VLDS Newsletter: January 2022- Inaugural Issue

Virginia Department of Education sent this bulletin at 01/28/2022 12:30 PM EST

January 2021
Issue 1

What’s New

**Welcome to the inaugural issue of The Inference, the VLDS Research Newsletter!**

The goal of this quarterly newsletter is to inform the Virginia Longitudinal Data System (VLDS) research community about new research projects and reports, new system features and data tables, as well as upcoming events and other activities of interest. Archived copies of the newsletter, and a sign-up for new subscribers, will be available on the VLDS website.

New Data Available

New data tables are available from Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ). DJJ data was recently updated through FY 2021 and now includes a new table on probation and parole, as well as additional variables in other tables. Probation and parole data includes variables such as the youth's risk level at the beginning and end of supervision, the most serious offense, and the length of stay on supervision.

New VLDS Participating Agency

VLDS welcomes the Virginia Criminal Sentencing Commission (VCSC) as a new participating agency. The VCSC recently approved the agency’s participation in the VLDS. The VCSC oversees Virginia’s Sentencing Guidelines system and maintains statewide data on felony sentencing events. The data include conviction offenses and sentencing outcomes. The VCSC plans to submit datasets to the VLDS starting this coming winter.

Did you know?

System Tip of the Quarter

Query Writing. Avoid data package failures due to file size limits with a few simple tips. First, consider reducing a large query to smaller queries based on data years and only request the years needed for research. For very large tables, avoid requesting more than four years in a single query. You can have up to 17 queries in a single data package. Second, be mindful when mixing AND and OR in queries. For example, "condition1 AND condition2 OR condition3" is equivalent to "(condition1 AND condition2) OR condition3," not "condition1 AND (condition2 OR condition3)".

New Reports and Resources

Newly Published VLDS Research Agenda and Compendium Papers. Members of VLDS participating agencies and its stakeholders developed a VLDS Research Agenda, centered in equity, which reflects a shared commitment among VLDS members to prioritize the exploration of equity in Virginia’s state policy and service delivery models. In addition, the VLDS Research Compendium Papers present a series of essays that provide recommendations for incorporating equity-centered principles into research studies. The Research Agenda and Compendium Papers are available on the VLDS website.

Research Spotlight

2021 VLDS Research Forum

On September 28-30, 2021, the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) and VLDS partner agencies hosted the 2021 VLDS Research Forum: Connecting to an Equitable Future with the Virginia Longitudinal Data System. The forum, supported by a federal grant VDOE received in 2019, spotlights VLDS research efforts that inform policy and advance equity in Virginia. This virtual event brought together nearly 130 talented and passionate professionals from state agencies, universities, and industry experts to share insights and expertise around leveraging data systems to advance research, policy, and statewide decision-making centered on equity. Virginia Senator Ghazala Hashmi, former Secretary of Education Atif Qarni, and SCHEV Director Mr. Peter Blake spoke about the role of data and research in policy-making and the importance of public trust in data. Ms. Tawana Petty urged researchers to see data and research through the lens of humanity and to be curious about the impact of unobservable data collection on individuals. The forum also hosted senior executive level leaders from nationally recognized philanthropic agencies, who shared their thoughts on the importance of advanced data analytics in the social sector and their role in funding solution-oriented research. The next research forum will be held in Fall 2022.

Employed in a SNAP? The Impact of Work Requirements on Program Participation and Labor Supply by Colin Gray, Adam Leive, Elena Prager, Kelsey Pukelis, Mary Zaki

Many safety net programs require that adults who are capable of working to do so to receive benefits. In SNAP, able-bodied adults without dependents (ABAWDs) younger than 50 are eligible for 3 months of time-limited benefits within a 36-month period unless they work, train, or volunteer. This study analyzed the effect of the ABAWD “work requirements” on SNAP participation, employment, and earnings. The study linked records from the Virginia Department of Social Services with the Virginia Employment Commission through the VLDS. To estimate the causal effect of the policy, the study compared outcomes for ABAWDs just below age 50, who faced the work requirements, to similar SNAP recipients just above age 50, who were no longer subject to the policy. Work requirements reduced overall program participation among ABAWDs by 53 percent. By contrast, the study found no meaningful effects on employment or earnings, on average. To read the full article, click here.

Coming Up

SLDS Best Practices Conference. The National Center for Education Statistics annually hosts the State Longitudinal Data Systems (SLDS) Best Practices Conference. This year, representative from Virginia were featured on two panel presentations discussing the use of longitudinal data systems to identify and address issues of equity. Dr Yetty Shobo of the Department of Health Professions presented her work on racial disproportionality in pathways to nursing degrees, and Dr. Jennifer Piver-Renna of the Virginia Department of Education provide her perspectives on engaging with stakeholders to conduct equity research.

New Research Agenda to Increase the Use of Research in Child Welfare Decision-Making. Casey Family Programs, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, and the William T. Grant Foundation have partnered with top researchers, policy analysts, agency leaders, and people with lived experience in the child welfare system to build a 21^st Century Research Agenda to support child and family well-being. The purpose of the agenda is to identify and fill research gaps and to support the use of findings in decision-making to improve practice and policy.

This service is provided to you at no charge by the VDOE Office of Research. Update your subscriptions, modify your password or email address, or stop subscriptions at any time on your Subscriber Preferences Page. You will need to use your email address to log in. If you have questions or problems with the subscription service, please visit Subscriber Help.