DataQuest User Update - July 26, 2018

Dear DataQuest Users:

This message is to notify you that the 2016–17 Four-Year Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate (ACGR) and Outcome data reports are now publicly available on the California Department of Education (CDE) DataQuest website at http://dq.cde.ca.gov/dataquest/. These reports are based on data submitted to the California Longitudinal Pupil Achievement Data System (CALPADS) by districts and charter schools.

New Methodology

Beginning with the 2016–17 ACGR and Outcome data, the CDE has made several changes to the business rules and methodology for calculating the four-year ACGR pursuant to new federal guidance and audit recommendations from the U.S. Department Education Office of Inspector General. The CDE has communicated detailed information about these changes to districts and charter schools, which can be found on the CDE CALPADS Communications web page located at https://www.cde.ca.gov/ds/sp/cl/communications.asp under the Assessment and Accountability section.

NOTE: The new business rules and methodology for calculating the four-year ACGR are significantly different from the prior business rules and methodology that the CDE strongly discourages against comparing the 2016–17 ACGR with four-year cohort graduation rates from prior years.

New DataQuest Reports and Downloadable Files

The CDE has developed the following new DataQuest ACGR and Outcome reports that incorporate the new business rule changes:

 - Four-Year Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate
- Four-Year Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate (with County/District/School data)
- Four-Year Adjusted Cohort Outcome
- Four-Year Adjusted Cohort Outcome (with County/District/School data)

The graduation rate reports only provide information about graduates, including how many met UC/CSU requirements, earned a Seal of Biliteracy, or earned a Golden State Seal Merit Diploma. The cohort outcome reports provide information about all students in the cohort and all their four-year cohort outcomes. Each report is viewable by race/ethnicity, program subgroup, or with county, district, or school data. When the 2017–18 ACGR data are released, there will also be an option to view the data by academic years.

Each report includes a report description, glossary, enhanced report options and filtering capabilities, and dynamic data suppression. Users will be able to apply filters to see data for all schools, charter schools, or non-charter schools. (Note: Charter school data are excluded from district-level reports by default; however, users can still include charter school data in district-level reports by adjusting the "School Type" filter on the reports.) Users will also be able to apply filters that include or exclude alternative school data or display data by one or more student subgroups.

To access the 2017 Four-Year ACGR and Outcome reports on DataQuest, please following these steps:

1. Navigate to the DataQuest home page at http://dq.cde.ca.gov/dataquest/
2. Select the desired Level (State, County, District, or School)
3. Select "Four-Year Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate & Outcome Data" located within Subject menu under Student Demographics
4. Click "Submit"
5. Select 2016–17
6. Click "Submit"
7. Select desired report from the menu
8. Click "Submit"

The CDE has also released a downloadable data file for the 2017 ACGR and Outcome data that supports many aspects of the new reports. The downloadable data file can be found at https://www.cde.ca.gov/ds/sd/sd/filesacgr.asp.

If you have any questions regarding DataQuest or the reports and files included in this data release, please contact the Data Reporting Office by phone at 916-327-0219 or by e-mail at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..