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February 2, 2026
February Program Tasks
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Priority: Please continue to promote the program to generate student responses. Continue to use your tool’s roster to encourage students to take advantage of the program through their unique survey and connecting with colleges.
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Priority: Invoices can be sent to our agency if data has been received and processed. More information on how to do so below. Please complete this step immediately.
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Priority: Please complete the annual program fulfillment survey to let us know your feedback and experience. There is an added brief survey on the new Tool this year.
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Priority: Refer any new high school partners to Direct Admissions coordinator. See referral channels below. The inquiry form and application are both live. Nominate within your district!
- Per your local process, student transcripts can be sent to their colleges of requested proactive admissions. More details below.
- Data and metrics are found below. Our new program data dashboard is also due out soon.
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Optional: Plan to attend the monthly Just-in-time High School Mentor Check-in session on the morning of February 11th. April’s meet-up is canceled.
Program updates for the month follow:
Promoting the Program
We continue to receive student survey selections, and as such, we ask that you continue to promote the program to students and families. Your program Tool (Direct Admissions) can support these efforts. User view access is explained in more detail on the bottom of the High School Staff Resource Guide.
Invoicing
Once your data has been received by the agency, you are able to invoice per your contract for program funds. More on invoicing can be found at the following toolkit resource: When and How do I Invoice OHE
Annual Program Survey
We are always thankful for your participation and support of students, and this annual assessment is an opportunity for us to gauge how we are doing; where improvements can be made and successes celebrated and scaled; and any other feedback you have for us. Please feel free to forward the K12 Secondary Partner Annual Satisfaction Survey along to others at your school who played a direct role in the program. We can have multiple respondents per school and district.
We’ve also added a second satisfaction survey this year that focuses on the new tool and technology to conduct the program. The K12 Direct Admissions Tool Survey should be completed by counselors and technology specialists who assisted with the tool’s initial set-up and upload process of transferring the program data.
Thank you for taking the time prior to Friday, February 27th to complete the Qualtrics surveys. Please feel free to direct any questions to me.
Program outreach – Nominating within your district
One opportunity to grow the program and focus on equity is to nominate your ALC or Online high school if they are not currently participating. As we scale, please consider doing so. Since you are already participating, nominating another school within your district has a reduced application process and timeline (the nomination process should take about 5 minutes when all details are gathered).
Please consider nominating additional district schools by the end of the month, Friday, February 27th, in time for the March info sessions.
Program Outreach – Sharing with New High Schools
We’d appreciate your help in amplifying the program to any new, non-participating high schools or districts in your nearby community. Our Direct Admissions High School Interest Form can be shared. So far we have 18 applicants for the fall ’26 cohort and another 39 inquiries. We’re hoping to be around 400 total high schools at the start of fall ’26, which means admitting and on-boarding around 140 new schools.
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If you know of a new high school that would like to apply in your region, please pass along this QR code of the program application. |
Reminder
Be sure to be reminding students about sending along their transcripts to colleges they’ve requested proactive admissions to. Your local process does not need to change, and this is another possible use of your roster in the Tool. To get a better sense of when colleges prefer receiving this important document, please consult the toolkit resource: Transcript Send Timeline Table
Data Update
Currently, we have 242 of 257 participating high schools (94% of the program’s high school cohort) reporting, with 34,485 surveys sent to 34,513 students via Direct Admissions. At this time, 4,495 are students requesting proactive admission to a participating college partner (approximately 13% of the eligible cohort). Part two of the new program tool will also be available this month, the program-level data dashboard. While your portal allows you access to your individual school’s student level data and roster, this next phase is a comprehensive dashboard for public reporting and accountability.
Upcoming Trainings
April program trainings are set, RSVP if you need a refresher or have new staff. If you have new staff or would like a refresher, we have two training series of three main program topics occurring throughout April. These are not mandatory, and the content for each session will be the same if you’d like to register for the option that works best. All trainings are recorded, too, if you’d prefer to simply watch the video later, which should be posted in May. The trainings for new high schools are as follows:
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Direct Admissions: Data Sharing Agreements, Joint Powers Agreements, and Invoices:
This Minnesota Office of Higher Education (OHE) Direct Admissions MN training focuses on program contracts, funds, and invoicing the agency for participating high schools’ program funding. Important information will be shared about the basics for data logistics and security, too. This training is required for the school's designated authority (usually the principal, superintendent, and/or head of school) and recommended for counselors and finance professionals assisting with the transfer of program funds. Use the following links to register:
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Direct Admissions: Marketing the program & logistics 101: This Minnesota Office of Higher Education (OHE) Direct Admissions MN training focuses on marketing supports for the program. This training shares how to utilize the many marketing tools and supports for the program, including the program’s toolkit; social media and print materials; and more. Information about how to order and employ the marketing materials will be shared. This training is required for the school's primary program staff personnel (usually the counselor) and recommended for communications professionals assisting with the sharing of information to families and students. Use the following links to register:
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Direct Admissions: Building the data with the SIS and OHE's program tool:
This Minnesota Office of Higher Education (OHE) Direct Admissions MN training focuses on broad data needs to conduct the program, particularly when utilizing your local student information system (SIS) to gather fields and run the report to conduct the academic review. We share general information about the program’s data fields, the current state of SIS integration, and agency-specific resources to interface with the program Tool. This training is required for counselors and technology support professionals assisting with data elements and reporting to run the program. There will be plenty of time for questions. Use the following links to register:
Subcommittees for Spring - Last Call
We have a few subcommittees that will be convened this spring. The time commitment will be two, one-hour hour meetings a month, March through May, and will only require your content knowledge expertise. Please email Aaron directly if one of the below is of particular interest to you or you would like to contribute your expertise:
- High school transcripts and streamlining the process in relation to the program.
- Younger learner marketing and thinking through print pieces for a middle school audience.
- Data & technology and streamlining technology in relation to the program.
Monthly Check-ins
Our optional Direct Admissions' “High School Mentor Meet-ups and Community of Practice” gathering is on the morning of Wednesday, February 11th from 8:00 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.
The meeting ID and passcode is as follows:
Microsoft Teams Need help?
Join the meeting now
Meeting ID: 277 387 226 787 3
Passcode: fJ3eV2yH
The program has participated in several events this past January. We presented with the team from Austin Public Schools at the Minnesota School Boards Association (MSBA) Leadership Conference. We rounded out the month with a collaborative presentation with College Possible for their Common Ground series. We also had a session accepted to the 2026 Minnesota Association of Alternative Programs (MAAP) State Conference with Terra Nova School, taking place later this week. Thanks for all the program amplification and efforts!
The legislative report is under ADA review currently. Once completed, a press release will notify you of its availability – stay tuned!
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