The North Dakota Statewide Longitudinal Data System (SLDS) brings together data from the education, workforce training and employment domains, enabling policymakers, educators, and workforce leaders to make data-informed decisions. The core purpose of the SLDS is to track progress, identify trends, and evaluate the effectiveness of programs and policies by connecting information that has traditionally been siloed. By linking data from multiple domains, the SLDS supports a much deeper understanding of how early experiences influence later outcomes, where interventions will be more effective, and how state resources can be better aligned to maximize impact for residents.
While the primary source of K–12 education data some functions will change with the implementation of the new student information system, this shift does not replace SLDS or eliminate the need for the SLDS. Rather, it underscores the importance of a stable, integrated system that can adapt to changes in domain-specific data sources.