Military Student Indicator Background and Definition

Important Note:  This Connection was developed to assist states in preparing for the reporting requirements of the Every Student Success Act (ESSA). Reporting requirements and guidance for ESSA have not yet been finalized by the Department of Education.  Based on the reading of the law, certain assumptions have been made related to the definition of a "student with a parent who is a member of the Armed Forces on active duty."  When reporting requirements and guidance for ESSA have been finalized, this Connection may be modified to reflect any changes.

This element in the context of Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) is to be reported as one of the subpopulation groups reported within the state report cards.  The military student indicator is one of several disaggregations reported for academic assessments at each level of achievement. To report this information, the indicator must be collected at an individual student level.  Therefore, this Connection shows the elements Military Connected Student Indicator, Student Identification System, and Student Identifier to demonstrate that the military indicator is tied to the student level record.

Below is an excerpt from the Every Student Success Act indicating the disaggregation by "status as a student with a parent who is a member of the Armed Forces...on active duty":

"(ii) For all students and disaggregated by each subgroup of students described in subsection (b)(2)(B)(xi), homeless status, status as a child in foster care, and status as a student with a parent who is a member of the Armed Forces (as defined in section 101(a)(4) of title 10, United States Code) on active duty (as defined in section 101(d)(5) of such title), information on student achievement on the academic assessments described in subsection (b)(2) at each level of achievement, as determined by the State under subsection (b)(1)."

Recent proposed regulations for ESSA accountability have been published for public comment.  In these, the definition of "active duty" is clarified (corrected).  The above legislation references "active duty" as being defined in section 101(d)(5) of title 10, United States Code.  Section 101(d)(5) of title 10 of the United States Code defines "full-time National Guard duty," not "active duty."  "Active duty" is defined under 10 U.S.C. 101(d)(1).  Below are two links which reference this clarification:

NCES: http://www2.ed.gov/policy/elsec/leg/essa/nprmaccountabilitystateplans52016.pdf (Page 71 & 157)

Federal Register: https://www.regulations.gov/document?D=ED-2016-OESE-0032-0001

Reporting the element

ESSA specifically addresses students with a parent who is a member of the ARMED FORCES on ACTIVE DUTY.  This section will detail how to use the CEDS element, Military Connected Student Indicator, and how to aggregate your own elements.

The CEDS Military Connected Student Indicator element is defined as: An indication that the parent or guardian of the student is on Active Duty, in the National Guard, or in the Reserve components of the United States military services.

The CEDS Military Connected Student Indicator contains the four following option sets:

• Not Military Connected - Student is not military-connected (Code: NotMilitaryConnected)
• Active Duty - Student is a dependent of a member of the Active Duty Forces (full-time) Army, Navy, Airforce, Marine Corps, or Coast Guard (Code: ActiveDuty)
• National Guard Or Reserve - Student is a dependent of a member of the National Guard or Reserve Forces (Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, or Coast Guard) (Code: NationalGuardOrReserve)
• Unkown - It is unknown whether or not the student is military-connected (Code: Unknown)

Based on these descriptions in CEDS and the ESSA legislation, only those students indicated as "Active Duty" for the Military Connected Student Indicator would be included in the subgroup. When reporting on the state report card for the achievement level on academic assessments for military connected students, only use those who have "Active Duty".  All others should not be reported.

Other Aggregations of military indicators - Some states already collect military connected student information, and in some cases that information is disaggregated by branch of the armed forces.  The requirements for ESSA do not include a requirement at this time to disaggregate by each branch; therefore, you should aggregate all branches.  However, be mindful that a parent can be in a military branch under the Reserve Forces.  Take care to only include students whose parents are on active duty.

State Examples

States collect military-connected student information in a variety of ways.  This section provides a sampling of examples from other states who already collect military-connected data and how it aligns with the CEDS Military Connected Student Indicator.  These examples are provided as a resource for states beginning the process of establishing these new data elements within their own systems.

Five columns are suppled for each state:

• (State Name) Element Name - The name of the element collected by the state
• (State Name) Option Set - The individual option set for the element collected by the state
• CEDS Element Name - The CEDS Element the state element aligns to
• CEDS Option Set - The CEDS Option Set the state option aligns to
• Reported in the ESSA military-connected student subgroup - After algining state elements and option sets to the CEDS element, this column indicates whether or not a student with this particular state-defined code should be included in the subpopulation for ESSA

Montana:

Element Name: MilitaryConnectedStatus

Definition: As per 20-1-230, MCA, the OPI will be requiring school districts to identify students of military families starting in the 2014-15 school year. The purpose of collecting this data is identify military families to facilitate removal of barriers to educational success due to frequent moves and deployment of their parent.

Kansas (Currently)

Element Name: Child of Military Family

Definition: An indicator of whether or not student has a parent who is on active duty in the U.S. military.

Kansas (beginning School Year 2016-2017)

Element Name:  Military Connected Student Indicator

Definition: An indication that the student’s parent or guardian is on Active Duty, in the National Guard, or in the Reserve components of the United States military services at the time of submission.

Oklahoma

Element Name:  Military Student Identifier – Armed Forces

Definition: Does this student have a parent or legal guardian who is a member of the Armed Forces of the United States?

Element Name: Military Student Identifier – Reserve

Definition:  Does this student have a parent or legal guardian who is a member of a reserve component of the Armed Forces of the United States?

Element Name: Military Student Identifier – National Guard

Definition:  Does this student have a parent or legal guardian who is a member of the National Guard?