In 1969, the Virginia Community College System (VCCS) established a centralized student-specific data system from which state and federal reports and management information could be developed. However, this system provides no information about students and graduates after they leave the system. In order to augment the inconsistent data gathered through follow-up surveys and feedback from senior colleges, the VCCS needs access to in-state and out-of-state databases that compile student-specific rather than aggregate data. Student-specific data permits the matching and merging of data records from other sources with the VCCS data system to produce a database for management information, assessment, academic and institutional research, and for compliance with federal higher education regulations and anticipated accrediting requirements. Specifically, the VCCS perceives a need for: (1) access to the Virginia Council of Higher Education's student-specific data system to receive transfer information by name, social security number, and other data elements; (2) the development of partnerships with other states that would allow the transfer of information from the higher education state data files and the unemployment insurance files of the employment commission across state boundaries; (3) modification of the federal unemployment insurance file to indicate the employee's full- or part-time employment status and specific occupation; (4) the development of federal regulations that are easy to implement at the college level with simple definitions and comparable data; and (5) the reassessment of student classifications to better reflect student intent and goals, creating some categories that may not fit easily into federal or state classification structures. Technology is available that will allow the collection and sharing of data and information; what is needed is a change in thinking. (MAB)