Residents throughout Connecticut and several areas of New York State will receive phone calls from survey-takers at the Siena College Research Institute - generally appearing as a 203 or 518 area code this spring and summer. Over 80 different questions will be asked by the survey-takers who are helping DataHaven, the nonprofit group leading the collection and study of neighborhood-level public data on key social and economic indicators. A record number of participants will pick up the phone - over 15,000 - by the time the 2018 Community Wellbeing Survey is complete.
Mark Abraham, Executive Director of DataHaven stated, "Our initial feedback from residents and our previous experience with this survey shows that people like to answer these questions. They are answering questions about their own happiness and health, their family's financial security, and how their communities and neighborhoods are faring.” He added that picking up the phone, "Make(s) a difference in help(ing) your community learn more about your needs.”
DataHaven announced the first statewide Community Wellbeing Survey in 2015 (see https://www.ctphilanthropy.org/news/datahaven-announces-completion-largest-ever-survey-neighborhood-level-quality-life-health-and). The 2016 Survey Results for Fairfield County can be viewed here:http://ctdatahaven.org/sites/ctdatahaven/files/DataHaven_FairfieldCounty_Wellbeing.pdf.
Unlike most statewide and national surveys, the DataHaven program brings together grassroots efforts across the state, effectively unifying dozens of existing regional surveys into a single, exceptionally high-quality program that covers the entire state. The mission of the initiative is to produce reliable neighborhood-level information on issues that are most meaningful to local residents, and to foster collaboration between the hundreds of organizations, institutions, businesses, and agencies that are working to build stronger communities. This nationally recognized program provides neighborhood- and regional-level information not available from any other source on community vitality, health, family economic security, and individual happiness. Other topics such as civic engagement, transportation, housing, and employment - even satisfaction with government and community life - are included.
The 2018 Community Wellbeing Survey will allow unprecedented tracking of regional and local trends over the past three years, as well as create an even more in-depth portrait of Connecticut’s neighborhoods, when updated results are shared this fall.
Results from the survey will be published in a series of local and statewide reports throughout 2018 and 2019, helping to shed light on progress being made toward community priorities, including financial security for families, access to affordable health care, public health and safety, and opportunities for children to succeed, as well as on current challenges, such as the opioid epidemic, housing instability, and limited transportation options. Dozens of reports and studies have used data from the Community Wellbeing Survey, including many that are posted on the DataHaven website.
DataHaven designed the 2018 Community Wellbeing Survey with support from over 120 government, academic, health care, and community partners, about 75 of whom are supplying funding for its expansion.
“The ability to collect and track community-level data over time helps Connecticut’s philanthropic organizations more deeply understand the issues they aim to address, target solutions, and measure progress made over time,” said Karla Fortunato, president of the Connecticut Council for Philanthropy. “We’re delighted to see so many philanthropic and other organizations come together to support DataHaven’s work to understand how Connecticut’s residents experience quality of life, health, and happiness, neighborhood by neighborhood.”
For more details and interviews, please contact Mark Abraham at 203.500.7059, info@ctdatahaven.org or Josephine Ankrah at 203.668.1371, ankrahj2@southernct.edu.
About DataHaven
DataHaven is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization with a 25-year history of public service to Greater New Haven and Connecticut. DataHaven's mission is to improve quality of life by collecting, sharing, and interpreting public data for effective decision-making. Since 1992, DataHaven has worked with area organizations and agencies to develop reports and tools that make information more useful to the community. DataHaven maintains extensive economic, social, and health data, including information collected through its Community Wellbeing Survey. DataHaven is a formal partner of the National Neighborhood Indicators Partnership, a collaborative national effort by the Urban Institute and approximately 40 local partners to further the development and use of neighborhood information systems in local policymaking and community building. For more information, visit www.ctdatahaven.org.
DataHaven Logo Source: www.ctdatahaven.org