Welcome to the Postsecondary Perkins Online Data System (PODS)
The site is intended to promote career and technical education (CTE) program improvement and advance dialogue and discussion about strengthening performance for Carl D. Perkins Technical Education Improvement Act of 2006 (Perkins IV) accountability reporting. Under Perkins IV, states are required to report annually on six outcomes: Technical Skill Attainment (1P1); Credential, Certificate, or Diploma Completers (2P1); Fall-to-Fall Student Retention or Transfer (3P1); Student Placement (4P1); Nontraditional Participation (5P1); and Nontraditional Completions (5P2). States are also required to report disaggregated data on the performance of students by race, ethnicity, gender, and special population categories.
The Perkins IV Act is the most important piece of legislation affecting CTE in Illinois. Perkins IV focuses state and local efforts on continuously improving programs to facilitate the academic achievement of CTE students.
Using PODS for Program Improvement. Colleges are welcome to use PODS in a manner that best meets their individual program improvement needs. However, the following provides some suggestions for utilizing the PODS:
A recommended starting place is the Results Overview which provides overall institutional trend data for a specific college for the 1P1 thru 5P2 outcomes. Along with institutional data, statewide results are also included for comparative purposes. College results are compared to statewide results with performance indicated by an upward green arrow (+1.0 percent or more), downward red arrow (-1.0 percent or more), or side orange arrow (between +1.0 percent and -1.0 percent). Colleges are encouraged to analyze their Perkins 1P1-5P2 outcomes by A) comparing their most recent year’s outcomes to statewide outcomes, B) determining if there is continuous improvement by comparing its most recent year outcomes to the college’s previous year(s) outcomes, and C) comparing their most recent year’s outcomes to that year’s Final Agreed Upon Performance Levels (FAUPLs) for Illinois.
To take a deeper dive in analyzing outcomes, colleges are encouraged to look at race, ethnicity, gender, and special population categories to determine which subgroups are positively and negatively impacting overall performance. By selecting one of the above 1P1, 2P2, 3P1, 4P1, 5P1, or 5P2 outcomes, colleges are provided the definition (methodology and data source), trend and overall outcome data, and outcomes by subgroup. Outcomes information is available in a series of Excel spreadsheets. All colleges have the ability to view their own data, outcomes on peers, and statewide figures. It’s important to note when analyzing outcome data and comparing colleges that district populations and economic conditions are unique to each community college. Student college readiness and academic preparation vary from district to district which can impact student outcomes.
For access to comparative state/national Perkins enrollment and performance data please visit the U.S. Department of Education/Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education (OCTAE) Perkins Data Explorer.
Questions – If you have any questions please contact the following:
- Technical Issues – Todd Jorns at Todd.Jorns@Illinois.gov
- Data & Outcomes – ICCB Research and Policy Studies Staff
- Perkins and CTE Programs – ICCB CTE Staff