Changes are being proposed to multiple federal data collections “to comply with E.O. 14168, ‘Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government.’” The changes are essentially to limit data collection on gender to a binary “sex” item. There are four examples listed here; if you know of others, please send information to the DCSS Gmail address. See suggestions about commenting below.

Application for a [new] U.S. Passport (March 17)

U.S. Passport Renewal Application for Eligible Individuals (March 20)

Correction, Name Change to Passport Issued 1 Year Ago or Less, and Limited Passport Replacement (March 20)

Changes to the 2026-2027 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) (April 7) [Docket No.: ED-2025-SCC-0011] Note: The actual changes proposed are available as supplementary materials; check out the “data elements” or the “summary of enhancements”.

Some suggestions on commenting (admittedly without an authoritative citation):

• DO state your concerns with the form changes clearly, professionally, and without panic or hyperbole.
• DO back them up with either personal stories/experiences or media articles. Links are fine but you can also attach a PDF of the media articles to your comment, which makes the article part of the regulatory record.
• DON’T copy and paste someone else’s comment and just change one or two things; it will be treated as the same comment.
• DON’T submit any information within the comment itself that you don’t want to be searchable (e.g., full legal name and work e-mail address) Comments are open to the public.
• DO consider reaching out to your senators/representatives and ask them to submit a comment as well. Maybe send them a copy of your comment for reference.
• DO submit comments even though the change is likely to occur, because it can help litigators. There is an Administrative Procedures Act (APA), and these comments and the government’s (non) response may provide a basis for a case under the APA.

The Consortium of Social Science Associations (COSSA) is calling for action to protect government data. "As part of the Trump Administration’s efforts to make quick progress on the President’s policy priorities, the last several weeks saw the removal of government data sources from many federal agencies, including at the National Science Foundation, U.S. Census Bureau, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other agencies within the Department of Health and Human Services, and Department of Justice, among others. While some data have since been restored, many have not and the Administration’s plans regarding the availability of government data and statistics remain unclear."

Use the COSSA Action Center tool to write to your representatives today.

PSID Data User Workshop
Ann Arbor, MI
June 16-20th, 2025

** Application Deadline April 21st**

This five-day workshop will orient participants to the content and structure of the core PSID interview, its special topics modules, and its supplemental studies, including the Child Development Supplement (CDS), the Transition into Adulthood Supplement (TAS), and the 2013 Rosters and Transfers Module. In addition we will discuss topics including the genomics data collected from children and adults as well as new data files which explain family relationships and demographic characteristics over time.

Eligibility: The workshop is designed for graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, junior faculty, and research professionals.

Software: Participants should be familiar with Stata, SAS or R, but all examples used in the workshop will be in Stata. R code will be available for each lab as well.

Applications from graduate students and postdoctoral fellows must include a letter of recommendation from a faculty advisor, project manager, or department chair.

Fee: $100 for those accepted into the workshop. Travel stipends will be available for those who need financial assistance.

See the full list of workshops on the ICPSR website or use this link to go directly to the PSID workshop registration.

The Consortium of Social Science Associations (COSSA) Social Science Advocacy Day will be March 24-25, 2025 in Washington, DC.

***The early bird registration rate has been extended until February 14***

"Advocacy Day brings together social and behavioral scientists and science advocates from across the  country to engage with policymakers. The stakes for research funding have never been higher as we enter a particularly challenging political and budgetary environment. Social Science Advocacy Day is a must for all stakeholders who care about the fate of federal funding for social and behavioral science research and who believe this research should be used to inform sound public policy."

See more information on the COSSA events page.

Michael Burawoy, a world-renowned sociologist and professor emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley, died after being struck by a vehicle on Monday, February 3. He was 77.

ASA President Adia Harvey Wingfield and Executive Director Heather M. Washington noted in a message to members on February 5, "Michael was a leading figure in the discipline, an advocate for public scholarship, and a former president of the International Sociological Association and of ASA. His contributions to labor studies, Marxist theory, and ethnography have had an indelible impact on our discipline. He will be missed."

The International Sociological Association (ISA) stated, in part, "ISA mourns one of its most influential and inspiring presidents, a remarkable and creative global sociologist, an advocate for a public sociology relevant to the people and civil society, an inspiring teacher who trained generations of sociologists, and an extraordinary human being."

The UC Berkeley Sociology Department has posted a memorial page.

A virtual memorial tribute was scheduled for February 8; as of this writing, the video has not yet been posted, but it may become available on the ISA YouTube channel.

The Population Reference Bureau created the KIDS COUNT Data Resource Guide to facilitate the use of population data from the U.S. federal statistical system. "Originally designed for the KIDS COUNT program on child well-being, the guide offers practical advice on how to use major data sources—from the Decennial U.S. Census to the National Vital Statistics System—that could be helpful to anyone who works with U.S. population data.

"The guide includes an overview of each major data source, including what data are available, how to access that data, and some best practices for using each source. These sources provide up-to-date and reliable information that is comparable across all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and, where available, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands."

"Assessing the Health of the Principal Federal Statistical Agencies" is a joint American Statistical Association and George Mason University project funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. The project's organizers are requesting feedback from federal statistics users. The feedback they seek includes examples of how you use federal statistics and your suggestions to improve both the data and the user experience.

"We want to hear from you, regardless of whether you are a federal statistics novice or a seasoned power user. Your feedback will be most helpful if we receive it by Friday, February 28, 2025."

View more details and a link to the feedback form on the project website, or respond to the feedback request directly.

From the Social Science Research Council:

College and University Fund Lecture Series 2025:
Delivering on Government Innovation

"A renewed focus on government efficiency has drawn increased attention to the critically important public goods and services provided by federal, state and local governments, including education, health care, social assistance, public safety, and infrastructure. Efficient provision of these vital public goods and services is essential for shared prosperity.  Partnerships with the research community can provide agencies with the capacity to innovate and improve government performance."

See complete details and the list of 2025 lectures on the SSRC website.

Excerpted from Inside Higher Ed, January 13, 2025:

"Freshman enrollment did not decline this fall, as previously reported in the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center’s annual enrollment report in October. On Monday, the NSC acknowledged that a methodological error led to a major misrepresentation of first-year enrollment trends, and that first-year enrollment appears to have increased.

"The October report showed first-year enrollments fell by 5 percent, in what would have been the largest decline since the COVID-19 pandemic—and appeared to confirm fears that last year’s bungled rollout of a new federal aid form would curtail college access. Inside Higher Ed reported on that data across multiple articles, and it was featured prominently in major news outlets like The New York Times and The Washington Post.

"According to the clearinghouse, the error was a methodological one, caused by mislabeling many first-year students as dual-enrolled high school students. This also led to artificially inflated numbers on dual enrollment; the October report said the population of dually enrolled students grew by 7.2 percent."

Read the complete article on the IHE website.

From the National Center for Health Statistics:

"The 2025 NCHS/AcademyHealth Data Visualization Challenge is now open. This competition is an opportunity for graduate students (master's or doctoral level) to create static or dynamic data visualizations to address social determinants of health using NCHS public use files with non-NCHS public use data. Apply today for a unique opportunity to explain an important trend or disparity in public health."

Applicants must submit a full application by Monday, March 10, 2025 at 5:00 p.m. ET to enter the Challenge.

See complete details and application instructions on the NCHS website.