What is ED STEPS?
ED STEPS is the Education Department’s System of Tiered E-Plans and Supports (ED STEPS). It is a process for improving the way the Department coordinates, collaborates and communicates to support districts and schools in addressing their needs. ED STEPS standardizes timelines and streamlines the process for assessing needs, developing plans and applying for funds. The ED STEPS process will be supported by improvements to the Department’s technology systems and tools, most notably the Comprehensive Continuous Improvement Plan (CCIP), over the next several years.
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What brought about ED STEPS?
The idea for the ED STEPS Project came from over four years of educator and administrator feedback, including a comprehensive analysis of the CCIP, user interviews and input from an advisory group.
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What are the objectives and benefits of ED STEPS?
ED STEPS will improve the user experience, reduce the time and resources the Department and districts devote to compliance activities, promote cross-office and program support, remove unnecessary barriers and duplication, and offer tools to help districts think more holistically about resource allocation. Creating a system to assist in breaking down programmatic silos and fostering collaboration will result in improvements in how the Department communicates on district needs, plans and funding opportunities. The system will maximize and leverage resources by shifting the approach to “fund the plan, not plan to fund,” standardizing timelines and adopting a three-year planning cycle with annual funding applications
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What is the ED STEPS pilot?
The Department partnered with 39 districts of all typologies to pilot a three-year planning cycle. This started with issuing a prototype single needs assessment tool for a three-year planning period beginning in January 2020. The Department utilized this pilot as a way to gather feedback on the systems and process, along with standardizing the timeline for identification of needs and developing plans over a three-year cycle. Pilot districts submitted three-year plans in April 2020 for the Department to implement a cross-agency review and approval process in April and May. Pilot districts also submitted a consolidated funding application aligned to the plan by June 30, 2020.
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What are the deadlines for the various components of ED STEPS?
The deadlines for One Needs Assessment and CCIP One Plan depend on your cohort. For FY22, Cohort 1 needs to have their One Needs Assessment and One Plan completed by April 30, 2021. This is an extension of the original deadline of March 31, 2021. The new deadline still should allow enough time for Department offices to review plans and provide feedback before funding applications are due by June 30th. Cohorts 2 and 3 need to have the One Needs Assessment, One Plan and funding applications completed by June 30th for a substantially approved date of July 1st. A timeline of deadlines can be found on the homepage of the ED STEPS
website.
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Who do I contact for ED STEPS questions or to provide feedback?
Please contact
EDSTEPS@education.ohio.gov for questions and feedback.
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What is the One Plan?
The One Plan is a systemic consolidated district planning tool for all district operations, strategically aligned to funding and resources and focused on improving outcomes for all students. Currently, the CCIP Planning Tool is being used to pilot the One Plan to prepare for the development of the ED STEPS system. After completing the One Needs Assessment, districts, schools, and educational organizations will complete SMART goals, strategies, and action steps to drive improvement. The ED STEPS system will include a One Plan component that will replace the CCIP Planning Tool.
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How do I know if I need to complete a one-year or three-year plan?
Plan length is determined by cohort year. For FY22, Cohort 1 is completing their three-year plan in the CCIP Planning Tool. All other cohorts will continue to complete a one-year plan until their cohort year begins.
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What is a One Plan “cohort”?
There will be three One Plan cohorts across Ohio. The cohorts are a mixture of all the different types of organizations and support levels. All organizations within a cohort will begin the One Plan in the same fiscal year. Districts can find their cohort on the ED STEPS website under
One Plan Cohort List or on their district/school CCIP Planning Tool homepage.
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Where can I check my cohort group and label?
To check your district or building labels, please refer to the CCIP Planning Tool Homepage. Your cohort label can be found under the Planning > Planning Tool tab. Another way to find your cohort is to refer to the
Cohort list on the CCIP Document Library.
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Is there a way to see plans from other districts?
To access plans from other districts, go to education.ohio.gov and search for CCIP. This will take you to the CCIP homepage. To access the public CCIP, make sure that you are not logged in. This will enable you to search for plans from other districts. More detailed instructions can be found
here.
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How will One Needs Assessment export look in One Plan?
Priority Needs will become SMART GOALS, Primary Improvement Area(s) will be strategies as well as Additional Improvement Areas identified by the district. Action steps will be informed by Root causes. More information and examples can be found in the
Appendix D: From the Needs Assessment to the District Improvement Plan resource.
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What are the required items in a plan?
Every plan is required to have SMART goals with strategies, and action steps for each strategy to explain the steps the district/building will take to implement the strategy. The recommended number of SMART goals is 3-5. The number of recommended strategies per SMART goal is also 3-5. All plans must have a student performance measure for the goal and an adult implementation measure connected to one of the strategies for the goal. Finally, every goal must have an estimate of the fiscal resources that will be used to fund the goal and strategies.
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Formula for SMART Goal
Sample:
“Time-bound identifier”, ABC School district will “
Measurable identifier” (increase, decrease, research, create, etc.) “
Identified Priority Need” (from priority needs statement)
by
“Data quantifier” through
“measurable student and adult measures.”
Strategy 1 – "Primary" Needs Statement/Improvement Area
Strategy 2 – Additional Needs Assessment Statements/Improvement Areas that apply
By 2023,
ABC School district will increase the 3rd grade OST ELA results by 9% by increasing family involvement in their child’s education and aligning the curriculum to the Ohio Learning Standards.
8 Core Learning Standards
Strategy 1 – Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment
Strategy 2 – College and Career Readiness
Strategy 3 – Community, Family Engagement
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Do strategies in the plan need to be evidence-based?
ESSA states that strategies for interventions and improvements need to be evidence-based. Some of the strategies in the plan must be a level 1-3 evidence-based strategy. However, most of the strategies will fall in the level 4 evidence-base strategy category. When possible, LEA’s should use the resources listed below to create new strategies and modify existing strategies. If there is no evidence for a specific strategy, then the district must evaluate the strategy’s effectiveness in their district and provide evidence of the evaluation for future planning. The performance measures districts have provided in their improvement plan can be used to accomplish this.
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Where can I get guidance on Levels of Evidence?
ODE Guidance on ESSA Levels of Evidence
US Dept. of Ed. Non-Regulatory Guidance: Using Evidence to Strengthen Education Investments
5 Steps to Being Empowered by Evidence
Ohio Department of Education Clearinghouse - State Resource
What Works Clearinghouse – National Resource
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Will districts be evaluated on their use of evidence-based strategies in their plans?
Yes, districts will be evaluated on their used of evidence-based strategies through a collaborative review process. More information on the collaborative review process can be found in the One Plan Guidebook located in the CCIP document library. In addition, the Office of Federal Programs reviews all district plans in the CCIP. During the review process, the consultants look for connections between needs, goals and strategies and funding applications. The district must assure the strategy is evidence-based.
The district can ask for assistance from their State Support Team contact, dependent upon their level of support. Evaluation on the use of evidence-based strategies in a district occurs during the external monitoring process. Districts that receive a desk review or an on-site monitoring visit will be asked at that time about their use of evidence-based strategies. The Office of Federal Programs and the Office of Intensive Supports monitor for this during their compliance process.
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When do districts have to submit their plans for review?
Districts that are in Cohort 1 have an earlier deadline than other districts. Cohort 1 district and building plans need to be completed by April 30, 2021. All other districts will need to have their plans completed by June 30th.
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What is the purpose of the Quality Comprehensive Continuous Improvement Plan Rubric?
The Quality Comprehensive Continuous Improvement Plan Rubric is provided as a tool for districts and buildings to use as they develop their improvement plans. The rubric outlines the difference between a quality improvement plan and high-quality improvement plan.
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Why does the rubric use open ended terminology such as, “some, most, adequate,” instead of providing a definitive number of required goals, strategies, etc. in the district plan?
Each district has unique needs and capacity to implement its improvement plan. A small rural district will most likely identify fewer priority needs and have less support staff for implementation than a large urban district which serves a broader population of students and has multiple levels of support staff within the district. When determining the number of goals and strategies to include in an improvement plan, a district should consider their greatest needs that could have the greatest impact on their results as well as the time and resources available. These decisions are best made at the district and school level.
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Where can I find more resources on One Plan?
In the CCIP Document Library>CCIP>FY22 Planning Tool Resources.
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