Reporting in PEARS is organized around reporting periods. For SNAP-Ed organizations, each reporting period follows the Federal Fiscal Year (Oct 1 – Sept 31). When transitioning from one reporting period to the next, you may need to perform the following administrative tasks within the system:
Update Open and Close Dates
Organization Administrators have access to change the dates that reporting for the current year closes in PEARS and reporting for the next year opens in PEARS.
Some organizations allow a few extra weeks to report data for the current year and/or allow for data cleaning, after 10/1. For example, you could set the current year’s Close date to 10/14 and the next year’s Open date to 10/15 (or other dates of your choosing).
For instructions on updating open and close dates, see: Edit Reporting Periods.
Please reach out to PEARS Support if you have questions or would like assistance with this process.
Notify Staff of the Reporting Period Transition
Especially if the reporting period deadline in PEARS is different than it has been for your staff in the past, it is best to frequently communicate the dates PEARS will close and re-open for reporting each year’s data. The PEARS Team recommends notifying staff of the Reporting Period transition early and often.
Manage Lists
One month before the next reporting period is set to open, lists for the next year are available to update, including: audiences, curricula, interventions, and projects. If updates are needed for these lists, changes can be made before reporting opens for the new year.
Update SNAP-Ed Custom Data Templates
One month before the next reporting period is set to open, templates for the next year are available to update. If updates are needed for the SNAP-Ed Custom Data templates, changes can be made before reporting opens for the new year.
Update Site Demographics
If your organization lists demographic data within site entries, the demographic percentages connected to each site will be re-set when the new reporting period begins. If needed, the PEARS Team can upload site demographic data for the new reporting year in bulk.
Please reach out to PEARS Support if you have questions or would like assistance with this process.
Copy Data to the New Reporting Period
Some modules allow records to be copied in bulk from year to year. Once the new reporting period begins, records can be copied from the previous year to the current year. It may be helpful to remind staff to copy forward their records from the following modules:
Program Activities
Indirect Activities
Partnerships
Coalitions
PSE Site Activities
Social Marketing Campaigns
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For more information on Reporting Period Open and Close dates, see: Manage Reporting Periods.
✓ TIP:
For each user, the PEARS homepage includes a list of incomplete records within each module. This list can be a helpful guide as staff close out reporting for the year and mark records as complete.
For more information about the original PEARS homepage, see: Navigate the PEARS Homepage
For more information about the updated PEARS homepage dashboard, see: Update to the Homepage Dashboard
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For more information on updating lists, see: Manage Lists.
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For more information on creating templates for the SNAP-Ed Custom Data page within the Program Activities module, see: Manage SNAP-Ed Data Templates.
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For more information on collecting site demographics and using this data for reporting, see: Add Site Demographics, Auto Calculate Program Activity Demographics.
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For more information on copying data, see: Bulk Actions in PEARS