Growing the Community Garden: Cultivating 619 Data Connections in New Jersey

00:00:01.52 >> You're listening to "A Date With Data" with your host, Amy Bitterman.

00:00:07.34 >> Hey, it's Amy, and I am so excited to be hosting "A Date With Data." I'll be chatting with state and district special education staff who, just like you, are dealing with IDEA data every day.

00:00:19.50 >> "A Date With Data" is brought to you by the IDEA Data Center.

00:00:24.68 >> Welcome to "A Date With Data." Kim Murray, who is the Director of Special Education, and Jennifer Nicosia, who is the 619 Coordinator with the New Jersey Department of Education, are here to share with us New Jersey's 619 data journey. So glad to have both of you here today. Can you tell us a little bit about your background and your role with New Jersey?

00:00:48.21 >> I've been the Director of the Office of Special Education for 2 years in February, so it's a rather new role for me, and it's exciting to be in it. But I have been with the Department in the Office of Special Ed for about 15 years, mostly on the compliance side—monitoring complaint investigation and everything that comes with policy and procedure.

00:01:16.41 >> Great. Thank you. Jennifer?

00:01:18.77 >> Good morning. My name is Jennifer Nicosia, and I'm the 619 Coordinator for New Jersey. I work with Kim in the Office of Special Education preschool. My position means I support preschoolers ages 3 to 5 across the state who have individualized education programs. On a day-to-day basis, that entails providing technical assistance and professional development and working with different organizations and agencies to support those students. I also have a background—let's say 20-plus years—as a special education teacher in public school, including special ed and preschool.

00:02:08.59 >> Great. Thank you both so much. Let's start off with the story of your 619 data. Kim, since you've been with the Special Education Office in the New Jersey Department of Education for such a long time, can you talk about data quality challenges over the years and ways you've addressed them?

00:02:32.28 >> For a long time, each program office had one data person solely responsible for collecting, verifying, and reporting data. That led to siloed work because that person was the only one with an in-depth understanding of the data and collection processes. In 2016, the Department created the Office of Fiscal and Data Services in our division. Now we have a director and a team focused on data, which helped us build more robust processes around data collection, reporting, and dashboards, and strengthen collaboration across offices in how we use, collect, and analyze data.

00:02:32.28 >> One issue has been LEAs struggling to submit accurate data—often due to lack of training or because the person entering data wasn’t familiar with the data system. We were seeing gaps and incomplete records (missing fields), which affects validity and reliability. We’ve provided targeted training and technical assistance to districts with the most challenges to improve data quality.

00:02:32.28 >> For performance data (Indicator 7), we used the Battelle, but fewer districts were using it over time, shrinking the dataset and not fully capturing what was happening in preschool. We transitioned to the COS (Child Outcomes Summary) and are building that up, improving data collection quality.

00:04:55.58 >> We also realized LEAs didn’t always connect to the story the data tells. They would submit data and then stop—without analyzing it. We’re building data dashboards to make data more accessible and user-friendly and explicitly connecting data to program improvement and decision-making. Our goal is for data to drive program development and improvement.

00:06:07.84 >> That's a great strategy—when LEAs understand the purpose and how data benefits them, it increases motivation to submit accurate, high-quality data.

00:06:35.14 >> Yeah, exactly. That's our goal.

00:06:37.62 >> What are some ways you're strengthening New Jersey's 619 data culture?

00:06:43.40 >> I’ve been here a little over a year, and by the time I came in, a lot of these structures were in place. Under Kim’s leadership, and with monitors, the fiscal office, and colleagues who love data and help explain the “why,” we worked closely with LEAs through coaching, technical assistance, and professional development to strengthen New Jersey’s 619 data culture.

00:06:50.75 >> I also want to mention Alex Pensiero—she makes data not scary. By helping LEAs understand the “why” and the connections between preschool environment, least restrictive environment, and outcomes, we shift mindsets and improve comfort talking about data.

00:07:44.10 >> We use dashboards so LEAs can view their data. We provide hands-on technical assistance where we review and analyze data together, talk about trends, and determine what it means. We’re also working with external stakeholders on projects based on 619 data—sharing a broader vision for meeting the needs of all children in early childhood.

00:09:42.64 >> Getting transparency and walking through data together helps make it less scary and builds a stronger data culture.

00:10:19.93 >> Data quality is ongoing. Our work is grounded in two foundational beliefs: equity and inclusion. We don’t make decisions without data to back them up, especially around preschool inclusion and improving outcomes. Data drives our work with external partners.

00:11:02.85 >> Data starts the conversation. When we meet with an LEA: here is your data, what it means, and your trends. Everything begins with a data review.

00:11:21.02 >> We continue refining systems—especially the Indicator 7 data collection system—based on where LEAs struggle or identify work-arounds. We’re strengthening business rules to support complete, quality data. We work with Fiscal and Data Services to reimagine how we tell the story, not only for LEAs but also for families, stakeholders, and advocacy groups. We’re developing common language and a shared understanding so everyone can use and interpret data consistently.

00:13:09.26 >> We also continue professional development and training with IDC and regularly ask for help to improve our data. We’re grateful—IDC has helped drive many of the improvements we’ve seen.

00:13:32.64 >> Great. Thank you both for spending time chatting with me—really appreciate hearing about your work and what’s coming next.

00:13:53.53 >> Thank you so much for having us.

00:13:55.74 >> Thank you.

00:13:58.30 >> To access podcast resources, submit questions related to today's episode, or share ideas for future topics, the links are in the episode content, or connect via the podcast page on the IDC website at ideadata.org.