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Monday, November 17, 2008

Subject: Last Day to Enter Counts for MI-Access Assessment Materials

As you know, the Fall 2008 MI-Access Grades 3-8 assessment window closes
on November 21.  This is a reminder that the last day for entering Fall
2008 MI-Access counts for new and additional student assessment
materials at the OEAA Secure Site (www.michigan.gov/oeaa-secure) is
November 18 at 5:00 p.m.  After that date, counts for materials required
to administer assessments to students will not be processed, including
assessment booklets, student answer documents, acetate mathematics
rulers, and P/SI Picture Cards .

Districts are strongly encouraged to enter counts for any needed
materials as soon as possible.  This will help ensure you receive
materials in time to administer MI-Access by November 21.  Please do not
wait until the deadline if you know now that materials are needed. 

While preparing materials for return shipment to Questar Assessment,
Inc., the MI-Access contractor, some District MI-Access Coordinators may
find they need additional MI-Access Ancillary Materials, including UPS
Return Shipment (RS) Labels or replacement ID Sheets or Teacher Return
Envelopes.  The OEAA Secure Site will remain open to allow for the
ordering and shipment of these ancillary materials.  However, as
mentioned above, counts entered for student assessment materials after
November 18 will NOT be processed.

To enter new, additional, and/or ancillary material counts at the OEAA
Secure Site, please go to www.michigan.gov/oeaa-secure.  Once in the
system, click on the "Material Orders/Tracking" button found on the
purple menu on the left.  If you do not have the necessary User ID and
Password, please see your District MEAP Coordinator.

Detailed instructions are provided at the OEAA Secure Site login page
(before you enter your User ID and Password) by clicking on the red link
labeled "Additional Material Order (Material Orders/Tracking)
Directions."  There is also important information provided on the counts
screens as you prepare to enter your counts.

Thank you for your attention to these procedures.  If you have any
questions or need assistance, please call 877-560-8378 or send an email
to oeaa@michigan.gov.

Best regards,

Jim Griffiths
Coordinator, Assessment Administration & Reporting
Michigan Department of Education
Office of Educational Assessment & Accountability

Monday, November 17, 2008

SUBJECT: DECEMBER 4 DEADLINE FOR SHIPPING MI-ACCESS MATERIALS

The last day to administer the Fall 2008 MI-Access assessments is November 21.  All MI-Access assessment materials must be shipped back to the MI-Access contractor, Questar Assessment, Inc., NO LATER THAN THURSDAY, DECEMBER 4.

Please see the attached memo (in PDF format) regarding this important process.

October 29, 2008

Dear District MI-Access Coordinator:

The OEAA Secure Site is now available for entering Spring 2009 MI-Access
Grade 11 Assessment Administrator/Student/Manual counts. The deadline
for entering MI-Access counts is January 21, 2009. Your projected counts
will be used to determine the number of MI-Access assessment booklets,
accommodated versions, and student answer documents that must be
produced for the spring assessment window (February 16-March 31, 2009).

Counts must be entered for the following MI-Access Participation,
Supported Independence, and Functional Independence assessments:

        *       Grade 11 English Language Arts (ELA);
        *       Grade 11 Mathematics; and 
        *       Grade 11 Science.

ENTERING COUNTS IN THE OEAA SECURE SITE:

Only district-level users may enter counts for MI-Access materials at
the OEAA Secure Site. To do so, you will need a User ID and password. If
you do not have the necessary user ID and password, please contact your
District MEAP Coordinator. Counts may be ordered by logging into the
OEAA Secure Site at www.michigan.gov/oeaa-secure and then clicking on
the "Student Counts" button from the menu at the left.

When entering Spring 2009 counts, please estimate the number of
materials needed to the best of your ability. To assist you, a Spring
2009 MI-Access Grade 11 Worksheet has been attached to this e-mail.
Distribute this worksheet to School MI-Access Coordinators so they may
collect the appropriate counts information from each participating
building in your district.

PLEASE NOTE THE FOLLOWING:

1.      Counts must be entered in order for districts to receive assessment materials. The
        pre-identification of students does not take the place of entering counts.

2.      Counts must be entered for each participating school in your district. When selecting
        a school building from the drop-down list, please be sure that the school has grade 11
        students participating in MI-Access.

3.      Counts must be entered for both assessment administrators and students in order for
        you to receive materials.

4.      All MI-Access assessment materials will be shipped to the address of the District MI-Access
        Coordinator, which is listed in the Educational Entity Master (EEM). Please make sure your
        shipping information is accurate. Go to www.michigan.gov/eem and then click on the "Search"
        button from the menu at the left.

5.      The use of an accommodated version assessment must be specified in a student's IEP and should
        match accommodations used during daily instruction.

6.      All assessment administrator materials are provided when an accommodated version is ordered.
        You DO NOT need to enter counts for a separate standard print assessment when ordering an
        accommodated version.

7.      When entering counts for Participation and Supported Independence assessments, please submit
        counts only for the PRIMARY Assessment Administrator. For the Shadow Assessment Administrator,
        you do not need to provide counts.

8.      There will not be an addendum to the 2008/2009 MI-Access Coordinator and Assessment
        Administrator Manual produced this year since changes have not been made to the assessment
        process described in the manual.

9.      Manual/Addendum counts need to be entered only for assessment administrators. DO NOT enter
        manual/addendum counts for District and School Coordinators, as these items will be shipped
        automatically.


Thank you in advance for your continued support of the MI-Access program
and for entering Spring 2009 MI-Access counts by JANUARY 21, 2009. If
you have any questions related to accessing or entering the counts
information into the OEAA Secure Site, please feel free to call
877-560-8378 or email oeaa@michigan.gov.


Best Regards,

Jim Griffiths
Coordinator of Assessment Administration and Reporting Office of
Educational Assessment and Accountability Michigan Department of
Education

Ocotber 29, 2008

IMPORTANT! MI-ACCESS ADDITIONAL MATERIALS ORDERS

Dear District MI-Access Coordinator:

Due to a significant increase in the number of additional orders being submitted for Fall 2008 MI-Access materials, the contractor has had to print additional quantities of several items. These materials are expected to be shipped to districts on October 29 and October 30 for delivery the next business day. If you had entered counts for additional materials and have not yet received your shipment, please DO NOT enter counts for these same materials again until you receive your shipment, inventory your materials, and determine that more materials are needed.

There has been a sharp increase in the number of additional materials orders being entered for this fall's MI-Access administration in comparison to previous assessment windows. When entering counts for assessment materials, please be sure you use great care when determining which materials are needed and their quantity. Please keep in mind the following:

*If this is the first time you are entering MI-Access counts, you DO NOT need to enter counts for ancillary materials (ID sheets, UPS/RS labels, rulers, etc.). These will be shipped to you automatically.

*If you are entering counts for assessment booklets or accommodated versions, you do not need to order an accompanying student answer document. These will automatically be included in your order based on the number of assessment booklets ordered.

*If you entering counts for accommodated versions, you do not need to enter counts for standard-print booklets. Standard-print booklets are automatically included in the accommodated version packet for MI-Access. Also note that use of accommodated versions must be documented in the student's IEP and used routinely in the classroom.

If you have questions about the status of any of your orders, please call 877-560-8378 or send an e-mail message to oeaa@michigan.gov.

Thank you for your cooperation and patience.

Best regards,

Jim Griffiths
Coordinator, Assessment Administration & Reporting
Office of Educational Assessment & Accountability
Michigan Department of Education

Friday October 24, 2008

Subject: Contact Imformation Update Request

As you may know, the State of Michigan maintains a single database containing information on school superintendents, charter school officials, school building administrators, and district and building assessment coordinators (MEAP, MME, MI-Access, and ELPA).  This database is called the Education Entity Master (EEM), and may be accessed at www.michigan.gov/eem.  The EEM replaced the former School Code Master (SCM).

The Office of Educational Assessment and Accountability (OEAA) uses the EEM contact information when sending email and correspondence.

Accuracy is essential.  Please take a moment to verify the contact information for your district or school.  If something needs correcting, please contact the person in your district who is authorized to make changes to the EEM.  Each school district and charter school has an authorized user of the EEM who alone can make any needed updates.  If you do not know the name of your EEM authorized user, please call Katie Little of the OEAA at 517-241-1721.

Thank you for helping us maintain a reliable and efficient way to communicate with you.

Joseph Martineau, Ph.D.
Michigan Department of Education
Office of Educational Assessment and Accountability

Wednesday October 1, 2008 6:46 p.m.

Subject: Entering Counts for Additional Materials Orders and First-time Orders for Fall 2008 MI-Access

The Fall 2008 MI-Access assessment window is October 13 - November 21. To ensure districts have the materials needed to administer MI-Access assessments to eligible students, the OEAA Secure Site will be open through November 18 for entering counts for MI-Access additional materials and first-time orders.

MI-Access materials have already been shipped for those districts that entered student count information at the OEAA Secure Site by August 26. As a new procedure this year, all assessment materials, including assessment booklets, student answer documents, preprinted pre-ID student barcode labels (for students pre-identified at the OEAA Secure Site by September 12), manuals, etc., have been packaged by school (with overages of certain materials). Please be sure to inventory all materials included in your district and school boxes against the packing slips. If you are missing any materials that appear on the packing slips, please notify the MI-Access Hotline immediately at 1-888-382-4246 or mi-access@questarai.com.

If you had not entered counts by August 26 or if you find that additional materials are still needed once the overage is depleted, please enter counts at the OEAA Secure Site (www.mi.gov/oeaa-secure). You will be able to enter counts for Fall 2008 MI-Access assessment materials through November 18. Log in to the system and click on the Material Orders/Tracking link from the menu at the left of the screen. Further instructions are attached to this email and can also be found in the OEAA Secure Site User Manual.

Please keep the following in mind:

*First-time and additional materials orders are placed for individual schools; however, they must be ordered on the OEAA Secure Site only by a district level user. Materials will be packaged by school and shipped to the district address via UPS ground.

*If this is the first time you are entering MI-Access counts, you DO NOT need to enter counts for ancillary materials (ID sheets, UPS/RS labels, rulers, etc.). These will be shipped to you automatically.
.
*If you are entering counts for assessment booklets or accommodated versions, you do not need to order an accompanying student answer document. These will automatically be included in your order based on the number of assessment booklets ordered.

*If you entering counts for accommodated versions, you do not need to enter counts for standard-print booklets. Standard-print booklets are automatically included in the accommodated version packet for MI-Access. Also note that use of accommodated versions must be documented in the students IEP and used routinely in the classroom.

*If you completed the Pre-ID process by September 12 but did not enter counts by August 26, you will not receive materials this week. Therefore, you must enter counts for additional materials. Note that you will receive preprinted Pre-ID barcode labels with your additional materials order shipment.

*Districts may request UPS Next Day shipping by providing the MI-Access contractor with the district's UPS account number or other payment method. Please contact the MI-Access Hotline at 1-888-382-4246 for information.

Should you have any questions about entering counts, please call 877-560-8378 or email oeaa@michigan.gov.

Best regards,

Jim Griffiths
Coordinator, Assessment Administration & Reporting
Office of Educational Assessment & Accountability
Michigan Department of Education

September 17, 2008

FROM: Sally Vaughn, Ph.D. Deputy Superintendent/Chief Academic Officer

SUBJECT: Fees and Consequences for Late or Inappropriately Returned Assessment Materials

Late shipments of test answer documents and/or documents with missing barcoded labels continue to delay the reporting of assessment results statewide, including those for the vast majority of schools and districts that follow instructions and return materials in a prompt and complete manner. Accordingly, the Department of Education finds it necessary to implement consequences for those few schools and districts that return documents late or inappropriately.

Summarized in the table on the following page are financial and reporting consequences to be applied to intermediate and local school districts, public school academies, and private schools, related to assessments administered by the Office of Educational Assessment & Accountability (OEAA), when test materials are returned late or without proper barcoded labels affixed. Please see individual assessment schedules for exact ship dates.

Answer documents returned 15 days or more after the scheduled ship date will not be processed and no results will be available, but they must still be returned. All secure testing materials also must be returned.

These fees become effective for the Fall 2008 and Spring 2009 assessments and all subsequent assessments. When it has been determined that fees for late return or missing barcoded labels will be charged to a school/district, the school/district must provide a purchase order via fax or a purchase order number via email to the appropriate contractor. Schools/Districts that fail to provide a purchase order or fail to pay an invoice from the appropriate contractor will have current and/or future results withheld until payment is made.

	IMPACT			SHIPMENT	DATE
PROGRAM	CONSEQUENCE	DESCRIPTION	On or Before Deadline	1-7 days after deadline	8-14 days after deadline	15+ days after deadline
MEAP, MI-Access and ELPA	Fee Charged	Late Shipment (per school) Late Processing (per doc.) Missing Barcode (per doc.) Missing Secure Test Item (per item)	----- ----- $10 -----	$250 ----- $10  -----	$250 $25 $10 -----	----- ----- ----- **
(MEAP, MI-Access &ELPA cont' d)	Reports	Paper Reports Provided Electronic Reports Provided Data Files Provided Results for Accountability Calculations	Yes Yes Yes Yes	Yes Yes Yes Yes	Yes Yes Yes Yes	No No No No
MME*	Fee Charged	Missing Barcode (per doc.) Missing Secure Test Item (per item)	$50 -----	* -----	* -----	----- **

* MME answer documents returned late will not be processed. MME answer documents returned to the wrong contractor, or returned with non-scorable materials may or may not be processed, scored, or included in accountability calculations based on whether these documents are discovered in time to be included.

** Although no late fee or processing fee will be charged, all materials MUST be returned. Failure to return materials may result in a substantial fine levied against school by Michigan Department of Education.

While it is not a pleasant task to implement fees or consequences, it is not fair to delay statewide results due to a small number of schools and districts failing to meet required deadlines. We hope the number of late and inappropriately returned documents will be significantly reduced, enabling contractors to have the data necessary to produce results in a more timely manner.

Thanks to all of you for the good work you do on behalf of Michigan students. If you have questions regarding this memorandum, please email OEAA@michigan.gov or call our toll-free number 877-560-8378.

Thursday August 28, 2008

Subject: Deadlines are quickly approaching for early bird registration

Deadlines are fast approaching to register for the early bird fee of $100 for the Assessment & Accountability Conferences in Grand Rapids and Lansing.  The registration fee will increase to $115 after September 4 for both.  Walk-ins the day of all conferences is $125 if space permits.

Registration is available for the remaining conferences at www.gomiem.org.  They will focus on assessment and accountability topics including sessions on MEAP, MI-Access, MME, AYP, EducationYES!, Secondary Credit Assessments, ELPA, NAEP, and using assessment results.  Space is limited at all sites.  A flyer is attached for your convenience.

September 16 - Grand Rapids  
September 18 - Lansing
September 22 - Bay City
September 25 - Livonia
October 2 - Gaylord

For more information, please contact Tami Feldpausch at 517-241-4136 or via email feldpauscht@mi.gov.

Best regards,

James A. Griffiths
Coordinator, Assessment Administration & Reporting
Office of Educational Assessment and Accountability
Michigan Department of Education

August 7, 2008

REOPENING OF OEAA SECURE SITE FOR FALL 2008 MI-ACCESS COUNTS

The deadline for submitting projected teacher/student/manual counts for the grades 3-8 Fall 2008 MI-Access assessments was June 6, 2008. Questar Assessment, Inc., the MI-Access contractor, has already begun the production of assessment materials based on these critical projected counts.

However, we understand that there may have been some changes in these counts since June 6. THEREFORE, COUNTS COLLECTION AT THE OEAA SECURE SITE WILL REOPEN AUGUST 21-26 TO ALLOW DISTRICTS TO UPDATE THEIR TEACHER/STUDENT/MANUAL COUNTS AS NEEDED.

IMPORTANT: If counts are not entered by August 26, districts will have to wait until September 30 for the additional orders window to open so that counts can be submitted.

This brief update period is intended to allow districts to revise their previously submitted projected counts if these counts have been impacted by (1) students entering or exiting the district, (2) changes in Individual Education Programs (IEP's) that affected which assessments a student would be administered, and/or (3) an increase or decrease in the number of teachers administering MI-Access assessments in Fall 2008.

To update your projected teacher/student/manual counts at the OEAA Secure Site, go to www.michigan.gov/oeaa-secure and click on the "Student Counts" button on the purple menu at the left.

PLEASE REMEMBER:

*       When entering counts for Participation and Supported Independence assessments, please submit teacher counts only for the PRIMARY Assessment Administrator. Counts for the Shadow Assessment Administrator DO NOT need to be submitted.

*       A worksheet was created to assist you with collecting the appropriate counts information from the schools in your district. You may still access this worksheet at the MI-Access Web page (www.michigan.gov/mi-access) and at the MI-Access Information Center (www.mi-access.info).

IMPORTANT: Teacher/student/manual counts MUST be submitted by August 26 at 5:00 pm. These will be the counts used to ship MI-Access materials to your district the week of September 29.

*       Counts for additional orders can be entered at the OEAA Secure Site September 30-November 18.

If you have any questions related to Fall 2008 MI-Access counts at the OEAA Secure Site, please refer to the OEAA Secure Site User Manual located at the log-in page of the OEAA Secure Site (www.michigan.gov/oeaa-secure). You may also call the MI-Access Toll-Free Hotline at 1-888-382-4246 or send an e-mail message to mi-access@questarai.com.

Thank you for your cooperation in this important process.

Sincerely,

James A. Griffiths
Coordinator, Assessment Administration & Reporting
Office of Educational Assessment and Accountability
Michigan Department of Education

August 7, 2008

Deadlines are fast approaching to register for the early bird fee of $100 for the Assessment & Accountability Conferences in Marquette and Sterling Heights. The registration fee will increase to $115 after August 11 for Marquette and August 12 for Sterling Heights. The early bird rate of $100 is available two weeks prior to each conference. Walk-ins the day of all conferences is $125 if space permits.

Registration is available for these conferences at www.gomiem.org. They will focus on assessment and accountability topics including sessions on MEAP, MI-Access, MME, AYP, EducationYES!, Secondary Credit Assessments, ELPA, NAEP, and using assessment results. Space is limited at all sites. A flyer is attached for your convenience.

August 21 - Marquette                  
August 26 - Sterling Heights           
September 16 - Grand Rapids    
September 18 - Lansing
September 22 - Bay City
September 25 - Livonia
October 2 - Gaylord

For more information, please contact Tami Feldpausch at 517-241-4136 or via email feldpauscht@mi.gov. There is also a link on the MI-Access Web page, www.mi.gov/mi-access, in the "Conferences" category.

Best regards,

James A. Griffiths
Coordinator, Assessment Administration & Reporting
Office of Educational Assessment and Accountability
Michigan Department of Education

August 7, 2008

Subject: Spring 2008 MME and Spring 2008 MI-Access State Results

State results for the Spring 2008 Michigan Merit Exam (MME) and the Spring 2008 MI-Access will be made public on Thursday, August 7 at 10:00 a.m.  State summary reports will be available on the public website at www.michigan.gov/mme and www.michigan.gov/mi-access.

If you have a user ID and password for the OEAA Secure Site, you can view and print state summary reports now by clicking on Student Test Scores from the menu at the left, and selecting the appropriate Spring 2008 MME and/or Spring 2008 MI-Access test cycle.   If you do not have access to the OEAA Secure Site, please contact your district coordinator for assistance.

State summary results are being made available in advance of the public release so school and district personnel may review it prior to receiving questions from the media and others.

RELEASE OF STATE SUMMARY INFORMATION IN ADVANCE OF 10:00 a.m. THURSDAY, AUGUST 7, 2008 MAY AFFECT THE FUTURE AVAILABILITY OF THIS COURTESY FOR ALL USERS.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact OEAA at 877-560-8378 or email oeaa@michigan.gov.

Best regards,

James A. Griffiths
Coordinator, Assessment Administration & Reporting
Office of Educational Assessment & Accountability
Michigan Department of Education

Tuesday, June 10, 2008 8:12 AM
 
Subject: MI-ACCESS RESULTS FOR DISTRICT/SCHOOL USE ONLY

The MI-Access contractor, Questar Assessment, Inc., has begun shipping printed reports for
Spring 2008 grade 11 MI-Access results. Please be advised that until these results are
released to the news media by the Michigan Department of Education (MDE), districts are
limited in what they may distribute or discuss. Once district coordinators distribute reports to
schools that participated in MI-Access assessments, schools are permitted to do the following:

*Send Parent Reports to parents;
*Disseminate individual scores to students; and
*Discuss Spring 2008 MI-Access results internally among school staff for the purpose of
    focusing classroom instruction.

IMPORTANT!! Districts and schools MAY NOT discuss with or release to students, their parents,
the news media or general public any school or district summary data until the MDE releases such
data to the news media.

We will advise you via e-mail when the public release will be made. Districts and schools may
release school or district summary data on or after the public release date.

We believe districts and schools appreciate the opportunity to view their results in advance of the
public release, giving them time to prepare for inquiries. Please respect this embargo. Failure to
comply could result in terminating this service for all districts and schools.

Thank you for your cooperation. If you have questions regarding this embargo, please contact the
MI-Access Toll-free Hotline at 1-888-382-4246 or send an e-mail message to mi-access@questarai.com.

Best Regards,

Jim Griffiths
Coordinator of Assessment Administration and Reporting
Office of Educational Assessment and Accountability
Michigan Department of Education

Mon, 9 Jun 2008 15:46:44

Subject: Spring 2008 MI-Access Grade 11 results now available at OEAA

School and district results for the Spring 2008 MI-Access Grade 11 tests are now available on the Office of Educational Assessment and Accountability (OEAA) Secure Site at www.michigan.gov/oeaa-secure. A date for the public release of this information will be scheduled soon.

This information is provided on the OEAA Secure Site to allow you to look at your school and district results prior to the public release.

RELEASE OF SCHOOL AND DISTRICT RESULTS IN ADVANCE OF THE DATE ANNOUNCED BY THE MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION WILL AFFECT THE FUTURE AVAILABILITY OF THIS COURTESY FOR ALL USERS.

If you have a user ID and password for the secure site, you can view and print reports by clicking on Student Test Scores from the menu at the left and selecting the Spring 2008 MI-Access test cycle. If you do not have access to the secure site, please contact your District Assessment Coordinator for assistance.

For questions related to the MI-Access program, please contact the MI-Access Toll-free Hotline at 1-888-382-4246 or send an e-mail message to mi-access@questarai.com.

Jim Griffiths
Coordinator, Assessment Administration & Reporting
Office of Educational Assessment & Accountability
Michigan Department of Education

Friday, May 16, 2008 8:08 AM

Subject: Spam Blocking and E-mail Filtering


As more districts institute spam blocking and e-mail filtering software, there has been an increase
in the number of MI-Access e-mails returned as "undeliverable" to Questar Assessment, Inc., the
MI-Access Contractor. While these security measures are certainly understandable, District
MI-Access Coordinators need to receive important MI-Access assessment information sent via
e-mail from the Office of Assessment and Accountability and from Questar Assessment, Inc.

Since District MI-Access Coordinators usually are not aware of undelivered e-mails, please take a
moment to contact your district's designated Information Technology (IT) professional to inform him
or her that it is crucial to both receive e-mails and be able to open attachments from the following
e-mail addresses:

griffithsj@michigan.gov (E-mail address of Jim Griffiths, Coordinator of Assessment Administration
and Reporting, Office of Educational Assessment and Accountability at Michigan Department of
Education)

howleyl@michigan.gov (E-mail address of Linda Howley, Interim Assessment Consultant for
Students with Disabilities, Office of Educational Assessment and Accountability at Michigan
Department of Education)

mi-access@questarai.com (E-mail address of Questar Assessment, Inc., the MI-Access contractor.
Questions and requests for assistance can be sent to this e-mail address.)

mi-access2@questarai.com (This is an additional e-mail address used for providing answers and
assistance to District MI-Access Coordinators.)

mi-access-coordinators@questarai.com (This e-mail address is used to send important information
to all District MI-Access Coordinators listed in the MI-Access Listserv.)

If you have any questions, please contact the Toll-free MI-Access Hotline at 888-382-4246 or
send an e-mail to Questar Assessment, Inc. at mi-access@questarai.com. Thank you very much
for your cooperation in this important matter.

Wednesday, May 14, 2008 1:36 PM

Subject: FALL 2008 MI-ACCESS PRE-IDENTIFICATION

The Fall 2008 MI-Access assessment window will take place October 13 - November 21, 2008.
In preparation for administering MI-Access assessments to eligible students, districts MUST
pre-identify students at the OEAA Secure Site (www.mi.gov/oeaa-secure). Beginning May 15,
2008, the OEAA Secure Site will be available for the pre-identification of students who will be
taking MI-Access assessments in Grade 3 - 8.

Students in the MI-Access test cycle must be flagged as "Special Education" in the Single
Record Student Database (SRSD). Remember that students who are assessed with MI-Access
but are not flagged as "Special Education" will be considered not assessed. Contact your local
SRSD administrator to ensure that students are flagged as special education in SRSD data files.

Pre-Identification of MI-Access Students   

The MI-Access contractor will provide preprinted materials for students who are 1) pre-identified
in the OEAA Secure Site between May 15 and September 12, 2008 and 2) assigned to a specific
MI-Access test type (Participation, Supported Independence, or Functional Independence).
                   
*After September 12, 2008, districts must continue to pre-identify new students or those not
previously identified, but they must locally print pre-ID labels and affix them to the student answer
documents when received.

*All student answer documents returned to the contractor must have the appropriate pre-ID
barcode information for scanning and scoring.

*Instructions for pre-identifying students and printing student barcode labels can be found in the
OEAA Secure Site User Manual located on the log in page. You have a choice between entering
students individually, uploading a file, or both. The manual is also available at the Announcements
screen once logged into the OEAA Secure Site.

*Whenever possible, districts are encouraged to use a laser printer, rather than an ink jet printer,
when locally printing pre-ID labels (some scanning equipment is not able to read the ink from inkjet
printers).

REMINDER: Districts that return student answer documents for scoring with missing or incorrect
pre-ID student barcode information will be charged a fee per answer document for the necessary
additional processing of these documents.

Please feel free to call the MI-Access Toll-free Hotline at 1-888-382-4246 or send an e-mail message
to mi-access@questarai.com regarding any aspect of the MI-Access Pre-ID process and the options
available to your district.

Best regards,

Jim Griffiths
Coordinator, Assessment Administration & Reporting
Office of Educational Assessment & Accountability
Michigan Department of Education

As more districts institute spam blocking and e-mail filtering software, there has been an increase in the number of MI-Access e-mails returned as "undeliverable" to Questar Assessment, Inc. While these security measures are certainly understandable, District MI-Access Coordinators need to receive important MI-Access assessment information sent via e-mail from Peggy Dutcher at the Office of Assessment and Accountability and from Questar Assessment, Inc.

Since District MI-Access Coordinators usually are not aware of undelivered e-mails, please take a moment to contact your district's designated Information Technology (IT) professional to inform him or her that it is crucial to both receive e-mails and be able to open attachments from the following e-mail addresses:

dutcherp@michigan.gov  (E-mail address of Peggy Dutcher, Manager, Assessment for Students with Disabilities Program, Michigan Department of Education, Office of Educational Assessment and Accountability)

mi-access@questarai.com  (E-mail address of Questar Assessment, Inc., the MI-Access contractor. Questions and requests for assistance can be sent to this e-mail address.)

mi-access2@questarai.com  (This is an additional e-mail address used for providing answers and assistance to District MI-Access Coordinators.)

mi-access-coordinators@questarai.com  (This e-mail address is used to send important information to all District MI-Access Coordinators listed in the MI-Access Listserv.)

If you have any questions, please contact the Toll-free MI-Access Hotline at 888-382-4246 or send an e-mail to Questar Assessment, Inc. at mi-access@questarai.com. Thank you very much for your cooperation in this important matter.