019
revised October 2019
Techincal Review Panel
(Panelists from May 2019 meeting to discuss student data collection)
Lindsay Ahlman
Senior Policy Analyst
The Institute for College Access and Success
4819 Beaumont Ave.
Philadelphia, PA 19104
Phone: (202) 854-0232
Email: lahlman@ticas.org
Drew Anderson
Associate Economist
RAND
1776 Main Street
Santa Monica, CA 90401
Phone: (303) 503-7741
Email: drew@rand.org
Eric Atchison
Director of System Analysis, Research & Enrollment Management
Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning
3825 Ridgewood Road
Office of Strategic Research
Jackson, MS 39211
Phone: (601) 432-6288
Email: eatchison@mississippi.edu
Dominique Baker
Assistant Professor of Education Policy
Southern Methodist University
3101 University Blvd, Ste. 345
Box 750114
Dallas, TX 75275
Phone: (214) 768-1012
Email: djbaker@smu.edu
Christine Baker-Smith
Senior Research Manager
Temple University
1301 Cecil B. Moore Avenue
Ritter Annex
Philadelphia, PA 19122
Phone: (215) 204-1822
Email: Christine.Baker-Smith@temple.edu
Cheryl Blanco
Vice President for Postsecondary Education
Southern Regional Educational Board
592 10th St. N.W.
Atlanta, GA 30318
Phone: (443) 325-5736
Email: cheryl.blanco@sreb.org
Alberto Cabrera
Professor, Higher Education
University of Maryland
3112 Benjamin Building Room E
College Park, MD 20742
Phone: (301) 405-2875
Email: cabrera@umd.edu
Margaret Cahalan
Vice President for Research COE & Director, Pell Institute
Council for Opportunity in Education COE
1025 Vermont Avenue NW
9th Floor
Washington, DC 20005
Phone: (202) 347-7430
Email: margaret.cahalan@pellinstitute.org
Vincent Castano
Dean of Institutional Effectiveness
Fayetteville Technical Community College
2201 Hull Road
Administration Building, Room 167-C
Fayetteville, NC 28303
Phone: (910) 678-8535
Email: castanov@faytechcc.edu
Rong Chen
Associate Professor
Seton Hall University
400 South Orange Avenue
South Orange, NJ 0
Phone: (973) 275-2823
Email: rong.chen@shu.edu
Rachel Christeson
Research Associate
National Center for Higher Education Management Systems
3035 Center Green Dr.
Suite 150
Boulder, CO 80301
Phone: (303) 497-0350
Email: Rachel@nchems.org
James Stuart Cole
Associate Scientist
Indiana University Center for Postsecondary Research
1900 East 10th St.
Suite 419
Bloomington, IN 47406
Phone: (812) 856-3004
Email: colejs@indiana.edu
Bryan Cook
Director, Center for Policy Analysis
Association of Public & Land Grant Universities
1307 New York Ave NW
Suite 400
Washington, DC 20005
Phone: (202) 478-6040
Email: bcook@aplu.org
Bradley Curs
Associate Professor & Department Chair
University of Missouri
202 Hill Hall
Columbia, MO 65211
Phone: (573) 882-2759
Email: cursb@missouri.edu
Karole Dachelet
Policy Analyst
Education Commission of the States (ECS)
700 Broadway
Suite 810
Denver, CO 80203
Phone: (303) 299-3605
Email: kdachelet@ecs.org
Rajeev Darolia
Associate Professor
University of Kentucky
Martin School
Patterson Office Tower 427
Lexington, KY 40506
Phone: (859) 323-7522
Email: Rajeev.Darolia@uky.edu
William Doyle
Associate Professor of Higher Education
Vanderbilt University
230 Appleton Place
Peabody #414
Nashville, TN 37203
Phone: (615) 322-2904
Email: w.doyle@vanderbilt.edu
Fred Galloway
Professor, Leadership Studies
University of San Diego, School of Leadership and Education Science
5998 Alcala Park
Office MRH-275H
San Diego, CA 92110
Phone: (619) 260-7435
Email: galloway@sandiego.edu
Thomas Harnisch
Director of State Relations and Policy Analysis
American Association of State Colleges and Universities
1307 New York Avenue, N.W.
5th Floor
Washington, DC 20005
Phone: (202) 478-4660
Email: harnischt@aascu.org
Brad Hershbein
Economist
W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research
300 South Westnedge Avenue
Kalamazoo, MI 49007
Phone: (269) 385-0437
Email: hershbein@upjohn.org
Nicholas Hillman
Associate Professor
University of Wisconsin-Madison
1000 Bascom Mall
Education Building, Room 249
Madison, WI 53706
Phone: (812) 345-1435
Email: nwhillman@wisc.edu
Aaron Horn
Associate Director for Policy Research
Midwestern Higher Education Compact
105 Fifth Ave. S
Suite 450
Minneapolis, MN 55401
Phone: (612) 677-2768
Email: aaronh@mhec.org
Christine Keller
Executive Director & CEO
Association for Institutional Research
1983 Centre Pointe Boulevard
#101
Tallahassee, FL 32308
Phone: (850) 385-4155
Email: ckeller@airweb.org
Nicholas Kent
Senior Vice President of Policy and Research
Career Education Colleges and Universities
1530 Wilson Blvd
Suite 1050
Arlington, VA 22209
Phone: (571) 800-6524
Email: nicholas.kent@career.org
Daniel Klasik
Assistant Professor of Higher Education Administration
The George Washington University
2136 G Street NW
Washington, DC 20052
Phone: (202) 994-1453
Email: djklasik@gwu.edu
Dennis Kramer
Assistant Professor
University of Florida
200E Norman Hall
PO Box 117049
Gainesville, FL 32611
Phone: (352) 273-4315
Email: dkramer@coe.ufl.edu
Patrick Lane
Vice President of Policy Analysis and Research
Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education
3035 Center Green Drive
Suite 200
Boulder, CO 80301
Phone: (303) 541-0266
Email: plane@wiche.edu
Amy Li
Associate Professor
University of Northern Colorado
University of Northern Colorado, Higher Education Student Affairs Leadership
Campus Box 103
Greeley, CO 80639
Phone: (970) 351-3796
Email: amy.li@unco.edu
Rebecca Martin
Executive Director
National Association of System Heads
3300 Metzerott Road
Adelphi, MD 20789
Phone: (301) 445-2780
Email: rebecca@nash-dc.org
Jordan Matsudaira
Assistant Professor
Columbia University
525 West 120th St.
Box 174
New York, NY 10027
Phone: (212) 678-3430
Email: matsudaira@tc.columbia.edu
Matthew Mayhew
Professor
The Ohio State University
College of Education and Human Ecology
127 Arps Hall, 1945 N. High Street
Columbus, OH 43210
Phone: (614) 292-2387
Email: mayhew.65@osu.edu
Hironao Okahana
Assistant Vice President, Research & Policy Analysis
Council of Graduate Schools
One Dupont Circle NW
Suite 230
Washington, DC 20036
Phone: (202) 696-1560
Email: hokahana@cgs.nche.edu
Amelia Parnell
Vice President for Research and Policy
National Association of Student Personnel Administrators
111 K St. NE
10th Floor
Washington, DC 20002
Phone: (202) 265-7500 x1191
Email: aparnell@naspa.org
Kent Phillippe
Associate Vice President, Research & Student Success
American Association of Community Colleges
One Dupont Circle NW
Suite 410
Washington, DC 20036
Phone: (202) 728-0200
Email: kphillippe@aacc.nche.edu
Jason Ramirez
Director of Research and Policy Analysis
National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities
1025 Connecticut Ave NW
Suite 700
Washington, DC 20036
Phone: (202) 835-0003
Email: jason@naicu.edu
Neil Ridley
Director of the State Initiative
Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce
3300 Whitehaven Street, N.W.
Suite 3200
Washington, DC 20007
Phone: (202) 687-7766
Email: Neil.Ridley@georgetown.edu
Lauren Schudde
Assistant Professor
University of Texas at Austin
College of Education 1912 Speedway, Stop D5000
Austin, TX 78712
Phone: (512) 471-1623
Email: schudde@austin.utexas.edu
David Tandberg
Vice President
State Higher Education Executive Officers (SHEEO)
3035 Center Green Drive
#100
Boulder, CO 80301
Phone: (303) 541-1627
Email: dtandberg@sheeo.org
Marvin Titus
Associate Professor, Higher Education
University of Maryland
Benjamin Building
3209
College Park, MD 20742
Phone: (301) 405-2220
Email: mtitus@umd.edu
Rob Toutkoushian
Professor
University of Georgia, Institute of Higher Education
106 Herty Drive
0114 Meigs Hall
Athens, GA 30602
Phone: (706) 542-0577
Email: rtoutkou@uga.edu
David Troutman
Associate Vice Chancellor, Institutional Research & Advanced Analytics
The University of Texas System
210 West 7th Street
Austin, TX 78701
Phone: (512) 499-4798
Email: dtroutman@utsystem.edu
Jonathan Turk
Senior Policy Research Analyst
American Council on Education
One Dupont Circle NW
Suite 1B
Washington, DC 20036
Phone: (202) 939-9321
Email: jturk@acenet.edu
Lesley Turner
Assistant Professor
University of Maryland
Department of Economics
3115E Tydings Hall
College Park, MD 20742
Phone: (301) 405-3512
Email: turner@econ.umd.edu
Mamie Voight
Vice President of Policy Research
Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP)
1825 K Street NW
Suite 720
Washington, DC 20006
Phone: (202) 587-4967
Email: mvoight@ihep.org
Xueli Wang
Assistant professor
UW-Madison Educational Leadership & Policy Analysis (ELPA)
270-H Education Building
1000 Bascom Mall
Madison, WI 0
Phone: (608) 263-5451
Email: xwang273@wisc.edu
Jeff Webster
Director of Research
Trellis Company
301 Sundance Parkway
Round Rock, TX 78681
Phone: (800) 252-9743
Email: jeff.webster@trelliscompany.org
Amanda Winters
Program Director
National Governors Association
444 North Capitol St.
Suite 267
Washington, DC 20001
Phone: (202) 719-2872
Email: AWinters@NGA.ORG
Joan Wodiska
Senior Federal Affairs Counsel
National Conference of State Legislatures
444 North Capitol Street, N.W.
Suite 515
Washington, DC 20001
Phone: (202) 624-3558
Email: joan.wodiska@ncsl.org
Federal Panelists
Sarah Hay
Director
U.S. Department of Education, Office of Postsecondary Education
400 Maryland Ave SW
HQ-LBJ-281-15
Washington, DC 20202
Phone: (202) 453-6879
Email: sarah.hay@ed.gov
Noah Mann
Program Examiner
Office of Management and Budget
725 17th Street NW
Washington, DC 20503
Phone: (202) 395-3256
Email: nmann@omb.eop.gov
Lynn Milan
Survey Statistician
National Science Foundation, NCSES
2415 Eisenhower Avenue
Alexandria, VA 22314
Phone: (703) 292-2275
Email: lmilan@nsf.gov
John Mingus, Jr.
Assistant Director
U.S. Government Accountability Office
441 G Street, NW
Washington, DC 20548
Phone: (202) 512-4987
Email: MingusJ@gao.gov
Jagir Patel
Program Examiner
Office of Management and Budget
725 17th Street NW
Washington, DC 20503
Phone: Unlisted
Email: jpatel@omb.eop.gov
Daniel Pollard
Senior Advisor, Enterprise Data
U.S. Department of Education, FSA, Office of the Chief Operating Officer
830 First Street NE
Washington, DC 20202
Phone: (202) 377-3389
Email: daniel.pollard@ed.gov
Bob Sivinski
Senior Statistician
Office of Management and Budget
725 17th Street NW
Washington, DC 20503
Phone: (202) 395-1205
Email: robert_g_sivinski@omb.eop.gov
David Smole
Specialist in Education Policy
Congressional Research Service
101 Independence Avenue SE
Washington, DC 20540
Phone: (202) 707-0624
Email: dsmole@crs.loc.gov
U.S. Department of Education, NCES
Sharon Boivin
Senior Research and Policy Analyst
U.S. Department of Education, NCES
550 12th Street SW
Potomac Center Plaza (PCP), Room 4054
Washington, DC 20202
Phone: (202) 881-9108
Email: sharon.boivin@ed.gov
Chris Chapman
Statistician
U.S. Department of Education, NCES
550 12th Street SW
Potomac Center Plaza (PCP), Room 4054
Washington, DC 20202
Phone: (202) 245-7103
Email: chris.chapman@ed.gov
Christopher Cody
Senior Researcher
American Institutes for Research
1000 Thomas Jefferson Street, NW
Washington, DC 20007
Phone: (202) 403-5826
Email: ccody@air.org
Tracy Hunt-White
Education Statistician
U.S. Department of Education, NCES
550 12th Street SW
Potomac Center Plaza (PCP), Room 4007
Washington, DC 20202
Phone: (202) 245-6507
Email: tracy.hunt-white@ed.gov
Huade Huo
Research Associate
American Institutes for Research
1000 Thomas Jefferson Street, NW
Washington, DC 20007
Phone: (202) 403-5128
Email: hhuo@air.org
Kashka Kubzdela
OMB Liaison
U.S. Department of Education, NCES
550 12th Street SW
Potomac Center Plaza (PCP)
Washington, DC 20202
Phone: (202) 245-7377
Email: kashka.kubzdela@ed.gov
Gail Mulligan
Education Statistician, Branch Chief
U.S. Department of Education, NCES
550 12th Street SW
Potomac Center Plaza (PCP), Room 4178
Washington, DC 20202
Phone: (202) 245-8413
Email: gail.mulligan@ed.gov
Jeremy Redford
Senior Researcher
American Institutes for Research
1000 Thomas Jefferson Street, NW
Washington, DC 20007
Phone: (202) 403-6565
Email: jredford@air.org
David Richards
Associate Education Research Analyst
U.S. Department of Education, NCES
550 12th Street SW
Potomac Center Plaza (PCP), Room 4037
Washington, DC 20202
Phone: (202) 245-6202
Email: david.richards@ed.gov
Marilyn Seastrom
Chief Statistician and Program Director
U.S. Department of Education, NCES
550 12th Street SW
Potomac Center Plaza (PCP), Room 4063
Washington, DC 20202
Phone: (202) 245-7766
Email: marilyn.seastrom@ed.gov
Ted Socha
Mathematical Statistician
U.S. Department of Education, NCES
550 12th Street SW
Potomac Center Plaza (PCP), Room 4004
Washington, DC 20202
Phone: (202) 245-7071
Email: ted.socha@ed.gov
James Woodworth
Commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics
U.S. Department of Education, NCES
550 12th Street SW
Potomac Center Plaza (PCP)
Washington, DC 20202
Phone: (202) 245-7291
Email: James.Woodworth@ed.gov
RTI International
Mike Bryan
Director, Center for Education Survey Design and Analysis
RTI International
3040 East Cornwallis Road
P.O. Box 12194
Research Triangle Park, NC 27709
Phone: (919) 541-7498
Email: mbryan@rti.org
Rachel Burns
Research Education Analyst
RTI International
3040 East Cornwallis Road
P.O. Box 12194
Research Triangle Park, NC 27709
Phone: (919) 316-3870
Email: rburns@rti.org
Austin Caperton
Research Education Analyst
RTI International
3040 East Cornwallis Road
P.O. Box 12194
Research Triangle Park, NC 27709
Phone: (919) 541-6333
Email: acaperton@rti.org
Austin Lacy
Senior Research Education Analyst
RTI International
3040 East Cornwallis Road
P.O. Box 12194
Research Triangle Park, NC 27709
Phone: (919) 990-8386
Email: tlacy@rti.org
Emilia Peytcheva
Research Survey Methodologist
RTI International
3040 East Cornwallis Road
P.O. Box 12194
Research Triangle Park, NC 27709
Phone: (919) 541-7217
Email: epeytcheva@rti.org
Joshua Pretlow
Research Education Analyst
RTI International
3040 East Cornwallis Road
P.O. Box 12194
Research Triangle Park, NC 27709
Phone: (919) 541-6432
Email: jpretlow@rti.org
Peter Siegel
Senior Statistician
RTI International
3040 East Cornwallis Road
P.O. Box 12194
Research Triangle Park, NC 27709
Phone: (919) 541-6348
Email: siegel@rti.org
Jamie Wescott
Senior Research Associate
RTI International
3040 East Cornwallis Road
P.O. Box 12194
Research Triangle Park, NC 27709
Phone: (919) 485-5573
Email: jwescott@rti.org
Ashley Wilson
Research Education Analyst
RTI International
3040 East Cornwallis Road
P.O. Box 12194
Research Triangle Park, NC 27709
Phone: (919) 541-7092
Email: awilson@rti.org
Jennifer Wine
Sr. Director, Center for Education Survey Design and Analysis
RTI International
3040 East Cornwallis Road
P.O. Box 12194
Research Triangle Park, NC 27709
Phone: (919) 541-6870
Email: jennifer@rti.org
Consultants
Anthony Jones
Director of Financial Aid
University of Georgia
0303 Holmes/Hunter
Athens, GA 30602
Phone: (706) 542-8207
Email: jones68@uga.edu
Stephen Porter
Professor
North Carolina State University
6416 Northwyck Place
Raleigh, NC 27609
Phone: (515) 428-0008
Email: porterstephenr@gmail.com
Endorsement will be sought from the following organizations which previously endorsed NPSAS:18‑AC:
American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers
American Association of Community Colleges
American Association of State Colleges and Universities
American Council on Education
Association for Institutional Research
Association of American Colleges & Universities
Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities
Association of Public and Land-grant Universities
Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching
Career Education Colleges and Universities
The College Board
Council of Graduate Schools
Council of Independent Colleges
Education Commission of the States
Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities
Midwestern Higher Education Compact
National Association of College and University Business Officers
National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities
National Association of State Student Grant and Aid Programs
National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators
New England Board of Higher Education
Southern Regional Education Board
State Higher Education Executive Officers Association
United Negro College Fund
Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education
[The list of endorsing organizations will be finalized prior to data collection and will include those listed above (upon confirmation) as well as any additional organizations for which endorsement is sought and confirmed.]
Linkages will be developed with existing data sources to supplement the 2019–20 National Postsecondary Student Aid Study (NPSAS:20). The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) recognizes the great value added to the NPSAS:20 data file with the addition of data from specific administrative data sources as certain data, such as specific financial aid amounts and associated dates, can only be accurately obtained from sources other than the student. Postsecondary studies, including previous NPSAS studies, Beginning Postsecondary Students (BPS), and Baccalaureate and Beyond (B&B), have included file merges with many existing sources of valuable data, including the U.S. Department of Education’s Central Processing System (CPS) for Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) data, the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS), the National Student Clearinghouse (NSC), ACT, the College Board (SAT), and the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) data. For this study, contractor and NCES staff plan to perform file merges with the following datasets: CPS, NSLDS, NSC, ACT, SAT, and VBA.
As described in detail in Section A.10 of the Supporting Statement Part A, which is a part of this request, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) (34 CFR Part 99) allows the disclosure of information without prior consent for the purposes of NPSAS:20, according to 34 CFR §99.31.
As part of initial sampling activities, we will ask participating institutions to provide Social Security Numbers (SSNs) for all students on their enrollment list. Having an initial list of all students’ SSNs minimizes the time and burden on both the institution and the data collection contractor. Institutions will only have to provide one enrollment list, except institutions selected to participate in the calibration study will be asked to provide both a fall list and spring list. If SSNs were provided only for those students selected, the institutions would have to provide two (or in the case of the calibration study, four) separate enrollment lists. SSNs and all other sample member identifying information are protected using the security measures described in section A.10.
Secure Data Transfers. The Institute of Education Sciences (IES) has set up a secure data transfer system (https://transfer.ies.ed.gov/), which uses Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) technology. The contractor will use this electronic system for submitting data. The data may contain potentially personally identifiable information (PII) such as SSNs, names, and dates of birth of study sample members along with a special file match ID (different from the ID used in data collection, on interim data files, and the restricted-use data files).
Data will be received from the IES system as well. The system requires that one party of the transfer be a registered user of the NCES Members Site and that their Members Site privileges be set to allow use of the secure data transfer service as described above. The study contractor has such users. These privileges are set up and carefully controlled by IES’s Chief Technology Officer (CTO), a service designed by IES specifically for the secure transfer of electronic files containing PII (i.e., data protected under the Privacy Act or otherwise posing risk of disclosure). This service can be used for NCES-to-contractor; contractor-to-subcontractor; subcontractor-to-contractor; and contractor-to-other-agency data transfers. The party uploading the information onto the secure server at NCES is responsible for deleting the file(s) after the successful transfer has been confirmed. This process will be used for file matching procedures described below, except in instances when the vendor already has a secure data transfer system in place.
File merges will be performed by the contractor with the CPS data containing federal student aid application information. The merge with CPS will only occur for cases with a SSN that meets the criteria for validity. A file containing the SSN and the first two letters of the sample member’s last name (but no other information) will be electronically uploaded to FAFSA secure website for matching. Access to FAFSA data site for the upload is restricted to authorized users, who are registered and provide identification/authentication information (ID, password, and token key). The file is retrieved by CPS (FAFSA contractor data system) for linkage. The linked file, containing student aid applications for matched records, is then made available to the study contractor through a secure connection, which also requires ID, password, and token key. Files will be downloaded directly into the contractor’s Enhanced Security Network (ESN). All CPS files will be processed, edited, and documented for inclusion in the final restricted use file (RUF).
A file merge will be conducted with NSLDS to collect federal loan and Pell Grant data. The resulting file will contain cumulative amounts for each student’s entire postsecondary education enrollment. There are two methods for obtaining NSLDS data. One is an automated process developed specifically for NCES studies. A file containing SSNs, names, and dates of births are uploaded through the same secure connection discussed in section C.2 for CPS which requires ID, password, and token key. The results file is transmitted back to the study contractor using the same system. In the second process for obtaining NSLDS data, the study contractor uploads a file of SSNs via IES File Transfer System. The file merge is performed using custom SQL queries and results files are downloaded through the same IES site.
NSC will be used to obtain the Student Tracker data on institutions attended, enrollment dates, and degree completions for the NPSAS:20 sample. The contractor has an account with NSC which enables sending and receiving of files securely over encrypted FTPS connections. The file containing PII will be encrypted and then submitted to NSC using their secure FTP site. All files received by NSC will be securely stored using current industry standard tools that meet the U.S. federal encryption standard. Results files will be returned to the contractor through the same encrypted FTPS site. The contractor has already established an agreement with NSC.
To obtain valuable admissions test data, a file merge will be performed with ACT data by the study contractor. NPSAS has collected and utilized ACT data since NPSAS:96. Matching of students to ACT data uses PII to assist the data vendor in performing confirmatory data quality checks. This process will be initiated by providing a file containing the sample member information then creating a password-protected, encrypted file; uploading the electronic file to IES File Transfer System for download by ACT. ACT will process the data on their database and provide the matched data on IES File Transfer System for secure download. The study contractor must establish a data use agreement (DUA) with the vendor prior to conducting this match. If the study contractor is unable to secure an agreement with ACT, a change memo will be submitted to OMB by October 2020.
To obtain SAT data, a file merge will be performed with the College Board by the study contractor. Matching of students to SAT data uses PII to assist the data vendor in performing confirmatory data quality checks. This process will be initiated by providing a file containing the sample member information. The same procedures will be used as described in section C.5 for ACT linkage: creating a password-protected, encrypted file; uploading the electronic file on IES File Transfer System for download by the College Board. The College Board will process the data on their database and provide the matched data on IES File Transfer System for secure download. The study contractor must establish a DUA with the vendor prior to conducting this match. If the study contractor is unable to secure an agreement with the College Board, a change memo will be submitted to OMB by October 2020.
To identify veterans and their federal Veteran’s education benefits, a file merge will be performed with the VBA data. These data from the VBA contain reliable military service records of all applicable sample members, so that variables pertaining to military service can be derived. The data obtained from VBA also contain detailed information on veterans federal education benefit amounts, and the enrollment information associated with those benefits. Matching of sample members to VBA data uses PII to assist the data vendor in performing confirmatory data quality checks. The data collection contractor will initiate this process by providing a file containing the sample member information. The same procedures will be used as described above for the ACT and SAT linkages: creating a password-protected, encrypted file, and uploading the electronic file on IES’ File Transfer system for pick-up by the VBA. The VBA will process the data on their database and provide the matched data on the IES File Transfer system for secure download. NCES has an established agreement with VBA, in place since NPSAS:16.
NCES staff will send files for matching after the student record abstractions are completed to ensure the availability of the maximum number of verified SSNs and to facilitate the batch mode processing that is suitable to many of these resources. Data collection staff may need to match to a source (for example, CPS or NSLDS) more than once.
All of the collected information may be used only for statistical purposes and may not be disclosed, or used, in identifiable form for any other purpose except as required by law (20 U.S.C. §9573 and 6 U.S.C. §151). The data from all of these sources, as allowed by the vendor, and stripped of direct identifiers, will be delivered for inclusion on the RUF and will be useful for creating derived variables. The derived variables will be available on PowerStats, QuickStats, and TrendStats, and both direct-pull and derived variables will be documented thoroughly.
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| File Modified | 0000-00-00 |
| File Created | 2021-01-14 |