In a July 8 letter to Secretary Linda McMahon and Acting Assistant Secretary Craig Trainor, the groups said the timeline for approving and implementing the collection "has become critically short" and urged "immediate action" to restart the approval process.
The Civil Rights Data Collection gathers comprehensive data on educational access and equity from every public school district nationwide, tracking student experiences across demographics including race, gender, and disability status. The information serves as a cornerstone for research, policy decisions, and efforts to improve educational opportunities for underserved students.
Despite preliminary work on the 2025-26 collection beginning last fall and winter, the Education Department withdrew its most recent proposal in February 2025 without providing public updates on next steps.
"In order to report quality data to the CRDC, school districts need sufficient time to prepare their student information systems to track and record the required information," the organizations wrote. They emphasized that districts should ideally know reporting requirements well before the school year begins, or at minimum early in the academic year.
The signatories include leaders from the American Educational Research Association, Association for Education Finance and Policy, Division for Research at the Council for Exceptional Children, International Society of the Learning Sciences, Literacy Research Association, NARST, National Academy of Education, Society for Research in Child Development, Society for Research on Educational Effectiveness, and University Council for Educational Administration.
Under federal law, data collections must undergo a 30-day public comment period followed by Office of Management and Budget review. That process alone could push final approval past September, creating significant logistical challenges for school districts attempting to prepare their data systems.
"Simply the timetable has no more flexibility," the organizations stated, calling on the Office for Civil Rights to "immediately" publish the proposed collection for public comment.
The Civil Rights Data Collection has been a key federal accountability tool since 1968, providing data that researchers, districts, and families use to identify disparities in educational opportunities and outcomes. The collection tracks metrics ranging from course enrollment patterns to disciplinary actions, helping illuminate systemic inequities in American education.
The research groups' letter underscores growing concerns about the federal government's capacity to monitor civil rights compliance in education during a period of heightened debate over equity initiatives in schools nationwide.
