Ed-Fi Updates Newsletter
April 20, 2026
In this newsletter:
 All Ed-Fi acronym explanations are available in the Ed-Fi acronyms document.
Data Caravan
Join MDE for a hands-on learning experienced designed to support staff responsible for technical state data submissions.
- May 12 - Mountain Iron
- May 13 - Thief River Falls
- May 14 - Fergus Falls
- May 15 - Staples
- May 20 - Mankato
- May 21 - Rochester
- May 28 - Sartell
- June 8 - Marshall
Contact your local Minnesota Service Cooperative for more information!
 Ed-Fi Tips and Tricks
Do you have a district or school Data Procedural Manual? Consider creating one and include some of the following content to help your staff who are involved in data submissions and data reporting:
- A chart of all state reports
- A list of all the portals, Student Information Systems, and other apps you use
- Links and resources for guidance on how to create each data submission or report
- A list of the "who": program area experts, staff who can review the data for accuracy, and possible staff who can enter the data
Watch the newsletter for future opportunities to learn more about creating a manual for your district or school.
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What's Next for Digital Equity?
As previously reported, the decision has been made to sunset the Digital Equity Data Collection after the 2025-26 school year. No further data will be collected. However, posted statewide data will continue to be available for viewing.
More information includes:
- How to access available Digital Equity data
- Digital Equity reports have been moved to the LEA-EDVP-MARSS role. If you want to view the DE data, you will need to be authorized for this role or you will need to ask your MARSS coordinator to run the report. Alternatively, you may be able to run a report in your SIS.
o Please note that the data in the report is only accurate according to the data that was validated/snapshotted due to updates in the database. (More information below.)
- The ability to continue collecting and reporting data via SIS
- Digital Equity data can still be collected in your SIS and will continue to write to the Ed-Fi database MDE for 25-26. The option to run data validations in the Ed-Fi Data Validation Portal is no longer available.
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Ed-Fi for ECFE and School Readiness
Ed-Fi data for ECFE and School Readiness is due to MDE by end of day Wednesday, July 15, 2026.
Your district’s Identified Official with Authority must first authorize your EDIAM account for the Education Data Validation Portal (EDVP). Once authorized, log into EDVP to verify the data your district submitted to MDE.
Schedule a support meeting using the online calendars with Avisia (DCYF Early Learning Services) or Allie (MDE Ed-Fi team).
Open Office Hours
Tuesday, May 12, 2026, 3:30-4:30 p.m. Join the May session
Thursday, July 9, 2026, 1-2 p.m. Join the July session
Welcome and Welcome Back Fall Training
Tuesday, October 6, 2026, 1-2 p.m. Join the October training
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Ed-Fi MARSS Vendor-Specific User Group Virtual Meetings
Please check the MDE calendar for our monthly vendor-specific user groups where MARSS in Ed-Fi questions can be addressed. Check the calendar
Early Childhood Health and Developmental Screening
Early Childhood Health and Developmental Screening programs use the MARSS PS generated state aid to serve children between the ages of three and seven years. Please assure MARSS PS records are assigned for screenings completed by the district as well as those submitted by parents and completed by Head Start, Child and Teen Checkups, Private Providers (clinics) or if the parent conscientiously objects to meet the statutory requirement. Minn. Stat. 142D.091 (2024).
This is a dual submission year, so districts may partner with their student information system vendors to assure all screenings are submitted via Ed-Fi. Until a district has certified to submit via Ed-Fi only, they must continue to submit MARSS A/B file uploads for state screening aid.
Join the May 12, 2026, Early Childhood Screening data in Ed-Fi Open Office Hour
If you have questions, contact Margo Chresand (Margaret.Chresand@state.mn.us).
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Transition of State-Approved Career and Technical Education (CTE) Reporting to Minnesota Common Course Catalogue (MCCC) Course Data Collection
The state is transitioning how CTE student participation is reported. Currently, districts submit CTE participation using a CSV “p-file” in the Carl Perkins data submission application. Over the next three years, reporting will shift to using course-level data submitted through the MCCC system in Ed-Fi. This transition will occur in stages and the first stage is to align state-approved CTE program course codes with the MCCC state course codes.
Stage 1: 2025-26: Create Crosswalk Between Table C and MCCC Course Codes
Districts reporting in 2025-26 will need to complete the following:
- Continue generating the CTE p-file from the student information system using the state-approved CTE program course codes in the approved program database.
- Upload the p-file to the Carl Perkins data submission application by October 1, 2026.
- Ensure that the MCCC state course codes submitted match the recommended codes provided in the CTE Program Course codes to MCCC state course codes crosswalk.
- Submit course data for MCCC through Ed-Fi.
This stage focuses on building the crosswalk between the current CTE program codes and MCCC state course codes to ensure consistency as we transition reporting to the new system.
The next stages are still being finalized and more information will be shared. The final outcome will be that CTE student participation data will be reported through MCCC course data only.
MCCC Validation Report Updates
The MCCC Validation Report has been updated to reflect the recent changes made to the MCCC Staff Section Course dynamic report on January 27. Districts who saw an increase in errors following this change should now see a reduction in errors after March 20.
New: Validation Rule 35
This is a new rule added to the report. It produces a warning when a course offering record is reported in a session without any related sections.
If a course offering record meets the requirements for Validation Rule 35, Validation Rules 17, 18, 26, and 27 are now skipped.
New: Additional Columns
Three new columns have been added to the report: Section Identifier, Session Name, and Staff ID.
Data will only appear in these columns if it is related to the error message or warning. If there is no related data, "N/A" will show in the report. If the data is expected but missing, a blank will be reported.
Change: Validation Rule 18
The error message has changed. Previously, the message read: “is missing the teacher license.” The message now reads: “is missing the teacher license or a licensed teacher was not reported for this section.”
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MCCC and DIRS Open Office Hours
If you have questions or need support with MCCC or with DIRS, please join us for office hours.
When: Tuesdays from 2 to 3 p.m.
How: No registration needed. Use the link found in the MDE Calendar.
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Would you like 1:1 help with an Ed-Fi? Book a Microsoft Teams meeting with Allie! You will have the option to share your screen.
- 15-minute meetings are great for getting quick guidance on an Ed-Fi problem. If you don’t know where to start with your question, choose this! We can always book more time if needed.
- 30-minute meetings are better for more in-depth troubleshooting. If this is needed, please also send an e-mail to ed-fi.mde@state.mn.us with the details. This will ensure we're both prepared and ready to troubleshoot when the meeting starts.
If you have a question about Ed-Fi data and MARSS reports, please book with Kari.
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MDE's Ed-Fi webpage
Ed-Fi technical support email
MDE's calendar of Ed-Fi events
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