With over 37 million residents, California is the most populous state in the country. California's primary and secondary schools enroll over 6.2 million students,1 and there are 3.4 million undergraduates attending 683 postsecondary institutions in California. Yet, because of the lack of a strong data infrastructure, we are unable to answer basic questions about student progress and completion. To improve educational outcomes and meet future workforce demand, California must establish a longitudinal data system that can answer the following critical questions about student pathways and outcomes. This publication is part of "Our California: A Call to Action and Blueprint to Increase College Graduates and Keep Our Economy Strong", which calls upon our Governor to make the necessary investments and implement bold reforms to California's higher education to ensure that our students and our state thrive.