Cross Agency Tracking (CAT)

LACES Cross Agency Tracking

Cross Agency Tracking (CAT) functionality has been added to LACES.  CAT allows limited data from an existing student record in one agency to be matched and copied/linked to another agency in the same LACES client.  This functionality must be configured in each LACES agency or client to allow data from a student record in the originating agency to be matched and copied to a new agency within the client; it is not an automatic process.  CAT is designed mainly for state clients who report collective data from individual agencies, but can be configured in literacy agencies with agreements allowing students to be matched and copied/linked from one independent literacy agency to another within the same client.

Why would an agency or client want to configure CAT?

Students may leave one agency and enroll in another during the fiscal year for several reasons.  The student may physically move from one part of the state to another and want to enroll in a new agency.  In geographically smaller states, a class or course of study may not be available in the agency where the student is currently enrolled but may be available in an agency across town.

In either scenario, a student may have already been assessed and earned instructional hours in the originating agency.  If the student has agreed to share data, this activity will “stay” with them if they transfer.  This allows the new agency to enroll the student without having to assess them again, particularly in clients where business rules prevent students from being enrolled without an assessment.  Or the student may have earned 9 hours in the originating agency before transferring.  The student would get a Period of Participation (PoP) record in the new agency after earning 3 hours, since the combination of 9 hours from the originating agency would be added together to give the student the 12 hours needed to be placed in a PoP.

Terms and Definitions

The terms used throughout this documentation are defined below:

Agency Configuration

To see if your agency is configured to allow CAT, look at the configuration settings.  

1. Select Agency Settings from the person profile icon menu.

   • If you do not see Agency Settings on the person profile icon menu, then your user role does not give you permission to access Agency Settings. 

2. Open the Detail panel at the Agency Data tab.

3. Look for the following configurations:

Matching Persons: Entering a Duplicate Record in the Same Agency

The process to match and copy/link a student from the originating agency to a new agency is the same process used for duplicate records in the same agency, so it is important to first be familiar with that process.

Sometimes students enroll in an agency, leave for any number of reasons, and then return to the same agency later in the current fiscal year.  Students may also leave in a previous fiscal year and return to the agency in a subsequent fiscal year.  When a student returns to the same agency for services, you should NOT enter a new student record. The student should not have multiple records in the same agency.  If you begin a new student intake form and get any of the following “Potential Match” messages, be sure to click the link to determine if the student is a duplicate or a new person, since it is possible for students to have the same first and last name.

When you enter a student record in your agency that matches the SSN, first/last name, or lastname/birthdate/sex of a student already entered in LACES, you will get a Potential Match warning. The warning will not prevent you from entering a duplicate record, but alerts you that a person already exists in your agency with matching data.  Don't ignore the Potential Match warning, but verify if a student record already exists before entering another record.  While it is possible that more than one student has the same last and first name, the likelihood that more than one student has the same last and first name, birthdate, SSN, and sex is slim.  Always verify before continuing to enter a Potential Match record in the same agency. 

(Note that entering duplicate records in the same agency at the staff, tutor, contact, donor, and volunteer areas will also trigger the potential match messages.)

Student Intake Data That Triggers a Potential Match in the Same Agency 

Do not ignore duplicate messages on the intake page.

“Potential match” messages

1.       Click Add New Student.

2.       Enter data from an existing student in your agency.

3.       You will see the “Potential match” messages based on the data you entered.  

When one of the “Potential match” messages display on the student intake page, click the link to see the student who is a potential match.  Additional information from the existing student record shows on the “Matching Persons” window to help you decide how to proceed.

If it is NOT a duplicate student and a new student record will be entered:

•  Click the Cancel button to be returned to the intake page so you may continue entering the record.  The “Potential match” message will no longer display.

If it IS a duplicate student with an existing record:

• Select the record on the grid to activate the Continue Editing button.

• Click the Continue Editing button. 

•  You will be taken to the student record so you can make any necessary updates.  (Note that you will be taken to the most recently selected tab and opened panel.)

Important note about the check boxes

→Tip

You can quickly find duplicate students in your agency by:

1. Clicking the >Searches link at the student area.

2. Expanding the General category. 

3. Selecting Potential Duplicate Students.  

   • Notice that REPLACE is the only apply option for this search.

If duplicate student records exist in the same agency, you may merge the student records. 

Matching Persons: Entering a New Role for a Person in the Same Agency

When a student record is added, the student not only gets a student record with a unique Student ID but also gets a Person ID.  The student is a person who happens to have the student role.  The same person may be given additional roles by entering the intake form at a different person area. 

For example, a student in your agency may be entered as a volunteer.  To add the volunteer role:

1. Go to the Volunteer area.

2. Click Add New Volunteer.  

3. Enter the last name and first name of the existing student on the volunteer intake page. The “Potential match” message will display just as it did on the student intake page. 

4. Click the link to see the person who is a potential match.  Additional information from the existing student record shows on the “Matching Persons” window.

Notice that one of the columns on the “Matching Persons” window is Roles.  The person being entered as a volunteer already has the student role.  You are simply going to add the volunteer role to the same person.

Select the record on the grid to activate the Add New Role button. Click the button to be returned to the Volunteer intake page.  

The fields that the two roles have in common will populate, such as birthdate, sex, and ethnicity, as well as contact info such as address, phone numbers and email address.  Enter any additional information on the intake page and save the volunteer record.  Now the person has both the student and volunteer roles, with unique IDs for each record.

If the tutor role is going to be given to the same person, you would simply go to the Tutor area and click Add New Tutor and enter matching data.  On the “Matching Persons” window you will see that the person being given the tutor role also has the student and volunteer role.  

After the tutor record is saved, the person will have three roles – student, volunteer, and tutor.

All Person Area

The All Person area may be selected from the More area drop down list.  This area lists all the persons entered in your agency with their roles.

The default view at the All Person area displays an X for each role, as well as fields called Record Origin and Origin Detail.  

Record Origin shows where the record was originally entered.  In the screenshot below, Larry Adams has the student, tutor, and volunteer roles.  “LACES Data Entry” indicates that the roles were entered in the current agency.

The common fields between each role display in read only format when the All Person record is opened.  You will also see the Person ID and a field for Person Identifier.  Notice that the Person Identifier begins with the abbreviation of the client state and an ID number that ends with the Person ID.  The Person Identifier is used to identify students entered in the originating agency and then matched and copied/linked to a new agency in the same LACES client.

Matching Persons: Copy and Link Records from Originating Agency to New Agency

The “Potential match” messages and the “Matching Person” screen are the same whether you are entering a potential duplicate in the same agency or in a different agency as a match from an originating agency. 

Students who transfer from one agency to another may be entered in the new agency by matching, and then copying/linking the student record.

This functionality must be configured in each LACES agency or client to allow data from a student record in the originating agency to be matched and copied to a new agency within the client; it is not an automatic process.  When two independent literacy agencies have an agreement to share student data with each other, the functionality must be configured in both agencies. 

Students must also agree to data sharing before any of their information can be copied/linked to another agency within the client.  The Data Sharing Agreed field is on the student intake page and at the Student Data tab/Key Info panel in all clients and agencies.  It may also be required, if the state office requested that the field be required in the client.

Remember that “Yes” (option code 101) must be selected in the student record unless your agency or client uses a different option code.  When the Data Sharing Agreed field is “No” or “No Value Entered” the student record will not display a “Potential match” message when entered in another agency.

A different option code may be configured with cross agency tracking if your agency or client has a customized choice list on the Data Sharing Agreed field.  Check the configurations at Agency Settings to see which option code has been set in your client.  

Reminder:

Remember that if you do not see Agency Settings on the person profile icon menu, then your user role does not give you permission to access Agency Settings. 

As an example, in the screenshot below, the agency/client has opted to use the data sharing agreed option code 102 instead of 101.

The description for option code 102 is “DEPTED."  In this example, student records must have “DEPTED” selected in the Data Sharing Agreed field to be matched and copied/linked in another agency.

Because the Data Sharing Agreed field is integral to cross agency tracking, the DataSharingAgreed choice list has been hidden to prevent users from accidentally changing a choice list item.

Example of the DataSharingAgreed choice list with the option code 102:

Match and Copy/Link Records

In a typical production scenario, you might enter a student record in your agency without knowing that the student was previously, or currently, enrolled in another agency in the client.  In either case, if the Data Sharing Agreed field in the student record in the originating agency is “Yes” (or other option code based on agency/client), and you enter information on the intake page that matches fields from the student record in the originating agency, you will get the “Potential match” messages.

A “potential match” record that may be copied and linked will have:

Data Sharing Agreed = Yes (or other option code indicated in your agency settings) in the originating agency, AND

• Matching SSN, or

• Matching Last Name and First Name, or

• Matching Last Name, Birthdate, and Sex

When the Data Sharing Agreed field is “No” or “No Value Entered” in the originating agency, the “Potential match” message will not display on the intake page in the new agency.

The matching logic ignores special characters and numbers in names.

If you enter a student in your agency and get the potential match message:

1. Click the “Potential match” link.

2. Information from the student record in the originating agency displays on the “Matching Persons” grid, including:

   • Last Assess Date

   • Last Instr Hours Date

3. Select the record on the grid.  This activates the Copy and Link button.

4. Click the Copy and Link button.  ONLY click the Copy and Link button once.

5. You will be returned to the student intake page. 

Reminder:

A student may already be in multiple agencies. Records from each agency will display on the Matching Person window.  Use Last Assess Date and Last Instr Hours Date to determine which student record you wish to copy/link to your agency.

Look at the intake page.

All fields included in the copy/link process that were entered in the originating agency will populate on the student intake form – if the fields were entered in the originating agency. 

However, please take note of the following, since additional data entry on the student intake page may be necessary:

• Drop down fields that do not have the same choice list items as the originating agency will default to No Value Entered.  For example, the Student Keyword selected in the originating agency may not be on the choice list of the new agency. In that case, the Student Keyword field would default to No Value Entered.

• Older student records may not have values in specific fields that have since been made required by the agency or client.  For example, Student Keyword or Address may be currently required, but were not required at the time the student record was entered in the originating agency.

• Older student records may not have values in fields that now have a default option requested by the agency or client.  For example, fields such as Residence Area or Funding Stream may have a default value that was not in place at the time the student record was entered in the originating agency.

Enter any fields that did not populate, such as Employment Status and Barriers to Employment, and click Save and Return.  

NOTE:  Your client/agency may have custom fields on the intake page.  Some of these fields – but not all – may be copied/linked with the student record in the new agency. 

After saving you are taken to the student grid. 

Open the student record.

The following fields from the originating agency will be copied to the student record in the new agency IF the fields were entered in the originating agency.

Matching Persons: Assessments and Hours

Student assessments and hours are copied/linked using the following rules.

Assessments

1. The most recent current FY level defining assessments by subtest are copied/linked from the originating agency to the new agency.   

2. Assessments with the assessed level “Level Not Defined” are NOT copied/linked from the originating agency to the new agency.   (HSE subtest records are the exception.)

3. Moved forward assessments are NOT copied/linked from the originating agency to the new agency.

4. At the student Assessments tab, the External Import column displays on the grid when the Pre/Post view is applied.  All assessments copied from the originating agency display Yes in this column and cannot be edited or deleted. 

High School Equivalency (HSE)

1. Practice HSE assessment records are NOT copied/linked from the originating agency to the new agency.   

2. All “official” GED, HiSET, and TASC subtests are copied/linked from the originating agency to the new agency, regardless of the Assessed Date.  This includes failed subtests.  

   • (NOTE that the TASC expired on 12/31/2021 and is no longer a valid HSE.)

3. At the student Assessments tab, the External Import column displays on the grid when the Pre/Post view is applied.  HSE assessments from the originating agency will display Yes in this column. 

4. The external HSE assessments are read only and may not be edited or deleted. 

Hours

1. Only Instruction hours on or after the date of the most recent current FY level defining assessment(s) are copied/linked from the originating agency to the new agency.  This includes unlinked instruction hours.  Hours display in the new agency with the Enrollment Type “External Hours” and are grouped by hours type. For example:

   • A student has an assessment on 8/3/2022 in the originating agency. 

   • The student has 3 instruction hours on 8/5, 8/8, and 8/20, and 5 instruction-distance learning hours on 8/24 and 9/1.

   • Since the hours are on or after the assessment date, the student will have two hours records in the new agency -  one record on 8/20 with 9 instruction hours present, and one record on 9/1 with 10 instruction-distance learning hours present. 

2. Hours types that do not begin with “Instruction” are not copied/linked, such as Computer, Other, Workshop, Prep, Travel, or Assessment.

3.  If a current FY level defining assessment does not exist in the originating agency, hours are NOT copied/linked to the new agency. 

4. When HSEs are the only assessment records being copied/linked from the originating agency to the new agency, hours are NOT copied/linked to the new agency.

5. The external hours are read only and may not be edited but may be deleted. 

Additional fields display in the student record at the Hours tab when a student has been copied/linked from an originating agency to a new agency. 

Once the student record is entered in the new agency,  you may simply begin entering data for the student as normal.

Views and Searches

New fields associated with CAT have been added to system views, view manager, and are available for searching. 

1. The following fields have been added to the view manager and search at the Student and All Person area, and the default Person List view at the All Person area.  

• Record Origin

• Origin Detail 

2.  The Agency Current FY Instr Hrs, Agency Instr Hrs, and Agency Lifetime Hours fields have been added to the view manager and search at the Student area.

3.  The Agency Current FY Instr Hrs field has been added as a column on the system student views:

• Hours

• NRS Key Data

4.  The Agency Instr Hrs field has been added to the view manager and search at the All PoP Summary area. 

5.  The Agency Instr Hrs field has been added to the default All PoP Summary List view at the All PoP Summary area. 

Last update:  2/2/2023