Current Projects
California Department of Mental Health (DMH) Consumer Perception Surveys
This project is being conducted for the DMH to restructure the administration of their Consumer Surveys. The objectives include reducing administration burden and enhancing reliability and validity (and therefore the usefulness) of collected data. The surveys assess Consumers’ perceptions of quality of care and are currently being used for broad-based evaluation of California’s community-based mental health services. The ISR is developing a random sampling methodology to take the place of the current convenience sampling methodology. We are also creating a system that will result in an annual administration process to take the place of the current biannual administration. Our work will include evaluation of existing data platforms, obtaining stakeholder review and feedback, field testing, developing a training program and manual, survey administration, data analysis, data quality assessment and the development of reports and recommendations. (Website)
Employment Development Department Branding Survey
This project is being conducted for the Economic Development Department (EDD) to determine if the general public knows who to contact when they become unemployed or are in need of various employment and training services provided by the EDD One Stop Centers. These centers currently have different naming conventions and the EDD wishes to measure how familiar California residents are with the names of the centers within their locale, in their region, and outside their region. This project is a consortium with the Public Research Institute (PRI) at San Francisco State University, the Social Research Laboratory (SRL) at Fresno State and the Institute for Social Research (ISR) at Sacramento State. (Website)
Survey of Parents of Children Receiving Child Welfare Assistance
The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) has developed a comprehensive Program Improvement Plan (PIP) in partnership between the Federal, State, and County governments and public and private agencies regarding children receiving child welfare. Many of the program improvement goals can be measured by using data from the automated Child Welfare Services/Case Management System (CWS/CMS). However, to measure progress toward PIP goals for which CDSS does not have data, CDSS conducts a survey of the parents and foster parents of children receiving child welfare services. The annual survey, using methods that will provide statistically significant statewide quantifiable information, will be used to measure program changes. (Website)
First 5 California Annual Report
The California Children and Families Commission (First 5 California) was created as a result of the California Children and Families Act of 1998 (Proposition 10). First 5 California is the lead agency and statewide coordinator charged with facilitating and enacting the goals of this Act pertaining to the development of California’s early childhood population. In order to promote, support, and improve the development process of children within the first five years of life, the Commission has been given the task of establishing, instituting, and coordinating the appropriate standards, resources, and programs to accomplish this mission. First 5 California has contracted with the ISR to conduct its annual evaluation of programs and a fiscal report for presentation to the Governor and the State Legislature. (2006-2007 Annual Report) (Website)
California Department of Social Services In-Home Supportive Services Division - Quality Assurance and Hourly Task Guidelines Project
This project is being conducted for the California Department of Social Service to help improve its program supporting in-home services which allows the elderly and disabled needing living assistance remain in their own homes. The ISR’s role in the IHSS Quality Assurance project involves several elements. One portion is to conduct an assessment of training for social workers and its subsequent impact on the work of the participants. A second focus is to help the California Department of Social Services and its Time per Task initiative by collecting and analyzing information from focus groups with those receiving services (consumers), and social workers. A third component is to collect information on the implementation of Time per Task guidelines implemented in the fall of 2006 to help standardize the hours allocated for various services that are provided to the elderly and disabled. In this portion of the project, analysis of data on the number of hours provided to consumers, guideline exceptions, and appeals by consumers regarding the number of hours they have been allocated will be analyzed. (Website)
California Election Data Archive (CEDA)
CEDA is a joint project of the Center for California Studies, the ISR and the Office of the California Secretary of State. The purpose of CEDA is to provide researchers, citizens, public agencies and other interested parties with a single repository of local election data. CEDA summarizes candidate and ballot measure results for county, city, community college and school district elections in three separate reports that have been published annually since 1995. Links to the reports, written summaries of results and trends, summary tables, and raw data can be found by clicking here: (Reports) (Website)
Evaluation of the California State University-Louis Stokes Alliances for Minority Participation Program (CSU-LSAMP)
The Alliances for Minority Participation (AMP) program is a National Science Foundation (NSF) program aimed at increasing the quality and quantity of under-represented minority students successfully completing programs in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields. The CSU-LSAMP program was founded in 1994. In November 2003, with the initiation of Phase III of the program, California State University, Sacramento became the system coordinator for the 19 participating CSU campuses. The ISR is responsible for implementation of the project’s evaluation plan, including obtaining and analyzing student and institutional outcome measures. The ISR prepares annual progress reports for campus project coordinators and will produce a final report in October 2008 addressing the extent to which the program contributed to STEM enrollment, STEM degrees and improved individual student performance. The report will also evaluate the program’s contribution to the institutionalization of strategies and pathways that redress barriers to under-represented minority participation in STEM fields. (Website)
Annual Sacramento State Survey of Public Opinion and Life Quality in the Sacramento Region
This series of annual telephone surveys began in 2003 and is ongoing. The objective of the project is to assess the opinions of residents in the Sacramento region regarding their overall quality of life and important local, state, and national issues. For the purposes of this study, the Sacramento region includes Sacramento, Yolo, Placer, and El Dorado counties. The topics covered each year vary to reflect current issues including traffic congestion, affordable housing and health care, public education, air-pollution, growth, and the economy. A set of core questions is maintained for longitudinal analysis. (Website)