CPS

Research Project Application

Cambridge Public Schools (CPS) is in the process of implementing a new process and timeline for all research requests. There will now be two submission and review windows annually.

  • Requests received after September 1st will not be reviewed until late November, upon which a committee will meet to review all applications and determine the path forward for each application.
  • For research submissions beginning on December 1st, applications will not be reviewed until April.
  • Researchers will be notified about the status of their application after they are reviewed.
  • The researcher must commit to sharing the final report and findings with the district at the conclusion of the research project.
Thank you for your interest in conducting research in CPS. If you have any questions, please contact Jennifer Amigone, Director of Assessment & Accountability at jamigone@cpsd.us.

**For the 2024-2025 school year only: we are not accepting research applications requesting the review of IEPs given that we are switching to a new IEP form.**

If this research project requires student and/or staff participation Section 3 must also be completed and submitted for District Approval. Consent forms MUST BE submitted with this application for it to be considered. Section 5 will ask for these documents to be uploaded.

This application should be completed at least 30 days in advance of the start date of the project. If approved, releases from the parents/guardians of students will need to be secured before the researcher can undertake any research involving students and/or student record information. Only those students who have a signed permission form on file may participate in the project.

Section 1: About the Reseacher



Section 2: About the Project








Section 3: Participant Information


STUDENTS




In class/school time total:

PARENTS/GUARDIANS



STAFF




In class/school time total:

Section 4: Data

Data available for researchers can be found on the Massachusetts Department of Education District Profiles page for Cambridge Public Schools. The district does not provide individual student data unless the Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction deems it necessary in order to complete a research project and agrees that the District would benefit greatly from the results of the project and appropriate consents forms and data agreements are in place with respect to the release and usage of such data. What if any of the data groups listed below will you be collecting?

Data Grouping Are you collecting data for this data grouping? Are you requesting data for this data grouping? Please list the specific data elements and their purpose
Example: Assessment Yes No I will collect data from an assessment that I have designed and will administer. I will then compare how students performed on my assessment vs. the MCAS.
Assessment If requesting individual student test scores, please list assessment, date range of assessments and score type. Note that requests for individual student data will require a Student Data Privacy Agreement reviewed and approved by CPS Legal Counsel.
Attendance If individual student attendance is requested, please list date range of attendance. Note that requests for individual student data will require a Student Data Privacy Agreement reviewed and approved by CPS Legal Counsel.
Conduct If student conduct data is requested (incidents and actions per student) please list the date range for the data. Note that requests for individual student data will require a Student Data Privacy Agreement reviewed and approved by CPS Legal Counsel.
Demographics If individual student demographics or group indicators are requested (gender, age, race, ethnicity. Economicially Disadvantaged, Sheltered English Immersion, English Language Learner). Note that requests for individual student data will require a Student Data Privacy Agreement reviewed and approved by CPS Legal Counsel.
Enrollment District, school, grade enrollment counts. If requesting a list of specific students enrolled at the district, school, grade, or homeroom, it will require a Student Data Privacy Agreement reviewed and approved by CPS Legal Counsel.
Parent Contact Info Only specific types of organizations may request parent contact data, and only those parents who have not opted out of being contacted by thee specific types of organizations may be provided.
Special Indicators (IEP, Free/Reduced Lunch) If individual student demographics or group indicators are requested (gender, age, race, ethnicity. Economicially Disadvantaged, Sheltered English Immersion, English Language Learner). Note that requests for individual student data will require a Student Data Privacy Agreement reviewed and approved by CPS Legal Counsel.
Student Contact Info Student name, address, school email address.
Student ID
Student Name
Student Program Membership Please include which programs and/or program types , and the date ranges of participation. Note that CPS does not track all student programs and that requests for individual student data will require a Student Data Privacy Agreement reviewed and approved by CPS Legal Counsel.
Transcript If individual student transcript data is requested, please list date range oftranscript grades and scores. Note that requests for individual student data will require a Student Data Privacy Agreement reviewed and approved by CPS Legal Counsel.
Transportation If student travel data is requested, please list the date range of the data requested. Note that requests for individual student data will require a Student Data Privacy Agreement reviewed and approved by CPS Legal Counsel.
Student Work If individual student transcript data is requested, please list date range oftranscript grades and scores. Note that requests for individual student data will require a Student Data Privacy Agreement reviewed and approved by CPS Legal Counsel.
Communications  
Student Performance / Grades If individual student transcript data is requested, please list date range oftranscript grades and scores. Note that requests for individual student data will require a Student Data Privacy Agreement reviewed and approved by CPS Legal Counsel.
Student Surveys  
Application Use Statistics / Meta Data  
Other

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