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Student Interchange
The Student Interchange is a set of four files, Student Demographic, Student School Association, Graduation Guidelines and Adjustment files, which contain student information for a school year.
This information is used in the following collections: Student October, Student Attendance, Student End of Year, Student Discipline, Special Education December Count, Special Education Discipline, Special Education End of Year, Teacher/Student Data Link, Assessment SBDs, and READ Spring Assessments.
Interchange File Overview
Demographic (DEM)
Demographic (DEM)
The Student Demographic (DEM) file captures the attributes of a student while they attended a Local Education Agency (LEA) in the current school year.
Record Expectation: One record per student who enrolled/attended at any point during the reporting year.
Connected Collections: Student October, Student Attendance, Student End of Year, Student Discipline, Special Education December Count, Special Education Discipline, Special Education End of Year, Teacher/Student Data Link, Assessment SBDs, and READ Spring Assessments.
School Association (SSA)
School Association (SSA)
The Student School Association (SSA) file captures the school(s) in which a student attends in a Local Education Agency (LEA) throughout the reporting year for funding and accountability purposes.
Record Expectation: At least one record per student. Multiple records may be needed for student students with multiple attendance timeframes due to an instance of mobility (school entry/exit)or critical change in the mode of educational services received (grade level, student PAI, non-school program, homebased education services, expelled education services, etc.).
Connected Collections: Student October, Student Attendance, Student End of Year, Student Discipline, Special Education December Count, Special Education Discipline, Special Education End of Year, Teacher/Student Data Link, Assessment SBDs, and READ Spring Assessments.
Graduation Guidelines (GG)
Graduation Guidelines (GG)
The Graduation Guidelines (GG) file captures the graduation guidelines measures completed by a student for use in determining students who have met the minimum standards in the state board’s graduation guidelines menu of options established pursuant to C.R.S. 22-2-106(1)(a.5) and the percentage of students who have met the state board’s higher achievement level standards (higher bar) established pursuant to C.R.S. 22-11-104(2)(a).
Minimum Record Expectation: At least two records per student, one English and one Math measure, meeting the state board's minimum graduation guidelines benchmark at the point of graduation.
Additional LEA Reporting Option: LEAs may report any attempted graduation guideline measure from the menu of options in the reporting year, regardless of the student's graduation status, to ensure the student's graduation guidelines measures are available for use in SEY reporting when the student is ready to graduate. This allows the record to transfer with a student should they move between LEAs during their high school career.
Example: Grade 10 student completed a math Advanced Placement assessment in the current year, but is not expected to graduate until grade 12. The LEA may report the record in the current year. This record will remain with the student for use at the point the student graduates from a CO public high school.
Connected Collection: Student End of Year
Adjustments (ADJ)
Adjustments (ADJ)
The Adjustments (ADJ) file is used to provide additional information about grade 7-12 students who were previously enrolled in a LEA, did not attend in the current reporting year, but the LEA has received update information regarding the student's final educational status that impacts the LEA's graduation cohort. Adjustments are only used for 7th-12th grade students for whom the district has received notification that a student previously reported as not exiting, dropout, expulsion, or HSED transfer during a previous reporting period completed their education through another education agency.
Record Expectation: Only used in applicable situations. LEAs only need an adjustment file when additional information is available for a qualifying scenario. Many LEAs will only use this file intermittently.
No more than one record per student per LEA, reflecting the adjustment school year matching the last Student End of Year (SEY) reported record for the LEA, last reported school code, and an applicable adjustment justification code.
Connected Collection: Student End of Year
Resources by Reporting Year
2025-2026
2025-2026
Deadlines
The 2025-2026 Student Interchange opened in July 2025 and remain open through December 2026.
2025-2026 Student Interchange Collection Timeline: Combined Interim Deadlines
Student Interchange Month-by-Month Timeline
This document provides a broad overview of the Student Interchange and how it is utilized throughout school year for data collections.
File Layout and Definitions
2025-2026 Student Demographic File Layout
2025-2026 Student School Association File Layout
2025-2026 Graduation Guidelines File Layout
2025-2026 Adjustment File Layout
Only used in specific circumstances during the Student End of Year Collection
Opens in May with the start of the Student End of Year Collection
Additional Resource: 2025-2026 Student Interchange Updates/Changes
Business Rules
Upload Template
2026-2027
2026-2027
Deadlines
The 2026-2027 Student Interchange will open in July 2026 and close in December 2027.
Student Interchange Month-by-Month Timeline
This document provides a broad overview of the Student Interchange and how it is utilized throughout school year for data collections.
File Layout and Definitions
2026-2027 Student Demographic File Layout
2026-2027 Student School Association File Layout
2026-2027 Graduation Guidelines File Layout
2026-2027 Adjustment File Layout
- Only used in specific circumstances during the Student End of Year Collection
- Opens in May with the start of the Student End of Year Collection
Business Rules
Upload Template
General Resources
Reporting Exceptions: Request Templates
Reporting Exceptions, or 'exceptions' refer to overriding Data Pipeline errors in the event a unique circumstance has occurred where the student's educational history does not follow the anticipated coding patterns outlined in the business rules but the coding still falls within the parameters of the data collection.
General Student Demographic (DEM) and Student School Association (SSA) Exceptions
Exception Request Template (XLS)
Note: The Graduation Guidelines (GG) and Adjustments (ADJ) files do not allow exceptions.
Multilingual Learner Exception Request
Multilingual Leaner (English Learner) Exception Request Template (XLS)
Additional Documentation: Multilingual Learner (English Learner) Sequence Change Request Form (DOC);
Sequence Change Request Form
Formerly known as the 'Mid-Year EL Change Request Form'
This form is used to request a change in a student's ML coding sequence when they have 2+ years of ML reporting history in Colorado
2025-2026 Contact
July 2025 - December 2025
Student October Collection Inbox
January 2026 - December 2026
Student End Of Year Collection Inbox
2026-2027 Contact
July 2026 - December 2026
Student October Collection Inbox
January 2027 - December 2027
Student End Of Year Collection Inbox
Training
Upcoming Training
No specific Student Interchange trainings are scheduled at this time.
Student interchange data fields are highlighted throughout the year in the weekly data pipeline town hall webinars.
Webinars
Webinars are offered periodically with recordings posted for reference.
2025-2026 Student Interchange Overview
This training session is being offered in two identical sessions (7/16/25 and 8/5/25). Topics include general data respondent information, student interchange files and process, 2025-2026 changes, timeline, business rules, and much more!
Collaborative Webinar: ML Enrollment & Data Reports
This collaborative webinar is designed for Data Staff and program staff who support Multilingual Learner identification and placement in LEAs. We will cover updates to data reports and business rules designed to support Colorado's standardized ELD Program Requirements. This webinar was offered on multiple dates (7/23/25, 8/8/25, 8/19/25, 9/4/25).
Collaborative Webinar: ML Enrollment & Data Reports Slides (PDF)
Collaborative Webinar: ML Enrollment & Data Reports (Recording)
Collaborative Webinar: Abbreviated School Day Data Fields
Join representatives from CDE's Data Services Unit and Exception Student Services Unit for an overview of the program expectations and data expectations of the new 2025-2026 Student Interchange data fields 'Abbreviated School Day Schedule Status' and 'Total Days on Abbreviated School Day Schedule.' These data fields apply to any student with an IEP or 504 plan that includes an abbreviated school day schedule for the student.
Abbreviated School Day Data Fields Webinar: October 2025 Slides (PDF)
Abbreviated School Day Data Fields Webinar: October 2025 Recording
Additional Resources
Resources by Topic/Data Field Types
- General
- Postsecondary Programs
- Contract Agreement Students (Student PAI)
- Multilingual Learners
- Date First Enrolled in US
- Gifted and Talented
- PreK Students
- CEDAR/COGNOS Reports
- Graduation Guidelines
- Retention Codes
- Entry/Exit Types/Dates
- Foster
- Funding Codes
- Free/Reduced Lunch Eligible
- Homeless
- Migrant
- Homebased Education
General
Postsecondary Programs
ASCENT Participation Cap Update
ASCENT (Recording) (Feb 2024)
PTECH (Recording) (June 2023)
TREP (Recording) (Feb 2024)
Other Programs (Recording) (June 2023)
Contract Agreement Students (Student PAI)
Multilingual Learners
Date First Enrolled in US
Gifted and Talented
PreK Students
CEDAR/COGNOS Reports
Graduation Guidelines
Graduation Guidelines File: General Information and District Considerations
Graduation Guidelines Menu of Options
Graduation Guidelines: Excel File Formatting Guide
Graduation Guidelines: SAT Match Benchmark Change Technical Information
Historical GG Webinars
Graduation Guidelines: Reporting GG File Over (Recording) — April 2022
Collaborative Monitoring of Graduation Guidelines (Recording) — November 2022
Retention Codes
Entry/Exit Types/Dates
Adequate Documentation of Transfer
General Information
Districts are required to have adequate documentation of transfer when coding students as transferring out of their district to avoid incorrectly coding students as dropouts. During the Post-Cross LEA phase, SE903 errors require districts to submit adequate documentation for students who are reported as transferring out of district who were not subsequently reported in another district.
Per Colorado State Board rule 1-CCR-301-1, “Colorado Public Schools and local education agencies are required to send transcripts or to confirm attendance when requested from another Colorado Public School or local education agency within two weeks of receiving the request with the exception of students in out-of-home placements whose records must be transferred within five (5) days pursuant to sections 22-32-138(2)(a)(II) and (3)(a), C.R.S.”
Documentation by School Exit Types
Adequate Documentation: General Information & List of Documentation by School Exit Type
List that contains exit codes and the documentation needed for transfer students.
Sample Forms/Templates
The forms below are designed to support schools/districts in tracking and recording student transfers into and out of Colorado school districts. Each of these forms may be modified to suit the needs of individual districts/schools. At a minimum, the highlighted text in red should be overwritten with your school/district’s information before use. The forms may be used electronically, typing information directly into the form, or printed and completed with handwritten information.
Two versions of each form have been created, a printable version and an electronic form version. The printable version is designed to be used for handwritten information collection. The electronic version includes set content controls for ease of use when typing information directly into the form. Both forms are word documents.
Record Request
- (Printable) (Electronic Form) (updated 05/01/2023)
- Formal request for a student's education records to be used prior to a student attending a new educational setting.
- Designed for use by the receiving school/district to request records from the prior school/district/educational program attended by the student.
Confirmation of Enrollment and Attendance/Records Request
- (Printable) (Electronic Form) (updated 05/01/2023)
- Formal request for a student's education records to be used after the student has begun attending a new school.
- Designed for use by the receiving school/district to request records from the prior school/district/educational program attended by the student and provide confirmation of enrollment and attendance.
- Serves as adequate documentation for the sending school/district.
Request for Confirmation of Enrollment and Attendance
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(Printable) (Electronic Form) (updated 05/01/2023)
- Designed for use by the sending school/district when requesting confirmation of enrollment and attendance from the receiving district/school/educational setting.
- Serves as adequate documentation for the sending school/district.
Notification of Withdrawal
- (Printable) (Electronic Form) (updated 05/01/2023)
- Designed to be completed by the student's parent or guardian if the student will be transferring out of the school/district.
- This form is not considered adequate documentation of transfer, but rather supports districts in determining the type of adequate documentation of transfer needed to support the indicated withdrawal reason by the parent/guardian.
Reminder: Per Colorado State Board Rule 1-CCR-301-1, “For students who are withdrawing from a Public School, Districts and the Institute are authorized to request information from the parent or guardian about the specific type of educational environment to which the student will be transferring, in order to monitor compliance with the School Attendance Law, section 22-33-104 (1), C.R.S.”
Student Transfer Follow-up
- (Printable) (Electronic Form) (updated 05/01/2023)
- Designed to be used when the student's parent or guardian does not or cannot fill out a Notification of Withdrawal form.
- This document is for district record-keeping only and cannot be used as official adequate documentation of transfer.
Foster
Funding Codes
Free/Reduced Lunch Eligible
Homeless
Migrant
Homebased Education
Contacts
StudentEndofYear@cde.state.co.us
Request a meeting for support using the Data Pipeline Collection Support Bookings Page
Current Year Exceptions (July through December), StudentOctober@cde.state.co.us
Prior Year Exceptions and Current Year Exceptions (January through following December), StudentEndofYear@cde.state.co.us

