Free/Reduced Price Lunch

The Community Eligibility Provision (CEP), available nationwide beginning in SY14-15, enables all students enrolled in eligible schools to receive school meals at no cost. Schools that opt in to the CEP are no longer required to collect individual household free and reduced price meal applications. As a result, free and reduced price lunch data should be used as a barometer to view community-level trends, rather than a precise measure of household economic status. (Source: OSSE)

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English as a Second Language

A program of techniques, methodology, and special curriculum designed to teach English Language Learner (ELL) students English language skills, which may include listening, speaking, reading, writing, study skills, content vocabulary, and cultural orientation. ESL instruction is usually in English with little use of native language. An ELL student is a national-origin-minority student who is limited-English-proficient. (Source: US Department of Education)

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Individual Education Plan

Children who have an Individual Education Plan (IEP) fall under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), a law that makes available a free appropriate public education to eligible children with disabilities throughout the nation and ensures special education and related services to those children. (Source: OSSE)

At Risk

Students enrolled in a DC public or public charter school are considered “at risk” if they are identified as homeless, in the District’s foster care system, qualify for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) or the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), or are high school students who are one or more years older than the expected age for the their grade level. (Source: OSSE)

Please note that this definition of at risk differs from the Early Development Instrument, which describes individuals who are at risk of becoming vulnerable in early childhood developmental domains. Please see Kindergarten Readiness in the Progress Report Data Dictionary for more details.