LAC Correspondence
January 22, 2021
The window for scheduling UPS Pick Ups opened on January 13, 2021. You are now able to submit requests within the HSA Portal to have UPS pick up any paper test materials that need to be returned. If you need a refresher on how to schedule a pick up, please refer to the UPS Pick Up Requests Quick Start Guide on the HSA Help & Support site.
The window for ordering additional manuals and test will remain open through February 2, 2021. You can access the Online Materials Management tab within the HSA Portal. A Quick Start Guide is available on the Help and Support Site showing the steps for ordering additional materials.
The January 19 LAC and LEA 24 STC Refresher Trainings were recorded and have been posted to the Help and Support Site.
The digital copies of Spring 2021 Test Administration Manual for HSA Government and Test Coordinator Manual have been posted to the Help and Support site.
As requested in the January 19 LAC Refresher Training, the Key Dates document was updated with a footnote explaining that Spring HSA Government students who need to test later in the window may be submitted via the pre-ID file process with HS MISA, March 1 – 18, 2021. The 2020-2021 Key Dates Document can be found on the Help and Support site.
January 13, 2021
Please register for the MCAP High School Assessment refresher training sessions, which will be held via webinar. The LEA 24 STC Refresher Training will be held January 19, 2021, from 12:00 – 1:00 PM, The LAC Refresher Training will be held January 19, 2021, from 1:00 – 2:00 PM.
The January 2020 HS MISA and Government HSA window opened on Monday, January 11 for both online and paper. The HSA window for both online and paper administrations will close on Friday, February 5, 2021.
If you received materials for the January administration, but will be unable to complete in-person testing during the window, please register students for the upcoming spring administration. All unused January secure testing materials must be returned to Cognia. New materials must be ordered for the Spring administration. We have opened the UPS Pickup Window early. Beginning on Wednesday, January 13, you may use the Materials Management tool within the HSA Online Portal to schedule UPS Pickups for unused test booklets. You do not need to return manuals or unused answer sheets. All test booklets must be returned. Manuals and unused answer documents should be discarded after the January testing window ends.
January 6, 2021
You are now able to schedule test sessions using the HSA Portal. As a reminder, there is a small tutorial on the Help and Support site about creating classes and test sessions.
School Test Coordinators (STC) are expected to enter their testing schedule for HS MISA and Government on https://itempra.org/schedule. Schedules should be updated as changes occur due to weather or other events.
We have created an ancillary document for the Paper Test Administration that provides the page numbers for the start of each session. This was mentioned in the January 2021 Test Administration Manual on page 1. That document has been posted to the Help & Support site. Please be sure to share this document with the STCs in schools administering a paper test.
The window for ordering additional manuals and test material will remain open through February 2, 2021. You can access the Online Materials Management tab within the HSA Portal. A Quick Start Guide is available on the Help and Support Site showing the steps for ordering additional materials.
Please register for the MCAP High School Assessment refresher training sessions, which will be held via webinar. The LEA 24 STC Refresher Training will be held January 19, 2021, from 12:00 – 1:00 PM, The LAC Refresher Training will be held January 19, 2021, from 1:00 – 2:00 PM.
December 17, 2020
The window for ordering additional manuals and test material opened on December 11, 2020 and will remain open through February 2, 2021. You can access the Online Materials Management tab within the HSA Portal. A Quick Start Guide is available on the Help and Support Site showing the steps for ordering additional materials.
The second Pre-ID window will be December 10 - 17, 2020. During this window you will be able to bulk upload additional updates to enrollments and/or accommodations. Paper materials will not be automatically ordered from records loaded during this time. You must order additional manuals or secure tests via the Additional Materials Order process within the HSA Portal.
Please register for the MCAP High School Assessment refresher training sessions, which will be held via webinar. The LEA 24 STC Refresher Training will be held January 19, 2021, from 12:00 – 1:00 PM, The LAC Refresher Training will be held January 19, 2021, from 1:00 – 2:00 PM.
The 2020-2021 Key Dates Document has been updated. The last day to finalize student online tests during the January administration was corrected to February 5, 2021. The document is posted to the Help and Support site. Click the Printable Document link within the Key Dates section to locate the Key Dates PDF
The January HSA administration will close on February 5, 2021 at 4:00 PM EST. All student data including classes and test sessions will be cleared out of the portal over the weekend in preparation for the opening of the pre-ID window for Spring HSA Government which is February 8 – 12, 2021. The Spring HSA Government test window will open February 22, 2021.
The HSA Help Desk and Additional Materials ordering will be closed from December 21, 2020 through January 1, 2021 due to Cognia’s Holiday break. Any orders or helpdesk tickets will be processed when staff returns on January 4th. If you have an emergency, please reach out to Brianna Creed at MSDE (brianna.creed@maryland.gov).
December 9, 2020
The second Pre-ID window will be December 10 - 17, 2020. During this window you will be able to bulk upload additional updates to enrollments and/or accommodations. Paper materials will not be automatically ordered from records loaded during this time. You must order additional manuals or secure tests via the Additional Materials Order process within the HSA Portal.
Please register for the MCAP High School Assessment refresher training sessions, which will be held via webinar. The LEA 24 STC Refresher Training will be held January 19, 2021, from 12:00 – 1:00 PM, The LAC Refresher Training will be held January 19, 2021, from 1:00 – 2:00 PM.
The HSA Help Desk and Additional Materials ordering will be closed from December 21, 2020 through January 1, 2021 due to Cognia’s Holiday break. Any orders or helpdesk tickets will be processed when staff returns on January 4th. If you have an emergency, please reach out to Brianna Creed at MSDE (brianna.creed@maryland.gov).
The January 2021 Test Coordinator Manuals, Government Test Administrator Manuals, and HS MISA Test Administrator Manuals will be arriving to each LSS and school on December 11, 2020. You can track this shipment on the Materials Management page in the HSA Portal. If you have not received your manuals by December 15, please contact the HSA Help Desk.
The paper test materials for January 2021 will be arriving in each LSS and school on December 11, 2020. These materials were ordered based on the upload files submitted in the first Pre-ID window for students marked for accommodations requiring paper. You can track this shipment on the Materials Management page in the HSA Portal. If you have not received your test materials by December 14, please contact the HSA Help Desk.
December 2, 2020
The second Pre-ID window will be December 10 - 17, 2020. During this window you will be able to bulk upload additional updates to enrollments and/or accommodations. Paper materials will not be automatically ordered from records loaded during this time. You must order additional manuals or secure tests via the Additional Materials Order process within the HSA Portal.
The January 2021 Test Coordinator Manuals, Government Test Administrator Manuals, and HS MISA Test Administrator Manuals will be arriving to each LSS and school on December 11, 2020. You can track this shipment on the Materials Management page in the HSA Portal. If you have not received your manuals by December 15, please contact the HSA Help Desk.
The paper test materials for January 2021 will be arriving in each LSS and school on December 11, 2020. These materials were ordered based on the upload files submitted in the first Pre-ID window for students marked for accommodations requiring paper. You can track this shipment on the Materials Management page in the HSA Portal. If you have not received your test materials by December 14, please contact the HSA Help Desk.
The certification test window is November 16 - December 4, 2020. The purpose of this test is to allow local students, schools, and each LSS to go through the steps necessary for operational testing. This should be treated as a mock operational test. The actual test content will be practice test items to help familiarize the students with the testing platform.