OMB Control Number XXXX

- XXXX (Exp XX/XX)

REL Midwest Supporting Statement B: Implementation Study of the Ramp

- Up to Readiness Program

— 1



### Parent Information Letter and Opt Out Form

[high school letterhead]

February XX, 2014

Dear Parent or Guardian:

[ Insert high school ] is committed to helping our students graduate college and career ready. As part of our commitment, we are working with the Regional Educational Laboratory (REL ) Midwest to study a schoolwide guidance program called Ramp

- Up to Readiness ( “ Ramp

- Up ” )

. Scholars at the College Readiness Consortium at the University of Minnesota developed Ramp

Up based on existing research.

The purp ose of this letter is to let you know that we plan to release some information about the students in [ high school ] to REL Midwest and that your son or daughter may be asked to complete a survey and college

- readiness assessment. T he information provided to REL Midwest will not include student names or any other personally identifiable information about you or your child. In other words, the data will be anonymous to the researchers.

Parents and students should understand the following:

 This anonymous inform ation will help the research team better understand the challenges that schools have in carrying out Ramp

- Up and the experiences students have when participating in Ramp

- Up activities

.

 The anonymous information will include students’ grades, test scores

, course enrollments, college enrollment acti vities , and the student identification number used by the Minnesota Department of Education . The researchers will be able to use your son or daughter’s identification number to obtain other information from stat e databases, such as test scores, but they will be unable to link that number with your child’s identity.

 As part of the study, your son or daughter may be asked to do the following:

1. Take a survey this spring that asks about his or her experiences at sch ool with planning and preparing for life after high school.

2. Take an online college

- readiness assessment (ACT’s Engage assessment ) in the spring. This assessment will measure students’ motivation and skills, social engagement, or self

- regulation.

No student has to answer questions on the survey or assessment that he or she does not
want to answer.

 All information about your child will be anonymous. The information collected will only be used for this research project , and the researchers will average the dat a for all students and all participating schools

. The y will report these averages in government reports and research articles, but readers will be unable link those findings with individual students, teachers, or school s

.OMB Control Number XXXX

- XXXX (Exp XX/XX)

REL Midwest Supporting Statement B: Implementation Study of the Ramp

- Up to Readiness Program

— 2  Risks: This study presents minimal risk to your child. That is, students do not experience any risks beyond what they experience every day at school.

 Benefits: Study participation helps build knowledge about how to better support students to be college or career ready. Participation in th e study is voluntary . S tudent s do not have to participate if they do not want to, and they will experience no repercussions at school if they decide not to participate. Our school’s participation in this research study helps educators learn more about how schools can help students become college and career read y

. If you do not wish us to release anonymous information for your child or have your child complete the surveys and assessments, p lease fill in the form below and have your son or daughter return thi s letter to [return location] by [deadline].

If you have questions about th is research project or about your child ’s rights as a participant, please contact Jim Lindsay of REL Midwest at 630

- 649

- 6591

. Sincerely,

[ insert district signatory

By signing this form

, you are indicating that you do not wish your child to participate in the study or for us to share your child’s information with the REL Midwest research team

.

I do NOT want my child, __________________________________________, Full Student Name (Student ID # _____________________) to participate in the Ramp

- Up evaluation being conducted by REL Midwest.

Your name: ______________________________________________________

Your signature: ___________________________________________________