National Infrastructure for Community Statistics    (3NE)

Community of Practice    (3NF)

September Learning Phase Workshop    (3NG)

Community Level Organizations    (3NH)

8:30 A.M – 4:00 P.M., Monday September 27, 2004    (3NI)

The Brookings Institution    (3NJ)

PURPOSE AND APPROACH    (3NL)

The aim of the learning phase is to assemble information needed by the NICS Community of Practice (CoP) to assess the desirability and feasibility of NICS and, assuming the results are favorable, develop a strong business case for its longer-term development.    (3NM)

In each of the workshops, we examine the current state of developments that might contribute to NICS and use that understanding as a basis for our assessment of future prospects. What are the best practices to this point? What barriers are being overcome and what barriers remain? What benefits are being generated and does it appear they warrant the likely costs of further development? Can we envision more effective ways to proceed that would enhance cost-effectiveness? '''    (3NN)

In this workshop on community-level organizations, we look at activities in a number of cities with respect to the development of community statistical systems (CSS) and at the infrastructure in place and being developed to strengthen practice and expand local capacity. Specific questions include:    (3NO)

AGENDA    (3NS)

8:00-8:45 a.m. – Continental Breakfast    (3NT)

I. PRESENTATIONS AND DISCUSSION - 8:45 - 12:00    (3NU)

Note: Presentations are intended to cover only the basics needed to allow participants to assess possibilities. Each is followed by a brief period for questions and discussion, with the recognition that most of the discussion will take place in break-out sessions later in the day.    (3NV)

8:45-9:05 a.m. - Introduction to National Infrastructure for Community Statistics (NICS): Purposes and Potentials (PariSabety, Brookings Urban Markets Initiative)    (3NW)

9:05-9:30 a.m. - The Recent Development of Local Community Statistical Systems in America: Key Characteristics and Trends (ThomasKingsley, The Urban Institute and National Neighborhood Indicators Partnership)    (3NX)

Questions and Discussion    (3NY)

9:30-10:20 a.m. - Case Examples in Building and Using Community Statistical Systems:    (3NZ)

Basic Features, Policy/ Program Applications and Payoffs (PatMcGuigan, Executive Director, The Providence Plan, Providence)    (3O0)

System Architecture and Content: Now and In the Future (MichaelBarndt, Nonprofit Center, Milwaukee)    (3O1)

Institutional Opportunities and Motivating Interagency Collaboration (JuniousWilliams, Executive Director, Urban Strategies Council, Oakland)    (3O2)

10:20-10:35 a.m. – Break    (3O3)

10:35-11:20 a.m. - Panel response to presentations (panel to be selected) and discussion by all participants    (3O4)

11:20-11:50 a.m. - Networking Across Cities and Building Local Capacity (JimGibson, Center for the Study of Social Policy; KathyPettit, Urban Institute; TroyAnderson, Fannie Mae Foundation)    (3O6)

11:50-12:00 noon - Purposes and Logistics for the Rest of the Day (AndrewReamer, Brookings Urban Markets Initiative)    (3O7)

Includes assignment of participants to breakout sessions.    (3O8)

II. BREAK OUT SESSIONS – 12:00-3:00    (3O9)

Participants pick up food and take it to one of three separate locations where they will work over lunch. Each breakout session is related to one of the ongoing NICS working groups. Resource persons who either operate local CSS or know a great deal about them will be assigned to each session. Session topics and main questions are:    (3OA)

Systems Architecture    (3OB)

(Facilitator: JosephFerreira; Resource Persons: SharonKandris, MichaelBarndt, MarkTorrance, KathyPettit). What is the range of configurations now being employed? How is the web being used in current data assembly, dissemination and applications? What progress is being made toward the development of sound data standards and metadata? To what extent is the data center model moving to a federated data repository model? What are the implications for NICS? How might NICS be designed to meet the needs of community-level organizations?    (3OC)

Participant Needs and Applications    (3OE)

(Facilitators: RoderickHarrison and ThomasKingsley; Resource Persons: PatMcGuigan, PhyllisBetts, GarthTaylor). What is the range of uses of local CSS systems and who are the users? Which of these applications have had the highest payoffs to date and what does this mean for future development? How is the pattern of user needs and opportunities expected to shift in the future? What are the potential uses of federal and state data at the local level and of local data at the federal and state levels? What are the implications for NICS? How might NICS be designed to meet the needs of community-level organizations?    (3OF)

Governance and Finance    (3OH)

(Facilitator: PariSabety; Resource Persons: JuniousWilliams, TroyAnderson, PeterTatian, JimGibson, OdetteRamos). What types of local institutions play key roles in building and operating a community statistical system? What are the best ways to encourage local agencies to share data in a CSS and to collaborate to sustain CSS functions? What types of safeguards with respect to confidentiality are being employed and how are they being reflected in formal data sharing agreements? What are the best means for developing collaboration among public, private, community and civic leadership groups in CSS development and operation? How are institutional responsibilities at the local level likely change (if at all) as the field moves from a data center model toward virtual data warehousing? What are the implications for NICS? How might NICS be designed to meet the needs of community-level organizations?    (3OI)

3:00-3:15-- Break    (3OK)

III. WRAPUP SESSION – 3:15-4:00    (3OL)

Facilitator: AndrewReamer. Reporter from each of the four breakout sessions presents summary of ideas and recommendations, followed by general discussion and effort to reach agreement on main conclusions.    (3ON)

NICS CoP LEARNING PHASE WORKGROUP    (3OO)

Design and organization of this workshop was led by ThomasKingsley    (3OX)