Board approves data-sharing agreement with Graduation Alliance to locate unaccounted students

The School City of East Chicago Board of Trustees voted to approve a data-sharing agreement with Graduation Alliance, a provider the superintendent described as a recovery and outreach service that locates students who have dropped out and, in some cases, offers a pathway to a diploma.

“Graduation Alliance is an educational solution to address and recover students who have dropped out,” Superintendent Dr. Bornay said. She said the service helps the district ‘clean up’ graduation-rate data by identifying students who are enrolled elsewhere and by offering an option — through a program the superintendent named as American Academy — for students to complete a high-school diploma through that vendor’s curriculum.

Trustee Taylor moved to approve the agreement and Trustee Rodriguez seconded. Staff said the agreement carries no cost to the district because the board is only approving a data-sharing arrangement: the district will provide names of unaccounted-for students so Graduation Alliance can attempt to locate them and report back whether those students have graduated. The superintendent said Graduation Alliance’s counselors will reach out to families and report results to the district.

Members of the public asked how the work benefits local students and whether families must consent. A public commenter asked, “How does that benefit our students?” and another asked whether the program would require students to accept a vendor’s diploma program or whether local GED or adult-education options remain available. Dr. Bornay said the program is intended as an additional layer of support for students the district cannot currently locate, not a replacement for local GED or adult-basic-education offerings.

The board recorded affirmative roll-call votes from Trustees Gomez, Rodriguez, Taylor and President Gibson King. The superintendent said staff will receive reports from Graduation Alliance when students are located and whether they have graduated or been offered the vendor’s program.

Questions raised at the meeting about parental consent and the program’s local relationship were not fully resolved in the transcript: staff described how Graduation Alliance reaches out to families but did not explicitly state whether parental opt-in or consent is required before the vendor contacts families.