The federal government has collected data from colleges and universities for more than a century. However, how and what data are collected has evolved over time, as has the purposes for collecting those data. The most systematic collection of data happens through the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), which is required to be…

Information security threats to educational institutions and their data assets have worsened significantly over the past few years. The rich data stores of institutional research are especially vulnerable, and threats from security breaches represent no small risk. New genres of threat require new kinds of controls if the institution is to prevent…

This chapter describes the system office for community college institutional research for the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities. What makes this System Offices for Community College Institutional Research (SOCCIR) somewhat different from the others reviewed in this volume is that the Minnesota system IR office has responsibilities for both…

This article describes the development of Virginia Improves Teaching and Learning (VITAL) as a statewide data warehouse focused on teacher education. The VITAL system is a longitudinal data system that tracks individuals from their entry into teacher preparation programs to employment in public schools. The system goes far beyond typical…

The world of policymaking on the campuses of colleges and universities is messy, ambiguous, and contested. In this complex environment, which Kingdon (2003) has aptly called a "policy soup," the role of institutional research is often not only to provide answers to existing policy questions but to produce information to help transform…

This chapter describes the development of a state-level student tracking system that enables the state and institutions to follow various cohort types of students across institutional boundaries. The system was developed by the Policy Research and Data Warehousing section of the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV). SCHEV is the…

Growth and technology have driven the University of Texas at Dallas (UTD) to build a geographic information system (GIS) database for its facilities and space management. This chapter reviews several issues concerning this implementation: (1) the challenges involved in implementing the system; (2) the lack of efficiency and accuracy that existed…

Two case studies illustrate how institutional researchers have harnessed new information technologies to streamline office functions. At Illinois Institute of Technology, the World Wide Web supports an institutional information clearinghouse and database. At Willamette University (Oregon), an analytical database is coupled with Web technology,…

The purpose of this chapter is to examine possible uses for facilities data as they relate to three academic issues: classroom management, personnel management, and research activity. The number of institutions actively using space information to improve decision making is unknown. Most articles available in professional publications such as…

Both routine monitoring reports and special studies contribute to effective fund-raising efforts and the provision of services to alumni of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. A long-range strategy committee was established to determine market-research needs and approaches and to establish long-term alumni-relations priorities. The alumni…

Stresses the importance of common understandings of cost definitions and data collection in order to create reliable databases with optimal utility for inter-institutional analysis. Examines definitions of common expenditure categories, discusses cost-accumulation rules governing financial reporting, and explains differences between direct costs…

Launching an alumni survey requires consultation with many campus constituencies, thoughtful decisions about intent and content, careful planning of all operational procedures and proper promotion. Census surveys, telephone versus mail surveys, decisions on data entry, timelines, costs, publicizing, etc. are discussed. (MLW)

Sound management of human resources requires policies and procedures that are developed carefully and applied consistently. Monitoring personnel decisions and developing databases that document their outcomes will help ensure that such decisions are not only made fairly but are perceived so by faculty. (Author/MSE)

Campuses should act on salary equity issues before litigation arises. Campuses must resolve database problems, unfocused studies, problems in data interpretations, and constraints on implementing findings if they are to take timely actions. Internally motivated monitoring and court-ordered monitoring are discussed. (Author/MLW)

The National Science Foundation's Computer-Aided Science Policy and Research database system provides microcomputer-based access and manipulation of multiple national databases for federal and now institutional use. Applications at West Virginia University, Portland State University, and the State University of New York at Buffalo pilot tested the…