Trending in the Right Direction - A Data for the People Progress Report on California’s Cradle-to-Career (C2C) Data System

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Callum

A progress report evaluating California’s Cradle-to-Career (C2C) Data System, created through state legislation and led by the Office of Cradle-to-Career. It applies five Data 4 the People principles—evidence-informed systemic change, public accessibility, student privacy protection, comprehensive disaggregation, and meaningful engagement with students and families. The report rates alignment from weak to strong using reviews of statutes, legislative materials, board actions, and official documents, then highlights progress and identifies areas needing added attention and recommendations for stronger equity and transparency.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages12

Reading Time30 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Assessing the C2C Data System’s Development

Data 4 the People Principles in Action

Data 4 the People Principle 1

Use Data to Inform Systemic, Asset, and Equity-Oriented Change

Trending in the Right Direction A Data for the People Progress Report on California’s Cradle-to-Career (C2C) Data System In 2019, at the urging of Governor Gavin Newsom, California state lawmakers passed legislation to establish the California Cradle-to-Career Data System Workgroup, comprised of dozens of members representing diverse stakeholders including state agencies, educational institutions, research and policy organizations, and community groups who were tasked to evaluate and provide recommendations on the implementation of a comprehensive statewide longitudinal data system (SLDS) .1 In 2021, the Office of Cradle-to-Career (C2C) was established, marking a significant milestone in these efforts. Since then, the state has allocated $40.52 million in funding to support the agency’s efforts. This commitment from the state to build the C2C Data System represents a major achievement because it addresses over a decade of calls from advocates, educators, students, researchers, families, and others to build a comprehensive, longitudinal data system connecting critical state-level educational, workforce, financial aid, and social services. That information can be leveraged to inform decisions about education and workforce state investments and individual pathways. Put simply, if developed well, the C2C Data System has the power to be a significant tool for improving racial and socioeconomic justice in California’s institutions —from a child’s earliest years all the way to a student’s educational journey into college and career. Given the substantial state investment and the potential for more, better, and accessible data to answer critical policy questions and guide fairer educational resource allocation, in 2019 we proposed a set of five Data 4 the People principles.2 Advocates shared that these principles were important to guide equity-minded policy design, development, and implementation of the data system. In this report we use those five principles to assess the C2C Data System’s progress to date and whether the system is being designed and implemented such that: ► Data can be used to inform systemic, asset, and equity-oriented change. ► Data and tools produced are accessible and publicly available. ► Student privacy is protected. ► All students are counted with the ability to disaggregate. ► Students and families are meaningfully engaged. We find that significant progress has been made with respect to each of the five principles. In addition, we identify several areas that, at this critical juncture in the system’s development, require more attention so that implementation will more strongly align with the principles. We offer a set of recommendations that include additional steps state leaders must take to ensure that the system centers accessibility, transparency, and equity. Introduction Assessing the C2C Data System’s Development In this section, we assess the development and implementation of the C2C Data System against each of the five Data 4 the People principles and rate the strength of alignment based on our review of current statute, legislative reports, actions taken at governing and advisory board meetings, and official documents posted on the C2C website. We assess the system’s development against each principle using the following rubric to determine alignment. Figure 1 displays our overall ratings: ► Strong: State plans and work include clear, strong evidence that C2C is being developed in alignment with this equity principle. ► Promising: State plans and work show an indication that C2C is being developed in alignment with this equity principle. ► Satisfactory: State plans and work show some indication that C2C is being developed in alignment with this equity principle. ► Weak: State plans and work show very little to no indication that C2C is being developed in alignment with this equity principle. FIGURE 1 Assessing California’s C2C Data System Alignment with EdT

FAQs

What is the purpose of the C2C Data System progress assessment?

To evaluate the C2C Data System’s progress using five Data 4 the People principles and to determine whether the system is being designed and implemented in alignment with those principles.

How does the report judge alignment with each principle?

It uses a rubric (Strong, Promising, Satisfactory, Weak) based on review of current statute, legislative reports, actions from governing and advisory board meetings, and official documents posted on the C2C website.

Which principle is rated strongest in current alignment?

Protect student privacy is rated Strong, while other principles are rated Promising or Satisfactory based on the report’s assessment.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Callum