Determining whether a state's young people are on track for a life of opportunity is a difficult task for governors and state leaders. States can be both awash in data and unable to easily access and use that data to inform policy. State longitudinal data systems that meaningfully connect workforce, higher education, K-12, and early childhood…

Scientists have long recognized the value of having statistical data to measure the scope and vitality of education, research, and workforce development in their fields. Such data support evidence-based policy discussions in professional and governmental forums. Since 1982, the National Science Board has been required by law to publish…

Federal education policy in recent years has encouraged state and local education agencies to embrace data use and analysis in decision-making, ranging from policy development and implementation to performance evaluation. The capacity of these agencies to make effective and methodologically sound use of collected data for these purposes remains an…

The risk of investment in schooling has largely been ignored. We mimic the investment decision facing a student and simulate risky earnings profiles in alternative options, with parameters taken from the very limited evidence. The distribution of rates of return appears positively skewed. Our best estimate of "ex ante" risk in university education…

Using a research design employing cross-sectional and longitudinal data, the analysis explores whether budgeting conforms more closely to a bureaucratic or coalitional model of organization. The data suggest that coalitional behavior is most easily discernible in budget decision-making when resources are relatively scarce. (Author/IRT)

Indexing is a tool that can be used with longitudinal, quantitative data for analysis of relative changes and for comparisons of changes among items. For greater accuracy, raw financial data should be deflated into constant dollars prior to indexing. This paper demonstrates the procedures for indexing, statistical deflation, and the use of…

Principles that institutional researchers should follow are discussed. The most important dictate is to present decision-makers the bare minimum of information necessary for the task; the material should be simple, short, and succinct. A report to assist decision-makers should not include extensive supporting documentation. The first step is to…

This document is intended to inform NCHEMS constituents and other interested persons about the results of the Higher Education Outcome Measures Identification Study (OMIS) conducted by the National Center for Higher Education Management Systems at WICHE in spring 1974. The purpose of the study was to help practitioners and researchers gain a…

This report investigates five areas of university management and institutional research at the University of Calgary. These areas include: parameters for decisionmaking, academic program costs, space and facilities, information systems, and modeling. Statistical data are presented to substantiate the observations. (MJM)

Substantial changes were found to have occurred in the age distribution and evaluation team experience of institutional accreditation team visitors and chairpersons employed between 1970 and 1977. Criticisms such as "clubiness," duplication of effort, and preference for or dominance of certain types of institutions are discussed. (Author/LBH)

Based on 1,198 responses from chairmen in 38 state universities, this study focuses on the perception of chairmen on where major decisions are made (university, college, or departmental level), characteristics of departments by academic field, and selected personal attributes of chairmen. (Author/LBH)

A validation program using the CLEP General Examinations for Social Sciences and History, Humanities, and Natural Sciences is described. Discussed are the meetings and discussions regarding program implications, decision-making processes to determine cutoff scores and credit to be granted, and some problems encountered. (Author/LBH)

The preparation and use of data needed to make objective, useful comparisons in higher education are considered. The needs for comparative data in higher education, including demands for accountability and strategic planning, are reviewed. In addition, data-related problems are considered: problems of narrowness, misrepresentation, sameness,…

The purpose of this study was to determine whether there was an association between the amount of formal social work education completed and ability of students to judge the degree of appropriateness of proposed solutions to problems frequently encountered in social work practice, and secondarily to determine whether students' judgments of problem…

Contained in this working report are the results of the Community Forum on Financial Assistance held on September 24, 1974 at Rhode Island Junior College. The two-hundred and fifteen people invited to the conference were asked by mail to rank the eight financial aid criteria in terms of importance for possible use in selecting financial assistance…