SIRAS Record Status – Reflect What Is Happening in the Field
The SIRAS Current record status should reflect the student's known status in the field as soon as staff know it.
Do not wait for later data cleanup, a reporting deadline, or CALPADS certification to update the SIRAS status. Delayed data entry can make SIRAS searches and CALPADS comparisons appear noncompliant even when the underlying meeting, enrollment, exit, or participation event occurred on time.
The record status appears in the upper-right SIRAS header with the student's designation and placement.
Changing the SIRAS status updates the Current record and SIRAS work lists. It does not, by itself, create or submit every required CALPADS transaction. Staff must still finalize the applicable meeting or create the required archive, then confirm the transaction was reported successfully.
1. Why Timely Status Entry Matters
SIRAS is a current-state system. Searches, work lists, caseloads, census-day files, and data-quality comparisons use what the Current record says now.
When staff wait to update the record:
- a student who already began participating may still appear Pending or Inactive;
- a student who left may continue to appear Active;
- a completed Initial Evaluation may still appear unfinished;
- SIRAS and CALPADS may appear inconsistent even though the field event occurred correctly; and
- required archived transactions may not be created or submitted until after a monitoring deadline.
The system cannot distinguish between “the event happened but was not entered” and “the event did not happen.” Enter dates, outcomes, participation changes, and record status promptly so the UI reflects the actual field history.
For the difference between Current data and archived transaction history, see Data Record – Current Data.
2. Choose Active, Pending, or Inactive
| Status | What it means in SIRAS | Expected next step |
|---|---|---|
| Active | The student is eligible, enrolled, and participating in special education. | Keep the Current record, providers, plan, and services aligned with the field and confirm the required CALPADS records are reported. |
| Pending | The record requires referral, arrival, consent, evaluation, participation, or other follow-up before its lasting status is known. | Resolve the work and move the record to Active or Inactive when the field outcome is known. |
| Inactive | The student is not currently participating through this record, is not eligible, is no longer enrolled/residing in the district, or the referral/workflow has ended. | Preserve the actual date and reason. Create and report an inactive transaction only when the reason is reportable. |
Do not make a record Active merely because someone needs access or work remains to be completed. Use Pending for unresolved work and preserve an existing inactive/non-participation reason when applicable.
3. Active Status
Use Active when all three statements are true:
- The student is eligible.
- The student is enrolled in the district.
- The student is participating in special education services.
When a student begins participating, update SIRAS promptly using the real field date and complete the applicable meeting or archive workflow.
For an Active SIRAS record, the expected CALPADS pattern generally includes:
- overlapping district enrollment;
- SWDS [1] Eligible and Participating;
- the applicable MEET history; and
- PLAN and SERV records associated with the current participating plan.
See What an Active SIRAS Record Should Look Like in CALPADS.
If the student is Active in SIRAS but the expected CALPADS records are missing, confirm that the meeting was finalized or the archive was created, submitted, and accepted.
4. Pending Status
Pending is a temporary follow-up status. Common examples include:
- a new Part B referral or evaluation in progress;
- a newly arriving or returning student whose eligibility or participation is still being verified;
- a record awaiting assessment consent, an SSID, a meeting, or a parent response; and
- an eligible but non-participating record temporarily made Pending so staff can complete a follow-up meeting.
District staff should regularly review Pending records and resolve each one to Active or Inactive when the actual field outcome is known.
For an eligible but non-participating student, staff may make the record Pending to create or complete a meeting without removing the inactive date or non-participation reason. The historical reason stays in place until participation actually begins.
For Initial Evaluations, see Initial Evaluation Process – Part B / IEP. For incoming students, see New or Returning Students.
5. Inactive Status
Use Inactive when the record is no longer currently participating or active in the district workflow. Examples include:
- the student transferred or left the district;
- the student is eligible but not participating;
- the student is no longer eligible;
- an anticipated arrival never enrolled;
- a referral ended without an evaluation; or
- the local record is no longer needed by the team.
Use the actual date and reason that match what happened in the field. The inactive reason determines whether SIRAS should create a reportable SWDS transaction or only close the local Current record.
Use When Students Leave, Stop Participating, or Become Inactive to choose the scenario-specific inactive reason and determine whether the change requires an SWDS/NONPART archive.
Update the Current status when the field event is known, then complete the required archive and CALPADS correction/reporting steps.
6. Status Changes & CALPADS Transactions
A complete data workflow has three parts:
- Update the SIRAS Current record so the UI reflects the real field status and date.
- Create the historical transaction by finalizing the applicable meeting or using Archive for Reporting.
- Confirm CALPADS reporting by verifying that the transaction was submitted and accepted.
| What changed in the field | Current-record action | Transaction action |
|---|---|---|
| Student begins participating | Change to Active using the actual participation/approval context. | Finalize or archive the applicable SWDS, MEET, PLAN, and SERV transaction. |
| Student leaves or stops participating | Change to Inactive using the actual date and reason. | Archive only when the reason creates a reportable status change. |
| Initial Evaluation consent received | Keep Pending and enter the Parent Consent Date promptly. | Create the Pending As Of MEET archive before the evaluation meeting. |
| Meeting or evaluation completed | Ensure Current status and data reflect the actual outcome. | Finalize the meeting and review the archived reporting transaction. |
See Data Record – Archived Transaction for how SIRAS preserves reportable history.
For transfer, no-show, cessation, no-longer-eligible, completion, and other inactive scenarios, use When Students Leave, Stop Participating, or Become Inactive.
7. Monitor & Resolve Status Changes
District administrators and SEDS Coordinators should review status work queues regularly, especially:
- Pending referrals and incoming records;
- records with consent but no Pending As Of archive;
- Active records with missing or incomplete CALPADS history;
- Inactive records still requiring an archive; and
- students who arrived or left near a census/reporting date.
Recommended related monitoring:
8. Designation & Placement
Designation
Designation identifies the program context of the Current record, such as:
- Special Ed.
- 504
- 504/Special Ed.
- SST
A Current record may move between designations as the student's program status changes. The document and transaction history remains associated with the record.
Placement
Placement values are locally determined and may include SDC, DIS, RSP, and other district-defined variations.
Contact SIRAS Support for placement-value customization.
9. Record Status Checklist
- ☐ Does the Current status reflect what is known in the field today?
- ☐ Was the actual event date entered promptly?
- ☐ Is Active used only for an eligible, enrolled, participating student?
- ☐ Is Pending being treated as a temporary follow-up queue?
- ☐ If the record is Inactive, does the date and reason match the field event?
- ☐ Was the required meeting finalized or archive created?
- ☐ Was the CALPADS transaction submitted and accepted?
- ☐ Are Pending records and reporting exceptions being reviewed regularly?
