U.S. Department of Education

Office of the Chief Information Officer

Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Update

Final

May 14, 2015
Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates

Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates 2

Purpose

The Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Update details all updates made to the initiatives outlined in 

the latest Open Government Plan. This document covers all updates between June 2014, the last 

publication date, and the present. 

Updates are listed by section (including page numbers), initiatives, commitments, and if applicable, 

status updates. Some initiatives will also provide links within their status updates, allowing users to find 

additional details.
Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates

Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates 3

Progress / Status Updates on the ED Open Government Plan

June 2015

Section (and 

Page Number 

in 2014 Plan)

Initiative Commitments Status Update 

Transparency, 

Participation, 

and 

Collaboration 

in Programs 

(pages 3-4)

Department of 

Education 

Disclosure 

Review Board 

(ED-DRB)

 Approval of Charter

 Capacity Building

 Major Data 

Releases Reviewed

 Use Case Study CIO 

Council

 Meets regularly to review upcoming 

releases

 Featured in a Use Case Study

conducted by the CIO Council (March 

2015)

Transparency, 

Participation, 

and 

Collaboration 

in Programs 

(page 4)

Technical 

Assistance on 

Publishing and 

Sharing Data

While 

Preserving 

Confidentiality

 Provide resources 

and assistance to 

the Privacy 

community within 

the Department.

 Released a new training kit for Data 

Breach Response (February 2015)

 Released a new training video about 

“Protecting Student Privacy While 

Using Online Educational Services” and 

a model terms of service (February 

2015)

Transparency, 

Participation, 

and 

Collaboration 

in Programs 

(page 4)

Race to the 

Top–GameChanging 

Reforms

 Please see all updates on Race to the 

Top on Progress Blog.

Transparency, 

Participation, 

and 

Collaboration 

in Programs 

(page 6)

Race to the Top 

Assessment 

Program

 Please see all updates on Race to the 

Top on Progress Blog.

Transparency, 

Participation, 

and 

Collaboration 

in Programs 

(page 7)

The Listening 

and Learning 

Tour—

Elementary and 

Secondary 

Education Act 

(ESEA) 

Reauthorization

 This initiative is complete. 
Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates

Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates 4

Section (and 

Page Number 

in 2014 Plan)

Initiative Commitments Status Update 

Transparency, 

Participation, 

and 

Collaboration 

in Programs 

(page 8)

Investing in 

Innovation (i3)

 The i3 Program continues to post new 

overview information on each grant 

competition. This includes the received 

notices of intent received and the list of 

organizations submitting intents. After 

each closing date, the number of 

applications received and the list of 

applications are also published. 

Transparency, 

Participation, 

and 

Collaboration 

in Programs 

(page 8)

National 

Education 

Technology Plan

 The National Ed Tech Plan is now 

included as part of the new 

tech.ed.gov’s responsive website

design.

 Users should now find the National ED 

Tech Plan available, with information 

easier to obtain. 

Transparency, 

Participation, 

and 

Collaboration 

in Programs 

(page 10)

Federal Student 

Aid (FSA) 

College.gov

 As a part of the Integrated Student 

View, all content that was a part of the 

college.gov site is now available as a 

part of the StudentAid.gov website.

The standalone college.gov has been 

retired. 

Strategic 

Action Plan 

for Open 

Government 

(page 11)

Navigating ED’s 

Data Inventory

 Increased 

engagement with the 

public using ED 

communication tools 

(ed.gov blog)

 Expansion of the 

number of data 

inventory entries 

linked to public data 

sets

 New effort to 

streamline inventory 

and collection 

clearance, resulting in 

improved 

sustainability of the 

inventory

 With 71 datasets currently available, 

progress is being made towards the 

FY15 goal of providing 79 public 

datasets with Inventory entries.

o Up from the 66 publiclyavailable datasets made at

the end of FY14.

 An IT investment request is being 

developed for a new collection 

clearance tool. The tool will be 

integrated with the Inventory, allowing 

for better inventory content 

maintenance. 

Strategic 

Action Plan 

for Open 

Government 

(page 12)

Early 

Participation 

and Input in 

Policy- and RuleMaking

 No updates for this initiative at this 

time: These are ongoing efforts.
Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates

Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates 5

Section (and 

Page Number 

in 2014 Plan)

Initiative Commitments Status Update 

Strategic 

Action Plan 

for Open 

Government 

(page 12)

Federal Registry 

for Educational 

Excellence 

 Redesign the 

website.

 Increase 

engagement and 

collaboration with 

crowdsourcing tools.

 As a response to the increasing usage 

of mobile devices, FREE launched a 

new, responsive website design. 

Strategic 

Action Plan 

for Open 

Government 

(pages 13-15)

Federal Student 

Aid Integrated 

Student 

Experience

 FAFSA State API

 StudentAid.gov

 Mobile Accessibility

 MyStudentData

 Customer Listening 

Initiative

 FAFSASimplification

/IRS Data Retrieval 

Tools

 Commitments completed under the 

Federal Student Aid Integrated Student 

Experience are continually updated to 

meet the needs of students and other 

FSA customers. 

Strategic 

Action Plan 

for Open 

Government 

(page 15)

Public 

Challenges and 

Contests

 White House 

Student Film 

Festival

 Other public 

challenges

 4th Annual Healthy Lunchtime 

Challenge 2015

 3rd Annual Healthy Lunchtime 

Challenge 2014

 WHIAAPI E3! Challenge: Educate, 

Engage, and Empower Young AAPI 

Leaders (July-August 2014)

actualStrategi

c Action Plan 

for Open 

Government 

(page 16)

Connected 

Communities of 

Practice

 No updates for this initiative at this 

time: These are ongoing efforts.

Strategic 

Action Plan 

for Open 

Government 

(page 17)

ED Data Express  Automated transfer process between 

EDFacts and ED Data Express for key 

data elements. Additional efficiencyrelated improvements including: 

o Expanded mapping features, 

o Release of customer 

satisfaction surveys,

o Ability to personalize the user 

experience

Strategic 

Action Plan 

for Open 

Government 

(page 18)

Open 

Government 

Steering 

Committee

 Compilation of the 2015 Open 

Government Progress Report. 

 Participation in the Open Government 

Steering Committee.
Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates

Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates 6

Section (and 

Page Number 

in 2014 Plan)

Initiative Commitments Status Update 

Timely Online 

Publishing 

(page 19-20)

Career and 

Technical 

Education (CTE) 

and Adult 

Education 

Programs

 Engage the public 

and stakeholders 

on Career 

Pathways and 

other key 

initiatives

 ED, HHS and DOL continue to work 

together on Career Pathways initiative 

(March 2015 blog post “Career 

Pathways on the Move!”)

 ED and DOL announced Workforce 

Innovation and Opportunity Act — Five 

Notices of Proposed Rulemaking 

Available for Public Comment through 

June 15, 2015.

Timely Online 

Publishing 

(page 20)

Civil Rights Data 

Collection 

(CRDC)

 Expand CRDC 

Data with the 

completion of 

the uploading 

and 

presentation 

of the 2011-

2012 CRDC 

data

 The Department of Education’s (ED) 

Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has 

received OMB approval to require 

every public school and school district 

to respond to the 2013-14 CRDC. It 

includes most of the data items 

collected through the 2011-2012 CRDC, 

with a small number of new data items.

Timely Online 

Publishing 

(page 20)

Civil Rights Data 

Collection 

(CRDC)

(continued)

 Open 

Government 

Initiative for 

the Office for 

Civil Rights

 An important aspect of OCR’s strategy 

for administering and enforcing civil 

rights statutes is the development of 

the Civil Rights Data Collection. The 

Department collects a variety of data 

on educational and civil rights issues in 

the public education system. 

Information collected in the CRDC is 

used not only within the Department, 

but also by researchers and 

policymakers in the public sphere. 

Parties interested in using the CRDC 

can access its data via a publically 

accessible website.
Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates

Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates 7

Section (and 

Page Number 

in 2014 Plan)

Initiative Commitments Status Update 

Timely Online 

Publishing 

(page 20)

Civil Rights Data 

Collecti

on 

(CRDC)

(continu

ed)

 Expansion of

data 

visualization

capabilities

 Both longitudinal and detailed 

graphical displays of English Language 

Learner (ELL), Discipline and Disability 

data make it allow users to easily grasp 

levels of compliance and/or reflect 

areas for potential concern and 

investigation by OCR. The expansion of 

this type of presentation mode 

dramatically increased during the 

application of the 2011-2012 CRDC 

data. This will continue forward into 

the current collection, and eventually

to the CRDC 2013-2014 data.

Timely Online 

Publishing 

(page 20)

Civil Rights Data 

Collection 

(CRDC)

(continued)

 Increased 

instructions 

content 

provided to 

schools and 

local 

education 

area data 

providers for 

the 2013-2014 

CRDC data 

collection 

effort

 School districts received an email from 

OCR in May 2014 about the CRDC 

including information about how to 

update their contact information and 

school directories and how to access a 

variety of technical assistance 

resources at 

https://crdc.grads360.org/#communiti

es. A new web-based tool will make it 

easier for school districts to enter data.

 On April 16, 2015, each school district 

will receive an email with the district’s 

username and password so that they 

will be able to begin the process of 

entering data from the 2013-14 school 

years. Additional information about the 

data submission phase of the CRDC will 

be available on 

https://crdc.grads360.org/#communiti

es.
Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates

Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates 8

Section (and 

Page Number 

in 2014 Plan)

Initiative Commitments Status Update 

Timely Online 

Publishing 

(page 20)

Civil Rights Data 

Collection 

(CRDC)

(continued) 

 Increased 

instructions 

content 

provided to 

schools and 

local 

education 

area data 

providers for 

the 2013-2014 

CRDC data 

collection 

effort

2013-14 Table Layouts with Definitions

Below are the table layouts for the 2013-14 

CRDC for schools and LEAs. The table 

layouts include items required for the 

2013-14 CRDC, items optional for the 2013-

14 CRDC, and items required for the 2015-

16 CRDC. Because many of the CRDC 

school-level items are only applicable to 

high schools, a shortened version of the 

table layout is also available for schools 

that have a highest grade of 6 or 8. All data 

collected by the 2013-14 CRDC are data for 

the 2013-14 school years:

 2013-14 LEA Form

 2013-14 School Form (full set of CRDC 

school-level questions for all schools 

and justice facilities, including high 

schools, and schools with the highest 

grade no higher than 8 that offer 

Algebra I or Geometry) 

 2013-14 Elementary School Form

(only for schools with the highest 

grade not greater than 6) 

 2013-14 Elementary/Middle School 

Form (only for schools with the 

highest grade not greater than 8 that 

do not offer Algebra I or Geometry)

Flat File Specifications

The list of data elements and flat file 

submission instructions and additional 

guidance documents are available for 

school districts and states that will be 

submitting their 2013-14 CRDC data in a 

flat file format: 

 CRDC 2013-14 Flat File Submission 

Instructions

 CRDC SY 2013-14 List of Elements: 

Excel spreadsheet with tabs for LEA 

and school level data elements. 

 2013-14 School-level Table Layout 

with Flat File Data Element Names

 2013-14 LEA-level Table Layout with 

Flat File Data Element Names
Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates

Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates 9

Section (and 

Page Number 

in 2014 Plan)

Initiative Commitments Status Update 

Timely Online 

Publishing 

(page 20)

Civil Rights Data 

Collection 

(CRDC) 

(continued) 

 Increased 

instructions 

content 

provided to 

schools and 

local 

education 

area data 

providers for 

the 2013-2014 

CRDC data 

collection 

effort

Additional Information

Additional information about the 2013-14 

CRDC can be found here:

 2013-14 and 2015-16 CRDC Questions 

and Answers

 Detailed list of CRDC data elements

Timely Online 

Publishing 

(page 21)

The Learning 

Registry

 Continue to 

develop new 

features for 

the Learning 

Registry with 

the 

community

The Office of Education Technology also 

released new guides in the past year:

 November 2014

o Future Ready Schools: Building 

Technology Infrastructure for 

Learning 

o The Future Ready District: 

Professional Learning Through 

Online Communities of Practice

 April 2015

o The Ed Tech Developer’s Guide

Timely Online 

Publishing 

(page 21)

RSA 

Management 

Information 

System

 We will 

continue to 

support 

Objective 1.4 

by posting our 

formula grant 

process for 

the Basic VR 

program; our 

on-line tool 

allows anyone 

to verify our 

awards by 

showing the 

formula stepby-step for all 

grantees.

 New queries are continuously added to 

use in the online Ad-Hoc Query Tool.
Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates

Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates 10

Section (and 

Page Number 

in 2014 Plan)

Initiative Commitments Status Update 

Timely Online 

Publishing 

(page 22)

Data.gov  Data 

Inventory 

Updates

 Data Inventory functionality to 

generate data.gov JSON file was 

updated in January 2015 to meet new 

specifications.

Timely Online 

Publishing 

(page 23)

Data.Ed.gov  Data 

Inventory 

Updates

 The Department launched a Data 

Inventory website, which generates the 

data.json file that is harvested for 

Data.gov/education. 

Timely Online 

Publishing 

(page 23)

eRulemaking  The public uses Regulations.gov to 

access the Department of Education’s 

proposed, interim final, and final 

regulations. Other regulatory 

documents, including requests for 

information, proposed discretionary 

grant priorities, and requests for 

comment on information collections 

are under the Paperwork Reduction 

Act. 

Timely Online 

Publishing 

(page 24)

IT Dashboard  Timely 

publication of 

data

 The Department continues to add and 

review new major investments on a 

regular basis to the IT Dashboard 

during FY15 and FY16. 

 The health of each major investment is 

also retrieved to update the IT 

Dashboard accordingly.

Timely Online 

Publishing 

(page 25)

EDFacts  Timely 

publication of 

data

 No updates for this initiative at this 

time. These are ongoing efforts.

Timely Online 

Publishing 

(page 25)

IDEAData.org  IDEAdata.org 

website status

 IDEA Section 618 data is no longer 

available on the IDEAData.org website. 

Instead, users can now access data on 

the IDEA Section 618 page of ed.gov.
Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates

Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates 11

Section (and 

Page Number 

in 2014 Plan)

Initiative Commitments Status Update 

Timely Online 

Publishing 

(page 25)

FSA Data Center  FSA Data Center  FSA Data Center:

o Since 2014, Federal Student Aid 

(FSA) has greatly expanded the 

information it provides about 

the outstanding federal student 

loan portfolio to include 

quarterly reports by loan type, 

delinquency, deferment type, 

and forbearance type. 

Additionally, FSA posts servicer 

reports by loan status and 

repayment plan. 

o To help customers better 

understand and analyze these 

various data sets, FSA now 

publishes a quarterly 

announcement that explains 

key insights and learnings.
Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates

Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates 12

Section (and 

Page Number 

in 2014 Plan)

Initiative Commitments Status Update 

Timely Online 

Publishing 

(page 25)

FSA Data Center  FAFSA Completion 

Tool

 The FAFSA Completion Tool:

o In recent years, the FAFSA 

Completion Tool was also 

added on the FSA Data Center. 

The FAFSA Completion Tool

provides high schools with 

current data about their FAFSA 

submissions and completions 

so schools can track their 

progress and help to ensure 

that their students complete a 

FAFSA. Previously, high schools 

relied on self-reported surveys 

to estimate their FAFSA 

completion rate and that data 

can be inaccurate. For this 

reason, FSA provides high 

schools with current data 

about their FAFSA submissions 

and completions so that high 

schools can track their progress 

and help to ensure that their 

students complete a 

FAFSA. Subsequent 

enhancements to the FAFSA 

Completion Tool provided not 

just the FAFSA submission and 

completion totals for any high 

school for the current year, but 

also to more accurately gauge 

the impact of outreach efforts 

and identify successful local 

strategies. 
Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates

Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates 13

Section (and 

Page Number 

in 2014 Plan)

Initiative Commitments Status Update 

Participation 

and 

Collaboration 

(pages 26-27)

OpenED  Disabled Veterans 

Affirmative Action 

(DVAAP) Program 

Plan Updated

 The Office of Management, Office of 

Human Resources (OHR; formerly 

Human Capital and Client Services) is 

moving forward to ensure a more 

diverse and Inclusive environment in 

accordance with Executive Order (E.O.) 

13583, “Establishing a Coordinated 

Government-Wide Initiative to Promote 

Diversity and Inclusion in the Federal 

Workforce.”

 Updates have been made to the DVAAP 

Plan to ensure that job information 

targeting disabled veterans reaches 

them properly. This includes 

partnerships with colleges and targeted 

emails. 

 DVAAP updates also include initiatives 

such as quarterly information sessions 

and the “Vets2Feds” initiative, helping 

to increase awareness of opportunities 

for disabled veterans at the 

Department.

Participation 

and 

Collaboration 

(pages 26-27)

OpenED

(continued)

 Federal Equal 

Opportunity 

Recruitment 

Program (FEORP)

 The Department continues to improve 

employment opportunities for 

Veterans, Individuals with Disabilities, 

Targeted Disabilities, and 

underrepresented groups across all 

occupations, including mission critical 

positions and grade levels. The 

Department increased in the total 

number of Veterans at 8.8% out of the 

total workforce. 

Participation 

and 

Collaboration 

(pages 26-27)

OpenED

(continued)

 Diversity and 

Inclusion

 The Disabled Veterans Affirmative 

Action (DVAAP) Program Plan and 

Federal Equal Opportunity Recruitment 

Program (FEORP) Plan has been 

updated.
Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates

Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates 14

Section (and 

Page Number 

in 2014 Plan)

Initiative Commitments Status Update 

Participation 

and 

Collaboration 

(page 28)

Empowering 

Students and 

Families as 

Stakeholders 

and 

Collaborators

 Social Media 

Engagement

 Using social media accounts like Twitter 

and Facebook, the Department 

encouraged students and parents to 

appreciate teachers by writing 

comments and posting them with the 

hashtag #ThankATeacher. 

Participation 

and 

Collaboration 

(page 28)

Empowering 

Students and 

Families as 

Stakeholders 

and 

Collaborators

(continued)

 Emergency 

Preparedness 

Campaign

 As a part of a partnership with FEMA, 

the #Preparathon emergencypreparedness campaign, the 

Department helped to disseminate 

information for students and families 

across various social media outlets

related to education and safety. The 

Department partnered with FEMA to 

also become one of the first federal 

government partners for the campaign. 

Participation 

and 

Collaboration 

(page 28)

Empowering 

Students and 

Families as 

Stakeholders 

and 

Collaborators

(continued)

 #ItsOnUs 

Campaign

 As a part of the #ItsOnUs campaign, the 

Department helps students and 

families identify the issues of sexual 

assault on college campuses. The 

campaign also helps to awareness on 

college campuses across the country 

about standing against sexual assault. 

Participation 

and 

Collaboration 

(page 30)

Public 

Participation at 

ED.gov and 

through 

Outreach

 Promoting the 

availability of 

public data

 Public 

Knowledge of 

ED Website 

Redesign

 Informing the public about the 

availability of public data via Twitter 

(@EdNCES Fast Facts), highlighting the 

existence of ERIC's blog and IES/NCES 

data.

 Keeping the public informed about our

website redesign and upcoming 

changes.

Participation 

and 

Collaboration 

(page 30)

Privacy 

Technical 

Assistance 

Center and 

Related 

Activities

 Technical 

Assistance on 

Student 

Privacy 

Protections

 Released a new training kit for Data 

Breach Response (February 2015)

 Released a new training video about 

“Protecting Student Privacy While 

Using Online Educational Services” and 

a model terms of service (February 

2015)
Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates

Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates 15

Section (and 

Page Number 

in 2014 Plan)

Initiative Commitments Status Update 

Participation 

and 

Collaboration 

(page 33)

Digital Systems 

Interoperability

IT Modernization Plan  ED completed its annual review and 

update of to the Information 

Technology Modernization Plan and 

Roadmap for FY15

Participation 

and 

Collaboration 

(page 33)

Enabling More 

Web Publishing 

at ED.gov

 Expanded use of 

WordPress and 

Drupal

 Improved design 

and online 

customer 

experience

 Launched mobile-friendly redesign of 

ED.gov in two phases: June 2014 and 

January 2015

 Upgraded ED.gov web content 

management system (upgrade to 

Drupal 7)

 Streamlined the publishing process and 

display for Grants Forecast and Apply 

for a Grant pages (read more on 

Homeroom blog about Improving the 

Customer Experience for Grant 

Opportunities)

Participation 

and 

Collaboration 

(page 34)

Rehabilitation 

Services 

Administration 

ARRA Funding 

Guidance 

Assistance

 This initiative is no longer active. 

Internal 

Process 

Improvements 

(page 36)

Data Strategy 

Team

 No updates for this initiative at this 

time: These are ongoing efforts.

Internal 

Process 

Improvements 

(page 37)

.Gov Web 

Reform

 AWS GovCloud 

Migration

 IPv6 Compliance

 No major updates for ED-owned .gov 

domains were planned for 2015. No 

new second-level .gov domains were 

established in 2015. Updates that 

occurred in 2015 include the transfer of 

the IES site (ies.ed.gov) to Amazon’s 

AWS GovCloud servers. 

 In addition, three ED-owned “.gov” 

domains are now only IPv4, rather than 

IPv6, compliant.
Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates

Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates 16

Section (and 

Page Number 

in 2014 Plan)

Initiative Commitments Status Update 

Internal 

Process 

Improvements 

(page 37)

Chief Privacy 

Officer

 ED’s Chief Privacy 

Officer (CPO), 

continues to be 

responsible for 

coordinating and 

directing a 

number of open 

government 

initiatives within 

the Department.

 For updates, please see ed.gov’s Office 

of the Chief Privacy Officer page. 

Internal 

Process 

Improvements 

(page 38)

Public 

Notifications via 

ED.gov and 

Digital Tools

 Website redesign

 Implementation of 

new search tool

 Increase use of enewsletters

 Launched mobile-friendly redesign of 

ED.gov in two phases: June 2014 and 

January 2015.

 Implemented use of DigitalGov Search 

tool provided by General Services 

Administration (June 2014)

 Email newsletter and list subscriptions 

increased 19% in the past year 

o 323,160 subscribers in April 

2015 (compared to 271,463 in 

April 2014)

Internal 

Process 

Improvements 

(page 39)

ED Records 

Management 

Program

 Capstone 

Email 

Initiative

 Electronic 

Records 

Management 

System 

Initiative

 Mandatory 

all-employee 

RM training

 Ensure preservation of senior officials’

permanent emails. Begin EERMS 

initiative to implement electronic 

recordkeeping system in FY16. 

o In FY14, 95% of ED employees 

completed RM online training.
Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates

Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates 17

Section (and 

Page Number 

in 2014 Plan)

Initiative Commitments Status Update 

Internal 

Process 

Improvements 

(page 40)

FOIA 

Administration

 Training and 

Outreach

 Proactive Postings

Training/Outreach

 Staff from the FOIA Service Center 

(FSC) and the Office of the General 

Counsel (OGC) conducted FOIA Appeals 

training for ED FOIA professionals. 

 FSC and OGC Staff conducted a two-day 

training for OCR’s FOIA personnel and 

provided

 FOIA Coordinators in individual ED 

program offices two refresher courses 

on the Department’s internal FOIA 

process, and the proper usage of the 

nine FOIA exemptions.

Proactive Postings

 FSA is continuously posts its FPRDs to 

the FSA Data Center.

 OCR began a practice of uploading 

nearly all of its civil rights resolution 

agreements to its website.

Internal 

Process 

Improvements 

(page 40)

FOIA 

Administration

 Technology

 Standard Operating 

Procedures (SOPs)

Technology

 In late 2014, the latest version of 

FOIAXpress was deployed.

 Currently, FOIAXpress is going through 

the approval process to move 

FOIAXpress to a hosted environment. 

This migration will vastly improve the 

software’s performance and improve 

response times.

SOPs

 The FSC has developed standard 

operating procedures that are currently 

in the final review stage.

 In addition to the before mentioned 

SOPs, the FSC has created an online 

FOIA/PA Guide that is intended to 

provide the general public a better 

understanding of our FOIA program 

and how to file requests with the 

Department.
Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates

Open Government Plan: 2015 Progress Updates 18

Section (and 

Page Number 

in 2014 Plan)

Initiative Commitments Status Update 

Internal 

Process 

Improvements 

(page 41)

Congressional 

Requests for 

Information

 OLCA is working to get a guidance 

document related to how 

Congressional offices submit inquiries 

approved for posting online. The 

biggest concern right now is that for 

the over 4,000 annual inquiries on 

behalf of individual constituents, ED 

requires a Privacy Act release form, 

complete with Social Security Numbers 

(SSN) and other sensitive personallyidentifiable information (SPII). Our 

revised guidance document outlines 

what ED does to ensure protection of 

SPII and addresses the issue of how we 

advise Congressional offices to submit 

these sensitive documents. Currently, 

OLCA’s draft document is with Kristen 

LeFevre for policy guidance from the 

Privacy Office. 

Internal 

Process 

Improvements 

(page 42)

Whistleblower 

Protections

 See Whistleblower Protection 

Enhancement Act Non-Disclosure 

Agreement page on ED.gov and the 

Department’s NO FEAR ACT reports.

Internal 

Process 

Improvements 

(page 43)

Department 

Roadmap for 

Incorporating 

Principles of 

Openness into 

Core Agency 

Missions

 Incorporating 

open government 

principles into 

strategic plan 

goals

 See the Department of Education 

Strategic Plan and Reports.