APPENDICES

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Appendix F: Selected Department Web Links and Education 

Resources

College Cost Lists 

The Department provides college affordability and transparency lists under the Higher 

Education Opportunity Act of 2008. Each list is broken out into nine different sectors to allow 

students to compare costs at similar types of institutions, including career and technical 

programs. http://collegecost.ed.gov/catc/

College Navigator 

The Department provides a multidimensional review of higher education options for students 

and provides links to other sites. http://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/

Open Government Initiative 

The Department’s Open Government Initiative is designed to improve the way the Department 

shares information, learns from others, and collaborates to develop the best solutions for 

America’s students. http://www2.ed.gov/about/open.html 

College Scorecard 

The College Scorecard tool in the Department’s College Affordability and Transparency Center 

makes it easier to find out more about a college’s affordability and value. The College Scorecard 

has been redesigned as a tool that further commits to the administration’s Open Data Initiative 

and incorporates direct input from students, families, and their advisers to provide the clearest, 

most accessible, and most reliable national data on college cost, graduation, debt, and 

postcollege earnings. The old way of assessing college choices relied on static ratings lists 

compiled by someone who was deciding what value to place on different factors. The new way 

of assessing college choices, with the help of technology and open data, makes it possible for 

anyone—a student, a school, a policymaker, or a researcher—to decide which factors to 

evaluate. http://collegecost.ed.gov/scorecard/index.aspx

One-Stop Shopping for Student Loans 

The Department provides a site from which students can manage their loans. 

http://studentloans.gov/

College Preparation Checklist 

This Departmental tool gives prospective college students step-by-step instructions on how to 

prepare academically and financially for education beyond high school. Each section is split into 

subsections for students and parents, explaining what needs to be done and which publications 

or websites might be useful to them. http://studentaid.ed.gov 

Additional resources within the checklist assist students in finding scholarships and grants. 

http://studentaid.ed.gov/students/publications/checklist/main.html

https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/types/grants-scholarships/finding-scholarships
APPENDICES

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FY 2015 Annual Performance Report and FY 2017 Annual Performance Plan—U.S. Department of Education 215 

College Completion Toolkit 

The College Completion Toolkit provides information that governors and other state leaders can 

use to help colleges in their state increase student completion rates. It highlights key strategies 

and offers models to learn from, as well as other useful resources. http://www.ed.gov/collegecompletion/governing-win 

Resources for Adult and Career and Technical Education 

The Department, through the Perkins Collaborative Resource Network, offers resources and 

tools for the development and implementation of comprehensive career guidance programs. 

This includes guides for students, parents, teachers, counselors, and administrators across 

relevant topics, such as planning and exploring careers, selecting institutions, finances, and 

guidance evaluation. This source is an example of interdepartmental cooperation between the 

Department and the U.S. Department of Labor. 

http://cte.ed.gov/nationalinitiatives/gandctools.cfm?&pass_dis=1

The Literacy Information and Communication System (LINCS) is a Department Initiative that 

seeks to expand evidence-based practice in the field of adult literacy. LINCS provides highquality, on-demand educational opportunities to practitioners of adult education in order to help 

adult learners successfully transition to postsecondary education and employment. LINCS is 

comprised of three components: 1) the LINCS Resource Collection provides free online access 

to high-quality, evidence-based materials and self-access courses to help practitioners and 

state and local staff improve programs, services, instruction, and teacher quality; 2) LINCS 

Regional Professional Development Centers work with states to offer practitioners training and 

professional development activities; and 3) LINCS Community provides an online social learning 

space (a community of practice) for networking, information sharing, and collaboration among 

adult education leadership, professional developers, administrative staff, and practitioners 

across the country. http://lincs.ed.gov/

Program Inventory 

The GPRA Modernization Act of 2010, P.L. 111-352, requires that OMB establish a single 

website with a central inventory of all federal programs, including the purpose of each program 

and its contribution to the mission and goals of the Department. The initial Federal Program 

Inventory was published in May 2013. The Department described each program within 27 

budgetary accounts, as well as how the programs support the Department’s broader Strategic 

Goals and Objectives. 

Since that time, Congress passed the Data Accountability and Transparency Act (DATA Act) 

requiring new public reporting requirements, which impact the definition of program used in this 

guidance. OMB is currently working with agencies to merge the implementation of the DATA Act 

and the Federal Program Inventory requirements to the extent possible to avoid duplicative 

efforts. While OMB and agencies determine the right implementation strategy, the initial Federal 

Program Inventory remains available on performance.gov or at 

http://www2.ed.gov/programs/inventory.pdf. 

Grants Information and Resources 

In addition to student loans and grants, the Department offers other discretionary grants. These 

are awarded using a competitive process, and formula grants, which use formulas determined 
APPENDICES

SELECTED DEPARTMENT WEB LINKS AND EDUCATION RESOURCES

FY 2015 Annual Performance Report and FY 2017 Annual Performance Plan—U.S. Department of Education 216 

by Congress with no application process. This site lists Department discretionary grant 

competitions previously announced, as well as those planned for later announcement, for new 

awards organized according to the Department’s principal program offices. 

http://www2.ed.gov/fund/grant/find/edlite-forecast.html 

For more information on the Department’s programs, see http://www2.ed.gov/programs.

Practice Guides for Educators 

The Department offers guides that help educators address everyday challenges faced in 

classrooms and schools. Developed by a panel of nationally recognized experts, practice guides 

consist of actionable recommendations, strategies for overcoming potential roadblocks, and an 

indication of the strength of evidence supporting each recommendation. The guides themselves 

are subjected to rigorous external peer review. Users can sort by subject area, academic level, 

and intended audience to find the most recent, relevant, and useful guides. 

http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/publications_reviews.aspx 

Performance Data 

EDFacts is a Department initiative and data repository to put performance data at the center of 

policy, management, and budget decisions for all K–12 educational programs. 

http://www.ed.gov/about/inits/ed/edfacts/index.html 

Condition of Education and Digest of Education Statistics 

The Condition of Education is a congressionally mandated annual report that summarizes 

developments and trends in education using the latest available statistics. The report presents 

statistical indicators containing text, figures, and data from early learning through graduate-level 

education. http://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/ 

The primary purpose of the Digest of Education Statistics is to provide a compilation of 

statistical information covering the broad field of American education from prekindergarten 

through graduate school. The Digest includes a selection of data from many sources, both 

government and private, and draws especially on the results of surveys and activities carried out 

by the NCES. http://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/ 

Projections of Education Statistics to 2021 

For the 50 states and the District of Columbia, the tables, figures, and text in this report contain 

data on projections of public elementary and secondary enrollment and public high school 

graduates to the year 2021. The report includes a methodology section that describes the 

models and assumptions used to develop national and state-level projections. 

http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2013008 

National Assessment of Educational Progress 

The National Assessment of Educational Progress assesses samples of students in grades 4, 8, 

and 12 in various academic subjects. Results of the assessments are reported for the nation 

and states in terms of achievement levels—Basic, Proficient, and Advanced.

http://nationsreportcard.gov/ 
APPENDICES

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Government Accountability Office 

The Government Accountability Office supports Congress in meeting its constitutional 

responsibilities and helps improve the performance and accountability of the federal government 

for the benefit of the American people. http://www.gao.gov/docsearch/agency.php 

Office of Inspector General 

The Office of Inspector General conducts independent and objective audits, investigations, 

inspections, and other activities to promote the efficiency, effectiveness, and integrity of the 

Department’s programs and operations. http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/oig/index.html 

For a list of recent reports, go to: http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/oig/reports.html.