Dear Judy,

My son's middle school handed out report cards with errors.  When the errors were pointed out they fixed them promptly.  However, the incorrect info apparently had already gone into ARIS.  The middle school also already sent over the incorrect report card to my son's new high school. I have a report card that shows a performance level for one class of 4, but ARIS shows a performance level of 2 for that class.

I sent an email to the person at the school who handled the report card corrections, but I am unsure how relentlessly to pursue this.   Will anyone care about what ARIS Parent Link says?  Is it possible that it appears elsewhere "in the system" correctly?  How can I even find out?

Should I worry?

Dear Should I worry?

If the correct information does not appear in the ARIS record, you should be concerned. For those who don’t know, ARIS is the database that includes your child’s cumulative academic records, attendance, immunization status, and personal details such as date of birth, address and contact information. Parents get an ID number and log-in instructions from school.  By accessing ARIS, parents can find out how kids are doing in periodic assessments as well as state standardized tests and Regents exams.  ARIS began in the 2005-06 school year, and for most kids, it will eventually include their entire school career.

If you find errors in ARIS you should call the Service Desk at the Department of Academic Support and Performance: 212-374-6646   They will help straighten it out. But on your own, contact the high school as well, especially if it is a large school.  High schools use middle school grades to place kids in appropriate classes.<!--more-->

According to an experienced high school parent who chimed in on our forum, errors in ARIS are not uncommon.  “Many times the information in ARIS is not correct (data entry errors, problems with high school courses taught in middle school that are not generally offered, problems with specialized courses not generally offered by other middle schools, such as Chess, or Photography, or Studio Art, etc.).  I have generally found that emailing a scanned copy of the correct report card, along with a note from the middle school principal verifying that the report card is correct, helps immensely with class scheduling for entering high school students.  Make sure that the principal provides an email address and phone where the high school can reach him/her over the summer.  And be sure to follow up to make sure that the principal did as above.  You can ask to be "cc"ed on the email to your child's high school.”

The DOE now has several “help lines” for parents.  If  the operators don't know the answer, they can direct you to the appropriate person or department.

Check out: Parent Support Line, 718-935-2009 . Answers general questions about your school zone, enrollment, pre-kindergarten registration, and gifted and talented programs.

Department of Academic Support and Performance Service Desk, 212-374-6646. Answers questions about ARIS and ARIS parent link, periodic assessments, New York State Standardized Tests.

General information for the public, 212-374-2363. Includes graduates trying to find their student records for schools that have closed.