This year, BOSR celebrated 60 years of providing excellent service as a one-stop survey research shop. To celebrate and highlight the role of academic survey research centers within the survey industry, we planned a series of speakers throughout the academic year.
Survey Questionnaire Design and Administration Workshop
Jolene Smyth, Professor and Chair, UNL Sociology
The Future of Survey Research is Complex
Eran Ben-Porath, Chief Research Director and Executive Vice President, SSRS
The Role of Survey Research Shops from a Client Perspective
Patrick Habecker, UNL Department of Sociology
Michelle Parker, Ho-Chunk Community Development Corporation
Jeff Armitage, Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services
Tiffany Heng-Moss, UNL College of Agricultural Sciences & Natural Resources
How Rural Data Informs the Future of Connected Communities
Robert Santos, Director, U.S. Census Bureau
Why Polls Matter: The Role of Public Opinion in Changing Times
Jennifer Agiesta, Director of Polling and Election Analytics, CNN
Data Quality in Online Survey Panels
Courtney Kennedy, Vice President of Methods and Innovation, Pew Research Center
Our year of celebration culminated in a dinner at UNL’s Morrill Hall to thank our current and past employees, current and past clients, administrators, and donors for their work and support over the years. We heard first from BOSR’s current director, Kristen Olson, about BOSR’s first few decades. We contrasted this with a look back on BOSR’s past 10 years by Amanda Ganshert, Assistant Director for Research and Methods, and Kim Meiergerd, Assistant Director for Operations. Next, Jolene Smyth, past BOSR director and Chair and Professor of UNL’s Sociology Department, spoke about the importance of building on what we have learned from the past. Finally, Jennifer Nelson, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Research and Research Integrity Officer in the Office of Research and Economic Development, spoke about BOSR as a valuable resource for the University and all researchers.