Study Overview for Schools and Districts

Purpose of the Study

One in four students in the United States fails to graduate 

from high school and graduation rates are significantly 

lower for students who are racial or ethnic minorities, 

economically disadvantaged, migrant and/or limitedEnglish proficient, and receiving special education 

services. However, strong foundational research 

highlights critical indicators in ninth and tenth grade that 

powerfully predict whether students are “on track” for 

high school graduation. These indicators, which typically 

focus on student engagement measures (attendance) and 

course performance (grades, credits earned), can be used 

as part of an early warning system to flag at-risk students 

early, assign appropriate interventions, and get students 

back on track for graduation.

As part of Ohio’s Comprehensive Continuous 

Improvement Plan, the state has committed, through 

adoption of the Ohio Improvement Process, to promoting 

student success through data-driven decision making, 

targeted programming, ongoing student monitoring, and 

evaluation of improvement process effectiveness. Use of 

an early warning system is one strategy that schools can 

use to address the Ohio Improvement Process.

One such early warning system is the early warning and 

intervention monitoring system (EWIMS) developed by 

the National High School Center. The EWIMS model 

encourages educators to use data to consider and provide 

appropriate interventions to students, and provides a 

means for monitoring student progress over time. At the 

core of EWIMS is the use of simple tools that encourage 

educators to routinely examine indicators that identify 

students as “off track” and take action. 

Despite increasingly widespread implementation of early 

warning systems by states, districts, and schools, there 

have been no rigorous studies testing the impact of using 

an early warning system to improve student outcomes 

such as staying in school, progressing in school, and 

probability of graduating. There is also little research 

examining how using an early warning system can shape 

a school’s culture for data use including how schools 

allocate their limited dropout prevention resources.

To address this gap, this study will provide the first 

rigorous test of the impact of an early warning system. 

This study, funded by the U.S. Department of Education’s 

Institutes of Educational Sciences, is being conducted by 

the Midwest Regional Educational Laboratory at the 

American Institutes for Research. 

The planned study will examine the impact of EWIMS on 

(1) student outcomes including student risk status for 

dropout, scores on graduation tests, persistence and 

progress in school and likelihood of on-time graduation; 

and (2) school outcomes including how schools allocate 

dropout prevention interventions for students and their 

data-use culture. Participating in this high-profile, largescale study will give your school and district an 

opportunity to access these innovative resources at no 

cost and help inform educational policy in Ohio and at the 

federal level.

Study Design 

The study will take place in approximately 70 high 

schools in Ohio during the 2013–14 and 2014–15 school 

years. All schools that participate in the study will receive 

the early warning system at no cost. Participating schools 

will be assigned by lottery to receive access to the 

EWIMS model (including the tool and technical support 

for implementation) in the 2013-2014 school year or the 

fall of 2015 (following the completion of the study). 

Schools assigned to receive the EWIMS model in the fall 

of 2015 will continue “business as usual” practices to 

identify at-risk students and allocate dropout prevention 

resources through 2014-15. 

The study will examine student outcomes for all students 

in grades 9 and 10 during the 2013–14 school year and all 

students in grades 9 through 11 during the 2014–15 

school year for schools that implement EWIMS in 2013-

2014 and those that do not implement EWIMS during the 

study period. All student outcome data will be collected 

from school or district administrative data, the EWS tool 

or the Ohio Department of Education; therefore there will 

be no primary student data collection for this study. To 

understand how EWIMS may impact schools, all 

participating schools will be asked to complete an annual 

Web-based survey about data use practices and schools 

implementing EWIMS during the two-year study period 

may be asked to participate in interviews about their 

experiences using the tool.
EWIMS Intervention

The EWIMS process is designed to identify students who 

are at risk of dropping out of school and support and 

monitor at-risk students through school-wide strategies 

and targeted interventions. EWIMS is currently in use in 

67 districts in six states, and the tool has been 

downloaded more than 20,000 times from the National 

High School Center’s website. 

EWS tool. At the heart of the EWIMS model is an early 

warning data tool used to flag students as “at risk” based 

on attendance, course performance (grades, credits, GPA), 

and behavior indicators. The tool enables users to identify 

students who are at risk of dropping out of school, record 

assignments to available interventions, and monitor 

students’ response to those interventions. The Excel based 

tool provides a number of reports accessible to users, 

including: 

 School-Level Reports: Graphical reports that show 

trends in student risk status across the school

 Student-Level Reports: Lists of students, grouped by 

indicators of risk and/or assigned intervention 

programs, that include summary information

 Detailed Student Reports: Simple reports that can be 

generated for each individual student and show student 

information, indicators of risk status, and any assigned 

interventions

 Student-Level Intervention Summary Reports: Lists 

of students, their indicators of risk (flagged or not 

flagged), and the number and types of interventions to 

which each student was assigned

EWIMS Implementation Process. In addition to the 

tool, the National High School Center has devised a 

seven-step EWIMS implementation process to support 

implementation. The process guides users to make 

informed decisions about how to use data to support atrisk students and how to continue to monitor their 

progress over time. In addition to focusing on individual 

students, the process guides users to examine the success 

of specific supports or interventions and to examine 

possible systemic issues (school climate) that may relate 

to dropout trends.

EWIMS Seven-Step Implementation Cycle

Initial Criteria for Participation

The study will include approximately 70 high schools in 

Ohio. To qualify, schools must (1) have at least 150 ninthgrade students; (2) a graduation rate between 25 and 95 

percent and (3) not already be implementing an early 

warning system tool for using data to flag at-risk students. 

Study Timeline

Through January 2014, the study team will discuss 

participation with districts and schools that meet the 

initial criteria and conduct on-site or virtual meetings with 

school principals, guidance counselors and dropout 

prevention coordinators. Participating schools will sign 

memoranda of understanding in January 2014 and be 

assigned by lottery to receive access to the EWIMS model 

in January 2014 (treatment group) or the 2015-2016 

school year (“business as usual” control group). Training 

for EWIMS implementation in treatment schools will 

begin in January 2014. Data collection activities will 

continue through but not beyond the 2014–15school year.

For Additional Information

For more information about the study, or to begin a 

conversation about partnering on this project, contact Dr. 

Nicholas Sorensen (nsorensen@air.org or 312-283-

2318) or Dr. Mindee O’Cummings 

(mocummings@air.org or 202-403-5254).

STEP 1—Establish 

Roles & Process

STEP 2—Use the 

EWS tool

STEP 3—Analyze 

EWS data

STEP 4—Interpret 

EWS data 

STEP 5—Assign & 

Provide 

Interventions

STEP 6—Monitor 

Students

STEP 7—

Evaluate & 

Refine EWIMS