e-data Access
Obtaining Staff Level Access to e-data
Extension staff may log in to e-data using their existing Penn State User IDs and passwords. Once they have logged in, new staff members should follow the instructions on the screen to enroll in the program or programs to which they are assigned. It is very important that staff members complete enrollments for all programs and/or counties in which they have responsibilities. Simply click "New Program Enrollment" on the Home Screen for each additional enrollment.
To make use of staff-only features and functions in e-data, each county staff member must request and be granted a county-level access upgrade by their respective Regional Directors’ Offices. Regional offices will handle this responsibility until transition to the District Director structure is complete in mid-2012. New instructions will be posted at that time.
The Two Components of Access to e-data
To protect the privacy of information and accommodate the needs of staff and volunteers, access to e-data has two components.
- The first component of e-data access is the level. This usually refers to the person’s role and level of responsibility and includes Basic, Club/Group, County, State level access, etc. Each level is described in detail in the section below.
- The second component of e-data access refers to the person’s permission to view individual enrollee records. This determines whether the person may view the individual records of other enrollees in his/her program, club, group, county, etc. The two options are:
- Deny access to individual records
- Allow access to individual records
Access levels are listed and described below
- Basic level access allows an individual to access only his or her own record.
- Club/Group level access allows a 4-H volunteer leader or volunteer Master Gardener coordinator to access and input information relevant only to his/her 4-H club or master gardener program. Club/Group level access can be granted to volunteers at the discretion of county Extension staff. Please note that club/group level access does not automatically include access to individual enrollees’ records. Access to individual enrollee records is granted separately and may not be needed by all those with club/group level access.
- County level access is available only to County Extension Staff members. With county level access, staff members can access and input information relevant to the program areas in which they registered within their counties. Activities related to the program areas in which they registered will automatically appear under Upcoming Activities on their home screens. Access to individual enrollee records is granted separately and may not be needed by all those with county level access.
- Regional access is available to each of the Regional Directors and their administrative staffs. Using this access level, regional staff can review data for all counties in their respective regions. Regional staff members can also grant county level access to staff within their respective regions. Access to individual enrollee records is granted separately and may not be needed by all those with regional level access.
- State access is available to all State Program Leaders and their administrative staffs. Using this access level, state staff can review program data for all counties statewide and can schedule statewide activities and post alerts, add, edit, and delete state projects, enter keywords, etc. Access to individual enrollee records is granted separately and may not be needed by all those with state level access.
- Faculty access is available to PSU faculty with Extension appointments. Using this access level, faculty members can post activities such as meetings, training sessions, and other events for their respective program areas on a statewide basis. Access to individual enrollee records is granted separately and may not be needed by all those with faculty level access.
Example: A staff member assigned to a program within a given county can request and be granted county level access for that program with the Allow access to individual records option. This allows the staff member to use various e-data tools within that program and to view the records of individuals in that county who have enrolled in that program.
In situations where a staff member does not have program responsibilities in a given county, but is responsible for posting activities that are available in that county, the staff member can be granted county level access for that program in additional counties with the Deny access to individual records option. This will allow the staff member to post activities for other counties, but will not allow him/her to view the records of users in those additional counties. At the present time, the decision to grant this type of access is made at the discretion of each of the Regional Directors’ offices to accommodate the needs of their respective regions.
