Social Science Data and Software (SSDS) Blog: June 2006 Archives

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June 29, 2006

NCES Newsflash: Two New Forum Guides posted to the NCES Website

Forum Guide to Elementary/Secondary Virtual Education

This guide provides recommendations for collecting accurate, comparable, and useful data about virtual education in an elementary/secondary education setting.

To download, view and print the publication as a PDF file, please visit: http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2006803

Forum Guide to the Privacy of Student Information: A Resource for Schools

This guide was written to help school and local education agency staff to better understand and apply FERPA, a federal law that protects privacy interests of parents and students in student education records.

To download, view and print the publication as a PDF file, please visit: http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2006805

Posted by ronbo at 07:23 PM

June 27, 2006

Census News Flash - June 26, 2006: Amendments Would Cut FY07 Census Funding

Several proposed amendments to the Census Bureau's appropriations bill would cut the agency's funding by tens of millions of dollars. The amendments reportedly will be offered when the House of Representatives considers the massive Fiscal Year 2007 Science, State, Justice, and Commerce Appropriations bill (H.R. 5672) starting as early as today.

Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-MA) has alerted colleagues that he will offer an amendment to shift $30 million from the Census Bureau to the Justice Department's Bulletproof Vest Partnership Grant Program. It is not known if the proposed amendment would direct the Census Bureau to cut specific programs. The amendment's goal is to "ensure that we fully fund the [BVP] program at its authorized level of $50 million," according to a Dear Colleague letter from Rep. Lynch. The National Association of Police Organizations, Inc. thanked the congressman in a letter for sponsoring the amendment.

Reps. Lee Terry (R-NB) and Mark Kennedy (R-MN) will offer three amendments to increase funding for the Justice Department's Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grants, which the Administration had proposed to eliminate. The Appropriations Committee had restored some funding for this program. One of the Terry-Kennedy amendments would shift $50 million from the Census Bureau to the Byrne JAG program.

Rep. Michael Rogers (R-MI) reportedly will offer an amendment to shift $14.1 million from various Census Bureau activities to the Commerce Department's Manufacturing Extension Partnership. Rep. Nancy Johnson (R-CT) is seeking to shift $3.3 million from the Census Bureau to the FBI's Innocent Images program, while Reps. Dennis Cardoza (D-CA), Rick Larsen (D-WA), and Darlene Hooley (D-OR) propose to take $20 million from census programs to fund grants for drug-endangered children.

Other amendments affecting the Census Bureau are possible. The Appropriations Committee increased funding for the Census Bureau by about $72 million over current year levels, as the agency ramps up for the 2010 census and continues nationwide implementation of the American Community Survey.

----

Census News Briefs are prepared by Terri Ann Lowenthal, an independent consultant in Washington, DC, with support from The Annie E. Casey Foundation and other organizations. Ms. Lowenthal is also a consultant to The Census Project, sponsored by the Communications Consortium Media Center. All views expressed in the News Briefs are solely those of the author. Please direct questions about the information in this News Brief to Ms. Lowenthal at 202/484-3067 or by e-mail at TerriAnn2K@aol.com. Please feel free to circulate this document to other interested individuals and organizations.

Posted by ronbo at 03:11 PM

June 26, 2006

NCES Newsflash: NEW NCES REPORT! - Dropout Rates in the United States: 2002 and 2003

This report continues the dropout rate report series. The report is based on several sources of data and provides details on high school dropouts and high school completers for 2002 and 2003. Apart from provide characteristics of dropouts and completers in these years, the report also provides information about trends in high school dropout and completion rates going back to the 1970s. Among other findings, the report shows that young people (16-24 year olds) of Hispanic origin have been more likely to be out of high school without a high school credential than young White- and Black, non-Hispanics over the past 30 years.

To download, view and print the publication as a PDF file, please visit: http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2006062

Posted by ronbo at 07:30 PM

From the CSES (Comparative Study of Electoral Systems) List: CSES Announcement: Module 3, and IPSA panels

Dear CSES user community,

We write with two announcements of interest to you:

1. The CSES Module 3 questionnaire is now available. To view or download the file, visit the CSES website and click on the “Collaborators” link to the left of the page.

The availability of Module 3 means that data collection for Module 2 is now complete. Future data collections should make use of the new Module 3 questionnaire except by prior agreement with the Secretariat.

To be included in the final CSES Module 2 dataset, collaborators must deposit their data and all related materials with the Secretariat on or before the end of this year. The deadline is December 31, 2006. We must also receive all necessary documentation (questionnaires, Macro Reports, and Design Reports) by that date.

2. If you will be attending the 20th IPSA World Congress in Fukuoka, Japan, we are pleased to report that CSES will be featured in these two panels from the Japanese Political Science Association (JPSA) Session:

- New Directions of Electoral Studies: Electoral Behavior and Political Attitudes with ANES & CSES Data (Monday July 10, 2006)

- Political Behavior within Institutions: Comparative Perspectives Using Comparative Study of Electoral Systems Data (Wednesday July 12, 2006)

We have provided additional details about these panels below my signature in this email. When you arrive in Japan, please review the final conference program to verify the dates, times, and locations, as they are subject to change.

Best personal regards,
-Dave
David Howell
Director of Studies
Comparative Study of Electoral Systems (CSES)

-----

JS01.582: New Directions of Electoral Studies: Electoral Behavior and Political Attitudes with ANES & CSES Data

Monday, July 10, 2006 – 09:00 to 13:00 –(SP-4F Room 3) Sun Palace – Room 3

Convenor: Yamada, Masahiro – Kwansei Gakuin University, Japan
Chair: Yamada, Masahiro – Kwansei Gakuin University, Japan
Discussant: Nishizawa, Yoshitaka – Doshisha University, Japan

Papers:

Remaking the American National Election Studies, 2006-2009
Lupia, Arthur – University of Michigan, United States of America
Krosnick, Jon A. – Stanford University, United States of America

The Comparative Study of Electoral Systems Project: An Overview
McAllister, Ian – The Australian National University, Australia
Howell, David - University of Michigan, United States of America

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JS01.314: Political Behavior within Institutions: Comparative Perspectives Using Comparative Study of Electoral Systems Data

Wednesday July 12, 2006 – 15:00 to 19:00 – (202) Multipurpose Hall – Quarter Floor Area

Convenor: Ikeda, Ken’ichi – University of Tokyo, Japan
Chair: Ikeda, Ken’ichi – University of Tokyo, Japan
Discussant: Yamada, Masahiro – Kwansei Gakuin University, Japan

Papers:

Consolidating Democracy: A Comparison of the 2001 and 2005 Parliamentary Elections in Thailand
Albritton, Robert – University of Mississippi, United States of America
Bureekul, Thawilwadee – King Prajadhipat’s Institute, Thailand

Electoral Institutions and Satisfaction with Democracy
Thomassen, Jacques – University of Twente, The Netherlands
Aarts, Kees – University of Twente, The Netherlands

Political Parties and Democratic Consolidation in Postcommunist Societies
McAllister, Ian – The Australian National University, Australia
White, Stephen – University of Glasgow, United Kingdom

Political Support for Democracy and Satisfaction with Democracy in
European Political Systems
Haerpfer, Christian – University of Aberdeen, United Kingdom

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Posted by ronbo at 05:31 PM

Roper Center Data Acquisitions Update, May 2006

Click here for a list of new additions to the Roper Center data archive that are now available to Center Members via Roper Express.

Stanford University Libraries maintains a membership to the Roper Center and Stanford faculty, staff, and students can now download data directly accessible via Roper Express. For instructions on requesting data not available via Roper Express, click on the "Data Services - Roper" link on our SSDS web site.

This month the attached PDF contains:

• AARP/University of Southern California Images of Aging in America, 2004 conducted by FGI Research, March 11-April 25, 2004, and based on telephone interviews with 1,594 National adults including an oversample of African Americans and Hispanics.

• German Marshall Fund of the United States After the U.S. Election--A Survey of Public Opinion in France, Germany, and the United States conducted by TNS Intersearch, November 29-December 5, 2004, and based on telephone interviews with 3,005 Adult residents of France, Germany, and the United State.

• 5 new ABC News/Washington Post polls conducted from August to September, 2005.

• 26 new Pew studies conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates International including four international samples.

• 6 new University of Maryland—Program on International Affairs studies conducted by Knowledge Networks from 2002-2003.

These notices have been archived on the Roper Center website at:
http://www.ropercenter.uconn.edu/dataacq/yeartodate.html

Posted by ronbo at 05:25 PM

Recent ICPSR updates and additions - June 23, 2006

Below is a list of new data collection additions to the ICPSR data archive along with a list of released data collections that have been updated:

NEW ADDITIONS:

4447 National Crime Victimization Survey: Unbounded Data, 2002
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/04447.xml

4448 National Crime Victimization Survey: Unbounded Data, 2003
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/04448.xml

4449 National Crime Victimization Survey: Unbounded Data, 2004
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/04449.xml

13631 Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods (PHDCN): Interviewer Impressions (Primary Caregiver), Wave 2, 1997-2000
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/13631.xml

13632 Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods (PHDCN): Interviewer Impressions (Subject), Wave 2, 1997-2000
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/13632.xml

13633 Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods (PHDCN): Interviewer Impressions (Young Adult), Wave 2, 1997-2000
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/13633.xml

UPDATES:

3791 National Home and Hospice Care Survey, 2000
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/03791.xml

6718 National Survey of Self-Care and Aging: Baseline, 1990-1991
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/06718.xml

You can also view a list of all studies added and updated in the last ninety days by visiting the ICPSR Web site at http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/.

Posted by ronbo at 02:48 PM

NCES Newsflash: NAEP Secondary Analysis Research Program: Applications Deadline July 27!

Applications for the NAEP Secondary Analysis Research Program for 2007 are due July 27, 2006, by 8 p.m. EDT. Please note that Letters of Intent are not required at this time.

The NAEP Secondary Analysis Research Program was developed to encourage the preparation of reports that would not otherwise be available utilizing new ideas or state-of-the-art techniques to analyze and report the information gathered from NAEP assessments and the NAEP High School Transcript Studies (HSTS). Much potentially valuable information that could be gained from the NAEP data remains untapped. This grant program was developed to make resources available to qualified data analysts to explore the NAEP data more fully. Analyses and reports prepared under this program should potentially be useful to the general public, parents, educators, educational researchers, or policymakers.

The FY 2007 NAEP Secondary Analysis Research Program application package and required forms can be downloaded at: http://www.ed.gov/programs/naepsarp/applicant.html

Descriptions of recently funded proposals are available at: http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/researchcenter/naepgrants.asp

Read about the NAEP HSTS at: http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/hsts/

Explore NAEP data at: http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/nde/

Posted by ronbo at 02:45 PM

NCES Newsflash: Download NCES Comparable Wage Index Data Files and Documentation

The Comparable Wage Index (CWI) is a measure of the systematic, regional variations in the salaries of college graduates who are not educators. It can be used by researchers to adjust finance data at geographic different levels in order to make better comparisons across geographic areas.

The CWI was developed by Dr. Lori L. Taylor at the Bush School of Government and Public Service, Texas A&M University and William J. Fowler, Jr. at NCES. Dr. Taylor's research was supported by a contract with the National Center for Education Statistics. The complete description of the research is provided in the NCES Research and Development "A Comparable Wage Approach to Geographic Cost Adjustment" (NCES 2006-321) http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2006321.

Documentation for the CWI http://nces.ed.gov/edfin/pdf/2006865.pdf describes four geographic levels of the CWI, which are presented in four separate files http://nces.ed.gov/edfin/prodsurv/data.asp. These files are the school district, labor market, state, and a combined regional and national file.

The school district file provides a CWI for each local education agency (LEA) in the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) database. For each LEA there is a series of indexes for the years 1997 - 2004. The file can be merged with school district finance data, and this merged file can be used to produce finance data adjusted for geographic cost differences. This file also includes four agency typology variables. The additional files allow for similar cost adjustments for larger geographic areas.

NCES has sponsored the development of other geographic adjustment indexes in the past; the latest was for the 1993-94 school year. For more information on geographic cost adjustments generally, please see this web site - http://nces.ed.gov/edfin/prodsurv/data.asp.

Posted by ronbo at 02:26 PM

June 21, 2006

NCES Newsflash: NEW NCES REPORT! - The Averaged Freshman Graduation Rate for Public High Schools From the Common Core of Data: School Years 2002-03 and 2003-04

This report presents the averaged freshman graduation rate for public high school students for school years 2002-03 and 2003-04 based on data reported by state education agencies to the National Center for Education Statistics. Rates are included for most of the 50 states, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and three other jurisdictions for both years. Comparing the averaged freshman graduation rate among public school students in the class of 2002-03 to that of 2003-04 in each of the 48 reporting states and the District of Columbia, 32 states and the District of Columbia experienced increases in the rate, 1 state experienced no change, and 15 states experienced declines in the rate over this 2-year period.

To download, view and print the publication as a PDF file, please visit: http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2006606

Posted by ronbo at 05:18 PM

From MEPS list: Upcoming MEPS/HCUP Workshop

AHRQ will sponsor a workshop in early September to facilitate the health services research community in using data from two AHRQ databases: the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) and the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP). The workshop will provide researchers with information on the components and capabilities of the two databases, and will teach participants how to extract data for research projects. Both databases have national and regional health care data. Participants will be given the opportunity to attend sessions on MEPS and/or HCUP; have an opportunity to bring up specific research; and participate in a hands-on session for MEPS, HCUP or both. A working knowledge of SAS is required.

This workshop will be held at the Eisenberg Building located at 540 Gaither Road, Rockville, MD 20850 on September 6-8. There will be a minimal charge for attending.

In order for AHRQ to assess interest level and resource allocation, please let us know if you would like to attend the workshop, and your preference for MEPS, HCUP or both, by sending an email to workshop06@ahrq.hhs.gov. Your email will be used as an indicator of interest and does not constitute a commitment to attend. Registration will be required and announced at a later date.

The Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) collects data on the specific health services that Americans use, how frequently they use them, the cost of these services, and how they are paid for, as well as data on the cost, scope, and breadth of private health insurance held by and available to the U.S. population.

MEPS is unparalleled for the degree of detail in its data, as well as its ability to link data on health services spending and health insurance to the demographic, employment, economic, health status, and other characteristics of survey respondents. Moreover, MEPS is the only national survey that provides a foundation for estimating the impact of changes in sources of payment and insurance coverage on different economic groups or special populations of interest, such as the poor, elderly, families, veterans, the uninsured, and racial and ethnic minorities.

For more information about MEPS, please visit: http://www.meps.ahrq.gov

The Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) is a family of powerful health care databases, software tools, and products. Sponsored by AHRQ in partnership with more than 35 state data organizations,

HCUP includes the largest all-payer, encounter-level collection of longitudinal health care data (inpatient, ambulatory surgery, and emergency department) in the U.S., beginning in 1988. HCUP data enable research on a broad range of issues related to health care, including cost and quality of health services, medical practice patterns, access to health care programs, and outcomes of treatments at the national, State, and local market levels. In addition, HCUP makes available at no charge a number of software tools to facilitate use of HCUP and other administrative data.

For more information about HCUP, please visit http://www.hcup-us.ahrq.gov

Posted by ronbo at 05:10 PM

NCES Newsflash: NEW NCES REPORT! - Profile of Undergraduates in U.S. Postsecondary Education Institutions: 2003-04, With a Special Analysis of Community College Students

This report is the fifth in a series of reports that accompany the release of the data from the National Postsecondary Student Aid Study (NPSAS). This report includes an analysis of community college students, examining the relationship between a measure of students’ degree commitment and their likelihood of maintaining their enrollment over the 1-year period under study. The study developed a taxonomy called the Community College Track, which classifies students’degree commitment (more, less, or not committed) based on their reported intentions of completing a program of study (transfer, associates degree, certificate, or no degree) and their attendance status (at least half time or not) within their program of study. Overall, some 49 percent of community college students were classified as “more committed,” 39 percent as “less committed” and 12 percent as “not committed.” The two largest groups were students classified as “more committed” in transfer programs (29 percent) and “less committed” in general associate’s degree programs (17 percent). The results indicate that students who demonstrate a relatively strong commitment to completing a program of study (i.e., they explicitly report that either transfer or degree completion are reasons for attending and they attend classes at least half time) are very likely to maintain their enrollment for one year. Some 83 percent of the “more committed” students did so, compared with 70 percent of “less committed” and 58 percent of those designated as “not committed.”

To download, view and print the publication as a PDF file, please visit: http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2006184

Posted by ronbo at 04:57 PM

June 19, 2006

From NCES "What's New"

Documentation for the NCES Comparable Wage Index Files

Documentation for the CWI describes four geographic levels of the CWI, which are presented in four separate files http://nces.ed.gov/edfin/prodsurv/data.asp. These files are the school district, labor market, state, and a combined regional and national file. The school district file provides a CWI for each local education agency (LEA) in the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) database. For each LEA there is a series of indexes for the years 1997 - 2004. The file can be merged with school district finance data, and this merged file can be used to produce finance data adjusted for geographic cost differences. This file also includes four agency typology variables. The additional files allow for similar cost adjustments

Posted by ronbo at 06:32 PM

From the US Census Bureau Census Product Update (CPU06-12) - June 16, 2006

Statistical Abstract Now Available Online in Spreadsheet Format!

Before now, online tables from the Statistical Abstract were available only in PDF format. With the recent redesign to the Statistical Abstract website, tables are now available in downloadable spreadsheet format, in addition to PDF format. This allows for quick and free access to the tables for analysis and use. Once on the Census website, click "Statistical Abstract" on the bottom of the page. The Statistical Abstract section headings are listed along the left margin - - choose your section of interest and the table titles from that section will appear. In addition to the accessing the spreadsheets, browse the new site to see other features such as; access to other statistical compendia websites, a guide to sources, top five data links, access to state statistical abstract links, and more! Explore all the new features on the Statistical Abstract website today!

Posted by ronbo at 06:09 PM

Recent ICPSR updates and additions - June 19, 2006

Below is a list of new data collection additions to the ICPSR data archive along with a list of released data collections that have been updated:

NEW ADDITIONS:

4320 ABC News Terri Schiavo Poll, March 2005
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/04320.xml

4409 Prosecuting Domestic Violence Cases with Reluctant Victims in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 1994-1995; EXTENT.COLLECT = 1 data file + machine-readable documentation (PDF) + SAS setup file + SPSS setup file + Stata setup file
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/04409.xml

4436 American Customer Satisfaction Index, 1999
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/04436.xml

4440 Early Childhood Longitudinal Study [United States]: Kindergarten Class of 1998-1999, Fifth Grade
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/04440.xml

4452 Biodemographic Models of Reproductive Aging (BIMORA) Project, 1998-2002 [United States]
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/04452.xml

UPDATES:

3088 Alcohol and Drug Services Study (ADSS), 1996-1999: [United States]
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/03088.xml

3428 National Crime Victimization Survey, 1992-2001
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/03428.xml

3691 National Crime Victimization Survey, 1992-2002
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/03691.xml

3995 National Crime Victimization Survey, 1992-2003
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/03995.xml

4276 National Crime Victimization Survey, 1992-2004
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/04276.xml

6836 Aging of Veterans of the Union Army: United States Federal Census Records, 1850, 1860, 1900, 1910
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/06836.xml

7229 Occupational Values and the Image of the Federal Service, 1960-1961
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/07229.xml

You can also view a list of all studies added and updated in the last
ninety days by visiting the ICPSR Web site at http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/.

Posted by ronbo at 03:24 PM

June 14, 2006

NCES Newsflash: NCES REPORT to be Released June 20th - The Averaged Freshman Graduation Rate for Public High Schools From the Common Core of Data: School Years 2002-03 and 2003-04

To download, view and print the publication as a PDF file, please visit: http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2006606

Posted by ronbo at 12:22 PM

June 12, 2006

Recent ICPSR updates and additions - June 12, 2006

Below is a list of new data collection additions to the ICPSR data archive along with a list of released data collections that have been updated:

NEW ADDITIONS:

4438 National Comorbidity Survey: Replication (NCS-R), 2001-2003
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/04438.xml

4455 National Study of Physician Organizations and the Management of Chronic Illness (NSPO), 2000-2001
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/04455.xml

UPDATES:

3211 Eurobarometer 54.2: Impact of New Technologies, Employment and Social Affairs, and Disabilities, January-February 2001
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/03211.xml

3340 Eurobarometer 55.0: European Union Enlargement, the Euro, and Dialogue on Europe, March-April 2001
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/03340.xml

6837 Aging of Veterans of the Union Army: Military, Pension, and Medical Records, 1820-1940
http://webapp.icpsr.umich.edu/cocoon/ICPSR-STUDY/06837.xml

You can also view a list of all studies added and updated in the last ninety days by visiting the ICPSR Web site at http://www.icpsr.umich.edu/.

Posted by ronbo at 04:07 PM

June 07, 2006

From ACS-Alert mailing list: American Community Survey Alert, Number 38

Informing you about news, events, data releases, congressional actions, and other developments associated with the American Community Survey (ACS).

News in this Alert

*U.S. Census Bureau Releases 2005 ACS Special Product for the Gulf Coast Area

The Census Bureau today released a special product to assist communities in understanding the changes affecting the local population and economies of areas affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The 2005 ACS Special Product for the Gulf Coast Area is available on the ACS Web site: <http://www.census.gov/acs/www/Products/Profiles/gulf_coast/index.htm>.

The data profiles of local geographies include separate columns for the 8-month period of January through August 2005 and the 4-month period of September through December 2005. The selected demographic, social, economic, and housing characteristics are available for state and sub-state areas of Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas.

Additional information on the 2005 ACS Special Product on the Gulf Coast Area, including data profiles, maps of the affected areas, methodology, geography definitions, and questions and answers, may be found on the Special Product Web site: <http://www.census.gov/acs/www/Products/Profiles/gulf_coast/index.htm>.

The 2005 ACS Special Product for the Gulf Coast Area is based on the 2005 ACS sample that was designed to produce twelve-month estimates. Producing eight-month and four-month estimates means that the sample sizes and the reliability of the estimates will be reduced. In addition, for some areas, it was very difficult to conduct interviewing in the immediate aftermath of the hurricanes. The 2005 ACS sample was selected from an address list developed early in 2005 and therefore the estimates will not reflect any (including temporary) housing added to the address list after that date.

In August 2006, the Census Bureau will release its regular data products for the ACS, reflecting data collected in 2005. These products also will include data for areas affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

Attached are: a one-page description of the 2005 ACS Special Product for the Gulf Coast Area and a series of questions and answers that provide more detail.

The Census Bureau today also released a special January 1, 2006 set of estimates for the Gulf Coast area.

Contact Us

If you have questions or comments about the American Community Survey, please call (888) 346-9682 or e-mail .

General information about this mailing list is available at <http://lists.census.gov/mailman/listinfo/acs-alert>.

(See attached file: Gulf Coast Special Product Q&As June 7.doc)(See
attached file: Gulf Coast Special Product Factsheet June 7.doc)

Posted by ronbo at 09:01 PM

June 05, 2006

From the ACS Alert Mailing List: American Community Survey Alert, Number 37

(Released May 31, 2006)

Informing you about news, events, data releases, congressional actions, and other developments associated with the American Community Survey (ACS).

News in this Alert

* * U.S. Census Bureau Releases ACS Design and Methodology Paper
* * ACS Data Now Available on DataFerrett
* Contact Us

* U.S. Census Bureau Releases ACS Design and Methodology Paper
The Census Bureau today released its ACS Design and Methodology Paper, a comprehensive summary of the full set of methodologies used in the ACS. The purpose of this paper is to provide data users and other interested individuals with documentation of the methods planned for the ACS.

The paper contains a wide range of topics ranging from sample design, content development, and the language assistance program to data dissemination and user assistance. The paper also includes a glossary of terms, a list of acronyms and appendices. The ACS Design and Methodology Paper may be found online at: http://www.census.gov/acs/www/Downloads/tp67.pdf.

* ACS 2004 PUMS Now Available on DataFerrett
The Census Bureau recently released ACS 2004 PUMS on DataFerrett. DataFerrett allows you to select a “databasket” full of variables and then recode those variables as you need. You can then develop and customize tables or create charts or graphs for a visual presentation into an html page.

DataFerrett helps you locate and retrieve the data you need across the Internet to your desktop or system, regardless of where the data reside.

For more information about ACS 2004 PUMS on DataFerrett, see contact information below.

Contact Us
If you have questions or comments about the American Community Survey, please call (888)456-7215 or e-mail cmo.acs@census.gov.

General information about this mailing list is available at: http://lists.census.gov/mailman/listinfo/acs-alert.

Posted by ronbo at 04:27 PM

From the Census Q & A website: CENSUS BUREAU TO RELEASE SPECIAL PRODUCTS FOR GULF COAST AREA

The U.S. Census Bureau will release on June 7 two special data products for the Gulf Coast area affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

The first product provides special population estimates for the hurricane-affected areas along the Gulf Coast, as of Jan. 1, 2006. While not official figures, these estimates provide the population size before and after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita hit the region last fall. The estimates cover the 117 counties initially designated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency as eligible for individual or public assistance (IPA). In December, Gulf Coast states will have the next snapshot of their population totals when the Census Bureau releases the official 2006 mid-year population estimates for all states.

The second product shows the demographic, socioeconomic and housing characteristics of the population in those 117 IPA counties. These data come from the 2005 American Community Survey (ACS), which is ordinarily designed to produce annual estimates of characteristics of population and housing based on at least a full year of data collection. However, to provide an earlier look at the hurricanes’ effect on the region, the Census Bureau divided the 2005 data into an eight-month period (January through August) before the hurricanes and a four-month period (September through December) after the hurricanes. Because of the shorter time periods, the sample sizes and the reliability of the estimates are reduced. In addition, for many areas, conducting interviews in the immediate aftermath of the hurricanes proved very difficult. The 2005 ACS sample was selected from an address list developed early in 2005 and therefore the estimates will not reflect any (including temporary) housing added to the address list after that date.

This special ACS product precedes the planned 2005 ACS data releases, the first of which is scheduled for August 15. Demographic, social, housing and economic data for the nation, states and Census Bureau tabulation areas of 65,000 or more will be available starting on that date and continuing in three additional data releases scheduled later in 2006. Data will also be released for the Puerto Rico Community Survey. The ACS, fully implemented across the nation in 2005, provides annual updates on characteristics data that were previously only available every 10 years.

Both of these special data products for the Gulf Coast represent an effort by the Census Bureau to aid local officials and shed some light on the hurricanes’ effects on the region. However, the tabulation of these data were generated using different methodologies than either program, the mid-year Population Estimates or American Community Survey, were designed to use (see the methodology documents for more information). For instance, the special population estimates used an extrapolation approach along with a special Hurricane Katrina change of address file, rather than the component of population change approach normally used to produce population estimates. While the ACS data are normally controlled to mid-year population estimates, the 2005 ACS Special Product for the Gulf Coast data are not controlled to these estimates.

We will update this question upon the release of the data. To keep up to date with this release and related topics:
* Subscribe to ACS Alerts

Posted by ronbo at 04:18 PM

From the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) mailing list: Recent MEPS Data Products

AHRQ is pleased to announce the recent release of the following MEPS
data products:

MEPS HC-083: 2004 Jobs File
Release Date: May 2006

This public use data file contains jobs-level data from the 2004 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey Household Component (MEPS HC). Released as an ASCII file with SAS and SPSS programming statements and in SAS transport format, this public use file provides information collected on a nationally representative sample of the civilian noninstitutionalized population of the United States during the calendar year 2004. The file contains job-level information collected in Rounds 3-5 for the eighth Panel and Rounds 1-3 for the ninth Panel of the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (i.e., the rounds for the MEPS panels covering calendar year 2004); it includes variables pertaining to household-reported jobs, including wages, hours, industry, and occupation. This file is available on the MEPS website at: http://www.meps.ahrq.gov/Puf/PufDetail.asp?ID=198

MEPS HC-082: 2004 Full Year Population Characteristics
Release Date: May 2006

Released as an ASCII file (with related SAS and SPSS programming statements) and a SAS transport dataset, this public use file provides information collected on a nationally representative sample of the civilian non-institutionalized population of the United States for calendar year 2004. This file consists of MEPS survey data obtained in Rounds 3, 4, and 5 of Panel 8 and Rounds 1, 2, and 3 of Panel 9 (i.e., the rounds for the MEPS panels covering calendar year 2004) and contains variables pertaining to survey administration, demographics, employment, health status, quality of care, patient satisfaction, health insurance and person-level medical care use counts. The 2004 Full-Year expenditure and income data will be forthcoming. This file is available on the MEPS website at: http://www.meps.ahrq.gov/Puf/PufDetail.asp?ID=197

MEPS HC-081: Risk Adjustment Scores File
Release Date: May 2006

This public use data file contains the relative risk adjusted scores
for Panels 1 through 5 of the 1996-2001 Medical Expenditure Panel
Survey Household Component (MEPS HC). Released as an ASCII file with
SAS and SPSS programming statements and in SAS transport format,
this public use file contains person-level records with six relative
risk scores. Each score is are based on one of two modeling
frameworks (age/sex or the hierarchical condition categories-HCC)
for three different insurance categories (Medicare, privately
insured, or Medicaid). This file is available on the MEPS website
at: http://www.meps.ahrq.gov/Puf/PufDetail.asp?ID=196

MEPS 04HC/NHIS Link File: 2004 MEPS/2003 & 2002 NHIS Link File
Release Date: May 2006 Available by request only.

All nine (1996-2004) MEPS/NHIS Link Files are included on one CD-ROM. The MEPS/NHIS Link Files CD is available by request only. The 2004 MEPS/NHIS Link File contains a cross-walk that will allow data users to merge the MEPS 2004 Full-Year Population Characteristics public use data file, HC-082, with the NHIS 2002/2003 person-level public use data files. In this linkage file, a record exists for each person in the HC-082 file. Sample persons in NHIS that do not link to any MEPS sample persons are not represented in the linkage file. Sample persons in the HC-082 file who do not link with the 2002 NHIS or 2003 NHIS respondent person sample have a value of ‘9999’ for the NHIS link id. The HC-082 file covers calendar year 2004 and contains data from Rounds 3, 4, and 5 of the MEPS Panel 8 (which uses the 2002 NHIS as its sampling frame) combined with data from Rounds 1, 2, and 3 of the MEPS Panel 9 (which uses the 2003 NHIS as its sampling frame). Confidentiality forms must be filled out and submitted to AHRQ before this file can be obtained. See HC-NHIS Link File ordering instructions (http://www.meps.ahrq.gov/FAQs/FAQ_HC.HTM#16) for more information on how to obtain this file.

Posted by ronbo at 02:55 PM

June 02, 2006

From Census Update: Upcoming Releases

Population

Geographical Mobility: 2005. Internet files containing national and regional information on how often and how far people move, along with characteristics of the movers and reasons why they move.

Poverty Status of Families by Type and by U.S. Citizenship Status of the Householder: 2003. Four national-level tables from the American Community Survey present poverty data on the foreign-born by the following characteristics: citizenship status, year of entry, region of birth, and family type.

Economic Indicators

Full Report on Manufacturers' Shipments, Inventories, and Orders: April 2006. Press release showing information on key business indicators. Revised durable goods totals, in addition to nondurable goods manufacturers' shipments, inventories, and orders. Scheduled for release June 2, 2006.

Monthly Wholesale Trade: April 2006. Press release showing estimates for sales, inventories on a non-LIFO ("last in-first out") basis, and stock-sales ratios for merchant wholesalers by three-digit major kind-of-business groups. Scheduled for release June 8, 2006.

U.S. International Trade in Goods and Services: April 2006. Press release showing monthly exports, general imports (including data by country), and limited data on imports for consumption. Scheduled for release June 9, 2006.

Quarterly Financial Report for Manufacturing, Mining, Wholesale Trade: First Quarter 2006. Press release showing up-to-date aggregate statistics on U.S. manufacturing, mining, and wholesale trade corporations. Scheduled for release June 12, 2006.

Advance Monthly Sales for Retail and Food Services: May 2006. Press release presenting advance monthly estimates of retail store sales by kind-of-business groups. Report includes seasonally adjusted estimates and percentage changes for major kind-of-business groups. Scheduled for release June 13, 2006.

Manufacturing and Trade: Inventories and Sales: April 2006. Press release showing sales, inventories, and inventories-to-sales ratios for the combined domestic activities of retailers, wholesalers, and manufacturers. Scheduled for release June 13, 2006.

Quarterly Services Survey: 1st Quarter. Press release showing quarterly estimates of total operating revenue and the percentage of revenue by class of customer for the services industries. Scheduled for release June 14, 2006.

Economic Census and Surveys

2004 County Business Patterns. Downloadable Internet files and reports available online in PDF providing data on number of business establishments, number of employees, payroll, and employment-size class. The data are provided at various geographic levels, including state, county, and metropolitan statistical area.

Housing

2005 American Housing Survey National Public Use Microdata File. Microdata (i.e., household records with identifying information removed) from this survey enable users to generate their own tabulations on a wide range of housing topics; e.g., housing costs, satisfaction with neighborhood and the frequency of repairs made. The file consists of records of individual responses to the survey, with identifying information removed. Also available in statistical tabulations and as PDF reports.

Reference and Compendia

Statistical Abstract of the United States: 2006. Extensive downloadable data released for the first time online.

Facts for Features:

Back to School. Although most students have yet to begin their summer vacation, the Census Bureau is already looking ahead to the close of the traditional summer break. This factsheet presents statistics from the Census Bureau's demographic and economic subject areas pertaining to teachers, students, and the reopening of our country's schools.

Posted by ronbo at 05:49 PM

NCES Newsflash: Postsecondary Facilities Inventory and Classification Manual

NCES has released 'The Postsecondary Education Facilities Inventory and Classification Manual (FICM), 2006 Edition.' The manual describes standard practices for initiating, conducting, reporting, and maintaining a postsecondary institutional facilities inventory. It is designed to be useful to both specialized staff and generalists and to be applicable to institutions with sophisticated information needs as well as to those with more basic facilities information needs. It reflects the perspective that along with human resources and financial assets, space is one of the primary resources of a postsecondary educational institution. It provides updated definitions for building area measurements, space and room use codes, and other data elements that are useful for including in a facilities inventory. It describes the basic principles for developing a facilities database, provides guidance on required and optional data elements for inclusion in a facilities inventory, suggests analytic, administrative and comparative uses for facilities data and presents issues that are emerging in the collection, maintenance and reporting of facilities data.

To download, view and print the report as a pdf file, please visit: http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2006160

Posted by ronbo at 03:58 PM

From the Census Product Update - June 2, 2006

Hot Tip

Latest News About the American Community Survey (ACS)

The Census Bureau has released ACS Design and Methodology, a comprehensive summary of the full set of methodologies used in the ACS. The paper covers many topics: sample design, content development, and the language assistance program to data dissemination and user assistance.

Look for the ACS 2004 Public Use Microdata (PUMS) file in DataFerrett. DataFerrett provides respondent records minus identifying information so that users can create their own tabulations. You can then develop and customize tables or create charts or graphs for a visual presentation into an html page. DataFerrett helps you locate and retrieve the data you need across the Internet to your desktop or system, regardless of where the data reside.

Posted by ronbo at 03:55 PM

From the IPUMS-users list: 47 Censuses from 13 Countries

Dear IPUMS-USA User:

The IPUMS-International project would like to announce a major new data release. On June 1 we added 19 new samples from Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, South Africa, and Venezuela to the data series.
IPUMS-International now contains 47 samples from 13 countries, with 143 million person records. We are on schedule to add approximately 100 more samples in the next 4 years. The IPUMS-International site is at http://www.ipums.org/international, and key features of the new release are described at http://www.ipums.org/international/news.html.

The project is modeled on IPUMS-USA, with web documentation and data extraction systems. Registration for IPUMS-International is separate from IPUMS-USA, and access is limited to scholarly and educational purposes.

If you encounter any difficulties with the system, please let us know right away.

Please redistribute this email to any researchers who might be interested.

Sincerely,
The IPUMS Staff

Posted by ronbo at 03:51 PM

June 01, 2006

Roper Center Newsletter, June 2006

Tip of the month!!

The new website is coming this month! We know, you've gotten used to the old one, but the new website is far better with easier navigation and quick links to get you where you want to be without hesitation. Watch for our “new look” around mid June, and give us your feedback—positive and negative!

Public Opinion Matters!--"Social Security"
http://www.ropercenter.uconn.edu/cgi-bin/hsrun.exe/roperweb/pom/pom.htx;start=HS_special_topics?Topic=social_security

Do you believe that Social Security will have the money to provide benefits? Are you planning on Social Security as a major source of your retirement income? Do you favor raising the retirement at which people can start to collect Social Security benefits? Find out how others feel about these Social Security issues and more in this month's POM topic--Social Security.

Based on a new topic each month, POM offers a generous free sampling of related polling data and details of survey datasets held by the Roper Center, along with articles previously published in Public Perspective magazine.

Experience the depth of information housed in the Roper Center archives - The complete list of "Public Opinion Matters!" topics. http://www.ropercenter.uconn.edu/cgi-bin/hsrun.exe/Roperweb/pom/pom.htx;start=HS_pom_list

Newly spotlighted datasets http://www.ropercenter.uconn.edu/cgi-bin/hsrun.exe/roperweb/Catalog40/Catalog40.htx;start=HS_surveyspot
Updated as of June 1, 2006

Special studies of interest recently added to iPOLL. The database now contains nearly a half million questions!
http://www.ropercenter.uconn.edu/ipoll.html

Title: Americans on HIV/AIDS Survey [March,2006]

Source: Survey by Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation.

Methodology: Conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates International, March 24-April 18, 2006 and based on telephone interviews with a national adult including oversamples of african americans and latinos sample of 2,517. A total of 378 African Americans and 447 Latinos were interviewed. Results were weighted to be representative of a national adult population.

Search for: Keyword: 'aids'; Organization: 'Kaiser'; Date: '03/24/2006 to 03/24/2006'
Title: Enrollees' Perceptions of Medicare Part D Survey [March,2006]
Source:
Methodology: Conducted by AARP, March 9-April 3, 2006 and based on telephone interviews with a national adult age 65 and older who are enrolled in the medicare prescription drug plan sample of 1,514. Interviews were conducted by ICR-International Communications Research.
Search for: Keyword: 'medicare'; Organization: 'AARP'; Date: '03/09/2006 to 03/09/2006'

Title: Health Poll Report Poll [April,2006]
Source: Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation.
Methodology: Conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates International, April 6-April 11, 2006 and based on telephone interviews with a national adult with oversample of age 65 and over sample of 1,446. Results are weighted to be representative of a national adult population.
Search for: Organization: 'Kaiser'; Date: '04/06/2006 to 04/06/2006'

Title: Physical Activity Survey [March,2006]
Source:
Methodology: Conducted by AARP, March 29-April 3, 2006 and based on telephone interviews with a national adult sample of 1,011. Interviews were conducted by ICR-International Communications Research.
Search for: Organization: 'AARP'; Date: '03/29/2006 to 03/29/2006'

Title: Preparedness Survey [May,2006]
Source: Survey by American Red Cross.
Methodology: Conducted by Opinion Research Corporation International, May 4-May 7, 2006 and based on telephone interviews with a national adult sample of 1,000.
Search for: Keyword: 'disaster%'; Date: '05/04/2006 to 05/04/2006'

Title: Retirement Planning Survey [April,2006]
Source:
Methodology: Conducted by AARP, April 10-April 19, 2006 and based on telephone interviews with a national adult financial decision makers age 40 and older including an oversample of hispanics sample of 1,782. Interviews were conducted by ICR-International Communications Research. Results are weighted to be representative of a national adult age 40 and older financial decision makers population. Financial decision makers are those who primarily or with another person take the lead in making financial decisions in the household.
Search for: Organization: 'AARP'; Date: '04/10/2006 to 04/10/2006'

Additional resources - Web sites with special survey samples

Medicare RX Education Network Survey of Seniors on Medicare
http://www.medicarerxeducation.org/survey/survey.htm

Harvard University 's Institute of Politics College Student Spring 2006 Survey
http://www.iop.harvard.edu/

ARRP Survey of Medicare Enrollee's Perceptions of Medicare Part D
http://assets.aarp.org/rgcenter/health/medicare_enrollees.pdf

Posted by ronbo at 01:26 PM

NCES Newsflash: The Condition of Education 2006

Today, the U.S. Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) released The Condition of Education 2006. This annual report summarizes important developments and trends in education using the latest available data. The 2006 report presents 50 indicators on the status and condition of education and a special analysis on international assessments. The indicators represent a consensus of professional judgment on the most significant national measures of the condition and progress of education for which accurate data are available. The 2006 print edition includes 50 indicators in five main areas: (1) participation in education; (2) learner outcomes; (3) student effort and educational progress; (4) the contexts of elementary and secondary education; and (5) the contexts of postsecondary education. The report finds, for example, that U.S. 15-year-olds had lower average scores in mathematics and science literacy than most of their international peers from Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)-member countries that participated in the 2003 survey. While results from the National Assessment of Educational Progress show steady improvement in mathematics scores for 4th- and 8th-graders and science scores have improved for 4th-graders, science literacy was lower in 2005 than in 1996 at grade 12. Other findings of The Condition of Education include:

School choice among public schools is growing. The percentage of children whose parents enrolled them in chosen public schools increased from 11 percent in 1993 to 15 percent in 2003.

About three-fourths of public high school students graduate in 4 years. The 2002-03 public high school graduation rate for the averaged freshman class 4 years earlier was 73.9 percent.

Undergraduate degrees are continuing to increase. Between 1989-90 and 2003-04, the number of bachelor’s degrees awarded increased by 33 percent, while the number of associate’s degrees awarded increased by 46 percent.

To download, view and print the report as a pdf file, or to browse the web version, please go to: http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2006071

Posted by ronbo at 11:50 AM