Local Accountability System Grant Evaluations

Prepared for the Colorado Department of Education in 2023

Colorado’s Local Accountability System Grant (LASG) supports school districts and alternative education campuses in designing locally driven accountability and continuous improvement systems that complement the state’s accountability framework. APA Consulting conducted two statewide evaluations—one qualitative (Year 1) and one quantitative (Year 2)—to understand how districts used the grant and what changed as a result.

Year 1

The first evaluation focused on how grantees designed and implemented their local accountability systems. Key findings include:

• Strong progress toward goals: Districts reported meeting or making meaningful progress on their LASG priorities.

• Locally developed measures: Grantees created or refined measures aligned to local values—such as non‑academic indicators, peer review processes, and new reporting dashboards.

• High value of external partners: Accountability System Partners (e.g., universities, research organizations) played a critical role in measurement design, data interpretation, and capacity building.

• Challenges with data infrastructure: Districts cited difficulties with data access, storage, dashboards, and cleaning—especially in smaller systems.

• Sustainability concerns: Leadership turnover was the most significant threat to long‑term continuity.

• State support matters: CDE’s technical assistance and public posting of local accountability plans increased credibility and visibility for district efforts.

Overall, the Year 1 evaluation found the LASG to be a successful catalyst for innovation, helping districts build more comprehensive, community‑aligned accountability systems.

Year 2

The second evaluation examined quantitative evidence of change in four core components of accountability systems—community engagement, goals, measures, and changes in practice—and whether LASG participation was associated with shifts in student outcomes.

Across five volunteer case‑study sites (BVSD, Fountain‑Fort Carson, Jeffco, S‑CAP, and MOPP), the evaluation found:

• Increased community engagement:

  • Fountain‑Fort Carson saw higher parent participation in school forums.

  • Jeffco developed its School Insights framework to better communicate local goals.

  • S‑CAP expanded district participation, strengthening peer‑to‑peer engagement.

• Measures better aligned to local goals:

  • BVSD tracked and reduced disparities in student discipline.

  • MOPP used measures tailored to Alternative Education Campuses, improving alignment with AEC missions and showing gains on state AEC frameworks.

• Evidence of system‑level change: Districts demonstrated shifts in practice—such as new feedback loops, redesigned reporting tools, and more coherent goal‑setting processes.

• Student outcomes: The evaluation explored whether LASG districts showed stronger changes in achievement and growth compared to statewide trends, using DPF and AEC SPF data. While results varied by context, several districts demonstrated positive movement aligned with their local goals.

Together, the two evaluations show that the LASG has strengthened local capacity, expanded meaningful community engagement, and supported the development of more nuanced, locally relevant accountability systems across Colorado.