Save the date and join us for our next district webinar scheduled for
Tuesday, July 9th, from 2:00 - 3:30 pm
.
This will be our summer update including; website, data flow, vendor integrations, and answering your questions.
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MiDataHub Updated to Ed-Fi Version 2.4
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Over the weekend of June 28-30, the Michigan Data Hub was updated to Ed-Fi version 2.4
. There are no changes required for systems that you are integrated with, but the update did bring a number of key updates to the data hub cockpit application:
Custom Exports can be run for any defined school year.
Previously, the custom export functionality was limited to the current school year and one historical year. Also, it was limited to years where the data was determined to be “populated”, which ruled out running reports on any data that might be present. Populated status is defined as having one or more StudentSchoolAssociation records, which essentially means that there are students assigned to schools with grade levels. Now, the “Select ODS Year” dropdown will allow you to choose to export data from any school year where an Operational Data Store (ODS - basically your district database for the year) is created.
Custom Exports can now be selected from a Query Bank
.
The
Data Validation Queries
section of the
www.midatahub.org
website has traditionally been a location where districts can find queries to run against their data in the custom export tool. With the addition of a query bank, those queries can be easily selected from a drop down in the tool. The steps to create a query from the bank are as follows:
- From your district landing page in the cockpit application, click on "Reports">"Manage Custom Exports".
- From the “Manage Export Sets” page, you can either click to “Add New Export Set”, or click on the name of an existing Export Set Name (If one exists).
- If you chose to "Add New Export Set", then you will be in Add Query mode. If you clicked on an existing export set, then choose “Create Another Query” to get to the query creation tool.
- Type in the name of the query you wish to create and choose “Writing/Pasting the Query in T-SQL” from the “I wish to add my query by:” drop down, and click the "Continue" button.
- At the top of the “Write Query” screen, you will see a query bank drop down. Choose any one of the listed queries and it will populate in the larger editing box. The rest of the process flows the same as it has in order to preview results and save the query. Note: If you already have a query on the screen and attempt to select a different one, a confirmation screen will pop up to ask if you want to replace your query. That will protect from accidental loss of an existing query.
Application Username Management functionality added
.
Many data systems that districts use for education students require the district to have a username defined. At times, the requirements from different applications require different username layouts. Specifically in the case of OneRoster integrations, the username is an important piece that is helpful in allowing students to properly log into an application. The functionality to address this need has now been added. In order to use this feature, follow the steps below:
- From your district landing page in the cockpit application, click on "Utilities">"Application Username Management".
- Click on the "Add Application Username" link.
- Type in the name for the username type you are creating. It would be best practice to reference the name of the application as part of this field.
- Select a System Type that the username will be tied to.
- Select a Vendor for the system that the username will be tied to.
- Select the System that the username will be tied to. Ideally an API integration has already been created for the system first, but that isn’t a requirement. It can be created after.
- Select variables to create a pattern. You can select multiple variables, and in the case of email address, you can choose either the primary email address or one filtered to a specific domain, so that other email addresses will not be used.
- The preview will show an example of what the data might look like.
- The status field can be used to activate or inactivate the username functionality.
- Click on "save" to save the definition. It will automatically then be applied to any active OneRoster integrations that meet the system type defined.
Integration SFTP Folder detail added
.
When a user defines an SFTP location for an Inbound integration, Outbound integration, or for the District Folder on the main landing page, a yellow folder icon and a link to the SFTP folder are now displayed. Below is an example of the link to an Integration SFTP Folder. Notice that the Upload button is also available here to upload a file to the SFTP folder.
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Clicking the "Integration SFTP" folder will lead to the screen below, where you can see any files in the folder, upload additional files, or delete files as needed.
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The MiDataHub team has been working proactively with SAS to plan for the upcoming opt-in period for the 2019-20 school year, which will be announced next week
. The team at SAS will send out an email communication to all EVAAS district admins announcing the opt-in start date which is tentatively scheduled for June 9, and will last through the Fall (possibly into December). More information will be provided from SAS on the specific timing of the 2019-20 opt-in cycle.
The MiDataHub team has been actively working on documentation and processes that will ensure your data meets the quality threshold for EVAAS. Some of the processes and documentation will include the items below. We will have video tutorials and further instruction on these processes in next week’s newsletter.
Validation Script
: The validation script is a query that can be executed in your Data Hub Cockpit. This script will identify any potential issues and evaluate the readiness level of the data that will be provided to SAS EVAAS from your MiDataHub ODS . The script will run a series of checks and provide a report back on what issues might need correcting.
Video Recorded Support
: Video recorded support will be added to YouTube, walking you through how to create, generate, and interpret the results for the Readiness Script.
If you are a SAS EVAAS district admin, keep an eye out for this announcement from their team. Also keep an eye out for our updates in our upcoming newsletter, and on the district update webinar (July 9th), regarding the available support materials we are finalizing next week to ensure the integrity of you data meets the threshold for what the team at SAS is expecting.
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New Year ODS Plans - July 22nd
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As we begin the 2019-2020 school year, one of the things that districts will need is to have is the
2019-2020 Operational Data Store
database created for their district.
This will happen automatically on or before July 22nd, 2019. If, however, you would like to start sending data for the upcoming school year prior to that date, you can manually create one by following the simple steps below.
- Navigate to your district landing page in the cockpit application.
- Click Utilities>ODS Management from the menu.
- Click on the radio button at the bottom of the screen to “Create a new ODS for <your district name>”.
- You will be prompted to “Enter a school year for the new ODS (YYYY-YYYY). Enter “2019-2020” in that field and click on the submit button.
- You will be prompted to confirm your choice. Clock on the “Confirm NEW ODS” button. You will be returned to your district landing page once the request is submitted.
- The process generally takes 3-5 minutes to prepare your new ODS. You can use the Utilities>Activity Log and type “ODS” in the search box to keep tabs on the process.
Once complete, the new ODS will show in the drop down on the district landing page.
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New District Sign Ups:
- Hillsdale Preparatory School
New Live Districts:
- Flex High School of Michigan
- Livingston ESA
- Wayne-Westland Community School District
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