National Student Clearinghouse® Partners with American Association of School Administrators to Provide High Schools and Districts with Low-Cost, Cutting-Edge Postsecondary Student Enrollment, Progression, and Completion Research

HERNDON, Va., Aug. 9 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The National Student Clearinghouse and the American Association of School Administrators (AASA) have partnered to provide high schools and districts with access to the only nationwide student research and reporting system, StudentTracker(SM). The Clearinghouse's StudentTracker service provides high schools and districts with continuing collegiate enrollment, progression, and completion statistics on their alumni. The Clearinghouse, a non-profit organization, acts as the agent for more than 3,300 U.S. postsecondary institutions and more than 3,000 high schools, providing them with educational verification and research services. AASA is the professional organization for more than 13,000 school superintendents and other education leaders in the United States and throughout the world.

Through the partnership, AASA can provide its members with the opportunity to enroll in StudentTracker, which will allow them to query the Clearinghouse's national database containing student records on more than 92% of U.S. higher education enrollment. StudentTracker helps secondary educators learn which of their students went on to college, where they enrolled, and whether or not they graduated. Users receive 30 easy-to-read color graphs and charts summarizing their high school graduates' postsecondary performance nationwide – information that is available exclusively through the Clearinghouse.

StudentTracker users also receive student-level detail, allowing educators for the first time to link secondary data to postsecondary outcomes both within their state and across the U.S., regardless of institution type. Most high schools and districts send six to eight years of graduation data to the Clearinghouse, enabling them to examine trends over time. In this way, StudentTracker provides resource-strapped districts and states with an affordable alternative for accurate longitudinal data outcomes reporting.

"Since 2003, the Clearinghouse has helped secondary educators perform affordable longitudinal studies to improve educational outcomes. AASA's powerful membership education and information distribution capabilities offer an excellent opportunity for us to significantly extend our commitment to high schools, districts, and states," said Clearinghouse President Rick Torres. "Over the years, we have seen powerful examples of how Clearinghouse data has helped transform district performance."

"One example is Montgomery County Public Schools in Maryland, where Dr. Jerry Weast, the district superintendent, has developed a data-driven approach to measuring K-12 performance anchored by Clearinghouse data," continued Torres. "The district combined its own information with StudentTracker data to determine how likely their Advanced Placement (AP) students were to enroll in, persist in, and complete college. MCPS is just one of the many school systems that have leveraged Clearinghouse data to develop cutting-edge analyses of their curriculum as well as robust K-12 performance metrics."

"Our collaboration with the Clearinghouse represents a valuable opportunity for our members to significantly expand their understanding of their graduates' collegiate success," said AASA Executive Director Daniel A. Domenech. "Knowing how graduates fared in college will help districts better serve the students in their schools.  We look forward to working with the Clearinghouse to help our members benefit from StudentTracker's unique student research capabilities."

To enroll your high school or district in StudentTracker or for more information on StudentTracker, contact Bill Clendaniel at 703-969-2921 or [email protected]. Additional information on StudentTracker, including a sample report and published studies from high school and district clients, including MCPS, is available at www.studentclearinghouse.org/highschools.

ABOUT AASA

The American Association of School Administrators, founded in 1865, is the professional organization for more than 13,000 educational leaders across the United States and throughout the world. AASA's mission is to support and develop effective school system leaders who are dedicated to the highest quality public education for all children. For more information, please visit www.aasa.org.

ABOUT THE NATIONAL STUDENT CLEARINGHOUSE®

The National Student Clearinghouse (a non-profit formed in 1993) is the unique and trusted source for higher education enrollment and degree verifications. The Clearinghouse serves as a single point of contact for the collection and timely exchange of accurate and comprehensive enrollment, degree and certificate records on behalf of its more than 3,300 participating higher education institutions, which represent over 92% of the national enrollment.

Through its verification and reporting services, the Clearinghouse saves higher education institutions cumulatively more than a hundred million dollars annually. Most Clearinghouse services are provided to colleges and universities at little or no charge, including enhanced transcript and research services, enabling institutions to redistribute limited staff and budget resources to more important student service efforts. All Clearinghouse services are operated in full compliance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).

In addition, the Clearinghouse provides accurate FERPA-compliant verifications to student loan providers, employers, student credit issuers, student health insurance providers, the U.S. Department of Education, and others who access its registry more than 100 million times annually.

For more information, visit www.studentclearinghouse.org.

SOURCE National Student Clearinghouse