This report presents the findings from a research project undertaken on the Census in Schools (CIS) program for 2010, sponsored by the Census 2010 Publicity Office of the Communications Directorate of the U.S. Census Bureau and conducted by ICF International. The perspective adopted in the course of this project was a "forward ‐ looking" one to examine the potential ways in which the CIS program can be improved, the methods that can be used to maintain the CIS program during the intercensal years, and the potential metrics that can be used to assess program success.

Objectives

The project made use of focus groups and interviews to collect qualitative data about aspects of the Census in Schools program, augmented by a review of the literature, in addressing the following research questions:

• How can the CIS program targeting kindergarten through high school level students, teachers, and administrators be improved for the 2020 Census?
• How can the Census Bureau go forward during intercensal years to reach out to educators and students from kindergarten to the graduate level?
• What are the needs of school board members and college/university faculty regarding statistical literacy and statistics education, from the most basic level (kindergarten) to the most advanced (graduate studies)?
• What should be the metrics for measuring the impact of the Census in Schools program for both the intercensal years and the 2020 Census?

Methodology

To address these research questions, the ICF Team conducted focus groups with school teachers in schools comprising Kindergarten through 12th grade, a focus group with college (2‐year and 4‐year) and university‐level faculty members, and interviews with members of various school boards. The summaries of the focus groups and interviews were qualitatively analyzed, and, where appropriate, abstracted into tables that are presented in subsequent sections of this report. A total of 11 focus groups with 88 participants were held with K‐12 teachers – five groups with 35 elementary school teachers and six groups with 53 middle school and high school teachers – in six locations. There was one focus group of nine college and university faculty held in Boston, Massachusetts. Nine school board members from the greater Washington D.C. area were interviewed by telephone.