Back in spring 2001 - about half a year before 9/11 - my predecessors and now-colleagues, along with partners around the country, got a couple of thousand randomly sampled U.S. congregations - mainly Christian - to survey worshipers over two weekends. Money from a IN foundation provided critical funding and continued enough to pay for all of my position for the past 4 1/2 years. I came on three years after this big wave, as individual congregations continued to pay modest fees to participate in the survey, finding out not only how worshipers in their congregation responded to the 56-question survey, but also getting a range of resources including analysis of their scores on 10 "strengths" and how they compared on these with sampled congregations. I also continued to help analyze the 2001 results, finding for example what key factors were that predicted numerical growth among Presbyterian congregations (few older adults, children's and youth ministries priority, shared leadership practices, located in an area with lots of college-educated residents). Last year the foundation funded us to do a second wave, and we and partners sampled and recruited new congregations along with asking most 2001 participants to do it again. I've been involved somewhat on the periphery of this, although I did write a page of questions about community involvement that were included in some of the surveys and have helped recruit several other denominations (Lutherans, Congregationalists, and perhaps Methodists) to partner with us to survey extra congregations. Half a dozen Louisville area congregations made it into any one of the samples and said Yes. Congregations were asked this time to select any one of half a dozen fall 2008 weekends - and, now, also, spring 2009 weekends - and back in September I returned to a Presbyterian congregation with which I've worshiped a couple of times before to watch them participate in the survey this second time. Pictured above is a pastor as survey administration is about to begin. Below are two youths helping distribute the survey.
Below here is a youth - turns out to be from our son Vincent's school - sitting near me taking the survey.
And - below again - a shot of most of the sanctuary as folks continue answering questions on the survey.
And - below - in the back of the church.
Below is a man who also attends our church fielding a question from a worshiper about the survey.
I had wanted to witness a non-Presbyterian congregation participating in the survey. Several weeks later I missed most of our service again to drive across town to witness a local Catholic church participating in the survey. I got there 15 minutes late and - to my surprise - they had just started the survey. Many congregations distribute the survey towards the end of worship - or some just after worship - then give people 15-20 minutes to complete it. This church had obviously opted for near the start of worship. I had decided that - even though visitors are supposed to participate as far as we're concerned - in both cases, I would not do so, since I wasn't exactly a real visitor - in both cases, I left to go back to our congregation after the survey administration. Especially in the Catholic church case, however, I was a little surprised that no one tried to hand me a survey. In the Catholic church, a church musician also played some lovely piano music, and at the end when a few worshipers were still completing the survey they rushed those people to finish. Below, one of my neighbors responds to questions.
Below - here - is a scene of the right side of the whole congregation at work on the survey.
Below are two youths sitting in front of me at work. We suggest congregations ask everyone in worship age 15 or older (about the age of confirmation in Protestant congregations) to complete the survey.
Below is an usher at the Catholic church collecting completed surveys.
Our quasi-colleague Cynthia came down to Louisville for some 10 days to meet with folks and help out as UPS began to bring the big boxes of completed surveys. This was not quite as much of a chore as last time, I've been told, since unfortunately not as many congregations have agreed to participate and the possible participation dates have been spread over much longer periods. Here's almost everyone in my office (minus me taking the picture) plus Cynthia - about to eat lunch together partly in celebration of Cynthia's visit.
Below (left to right) are my colleagues Joelle, Becki, and Susan (all hired within the past 15 months - I participated in most of the searches.).
Below are are two managers, Jack (who goes to our church) and Deborah.
Cynthia (facing away from the camera) talks with Ida (not pictured) and Hilary, our newest colleague, who along with Joelle was hired specifically to help out with the survey's Wave 2. Cynthia, who 10 years ago had my current job, recently shifted from teaching at a New England seminary, which I visited during my first month on the job, to living and working in the Albany (NY) area, where I once lived. When Cynthia visited me in my office this fall, she hadn't been there since our friend Sara (from FL) helped Stephanie and me put up pictures. She said the picture of Albany - a famous picture from the Albany 1986 tricentennial that an Albany area informant gave me - is basically what she sees from a window of her house in neibhboring Renselear County.
Below eating are Christy - now our longest-serving administrative assistant who started half a year before me - and Joelle, a Washington (state) native who came to us having just earned a master's degree in Wisconsin.
Below is Hilary again.
Below - here - is a scene of the right side of the whole congregation at work on the survey.
Below are two youths sitting in front of me at work. We suggest congregations ask everyone in worship age 15 or older (about the age of confirmation in Protestant congregations) to complete the survey.
Below is an usher at the Catholic church collecting completed surveys.
Our quasi-colleague Cynthia came down to Louisville for some 10 days to meet with folks and help out as UPS began to bring the big boxes of completed surveys. This was not quite as much of a chore as last time, I've been told, since unfortunately not as many congregations have agreed to participate and the possible participation dates have been spread over much longer periods. Here's almost everyone in my office (minus me taking the picture) plus Cynthia - about to eat lunch together partly in celebration of Cynthia's visit.
Below (left to right) are my colleagues Joelle, Becki, and Susan (all hired within the past 15 months - I participated in most of the searches.).
Below are are two managers, Jack (who goes to our church) and Deborah.
Cynthia (facing away from the camera) talks with Ida (not pictured) and Hilary, our newest colleague, who along with Joelle was hired specifically to help out with the survey's Wave 2. Cynthia, who 10 years ago had my current job, recently shifted from teaching at a New England seminary, which I visited during my first month on the job, to living and working in the Albany (NY) area, where I once lived. When Cynthia visited me in my office this fall, she hadn't been there since our friend Sara (from FL) helped Stephanie and me put up pictures. She said the picture of Albany - a famous picture from the Albany 1986 tricentennial that an Albany area informant gave me - is basically what she sees from a window of her house in neibhboring Renselear County.
Below eating are Christy - now our longest-serving administrative assistant who started half a year before me - and Joelle, a Washington (state) native who came to us having just earned a master's degree in Wisconsin.
Below is Hilary again.
Deborah, Cynthia, and - at one time or another - all of our administrative assistants spent time down in the Mail Room in the basement cataloguing the incoming UPS packagees with completed surveys and getting them ready to send back out by courier to our scanning contractor in Old Louisville. Usually, I take surveys that the folks at our contractor scan and process or scan and e-mail to India/Indiana, for data entry. But, with hundreds of boxes coming in, we paid a courier service to take the boxes the few miles to scanning. Below, Cynthia and Hilary process what - by 2001's standards - was a small number of packages that day.
Here's another stack - I believe these below were un-processed packages - while those above - in the foreground - were packages that they had processed.
Below - Cynthia - and, further below, Hilary - hard at work.
Later that week I stopped by our scanning contractor to take some surveys over from the individual congregations who didn't make it into the samples, but were paying to participate in the survey. One staffer there was shy, but this was a line of those processed surveys waiting to be "prepped" before being scanned and processed.
Below is one of the temporary workers that the contractor has hired to help do the "prepping."
Here's another stack - I believe these below were un-processed packages - while those above - in the foreground - were packages that they had processed.
Below - Cynthia - and, further below, Hilary - hard at work.
Later that week I stopped by our scanning contractor to take some surveys over from the individual congregations who didn't make it into the samples, but were paying to participate in the survey. One staffer there was shy, but this was a line of those processed surveys waiting to be "prepped" before being scanned and processed.
Below is one of the temporary workers that the contractor has hired to help do the "prepping."
And - below again - another one of the temporary workers - sorry - I forget their names.
The person I work with the most - in her office - is Margaret (pictured below), who helps supervise the scanning and does some administrative work for our contractor (located on the first and second floors of an office building).
Below is Eric, another long-time staffperson with the scanning contractor.
Pictured below is a storeroom from which I usually pick up processed surveys to take back to our storeroom. In this case, after we get the scanned images of the surveys - I believe these surveys are going to be tossed/the paper recycled. However, we'll wait until things are further along. In the storeroom now are loads of processed completed surveys.
The next time I went to scanning, even more boxes of processed surveys had piled up in the storeroom (below).
My colleagues are hard at work now not only recruiting a few more sampled congregations to take the survey in the spring but also getting ready to prepare reports and resources to mail to these hundreds and hundreds of congregations. We're facing some challenges getting the computer system re-done to better handle some of this work for us, so it is even more automated. We're also preparing some additional reports - including with cross-tabulations - that we can offer congregations via our Web site, where congregations can also access their reports. Stay tuned as we continue to work hard on this. In the end, we'll have new data to analyze, new reports to write, and new comparison data to offer individual congregations that participate in the survey. It's too bad that this Wave 2 doesn't correlate as much in time with the census, as Wave 1 did with Census 2000. However, congregations were already beginning to wonder about their responses being compared with eight-year-old data, and so we'll have new data for those comparisons. With the stock market - and the foundation's endowment - the way it is now, it may be a while before we have any chance of getting another grant to do a Wave 3. Below, we're going all the way back to the beginning, when the Louisville Presbyterian church was first introducing the survey to folks in their congregation. Click on play to watch and listen to their introduction. You might have to crank up the volume.
The person I work with the most - in her office - is Margaret (pictured below), who helps supervise the scanning and does some administrative work for our contractor (located on the first and second floors of an office building).
Below is Eric, another long-time staffperson with the scanning contractor.
Pictured below is a storeroom from which I usually pick up processed surveys to take back to our storeroom. In this case, after we get the scanned images of the surveys - I believe these surveys are going to be tossed/the paper recycled. However, we'll wait until things are further along. In the storeroom now are loads of processed completed surveys.
The next time I went to scanning, even more boxes of processed surveys had piled up in the storeroom (below).
My colleagues are hard at work now not only recruiting a few more sampled congregations to take the survey in the spring but also getting ready to prepare reports and resources to mail to these hundreds and hundreds of congregations. We're facing some challenges getting the computer system re-done to better handle some of this work for us, so it is even more automated. We're also preparing some additional reports - including with cross-tabulations - that we can offer congregations via our Web site, where congregations can also access their reports. Stay tuned as we continue to work hard on this. In the end, we'll have new data to analyze, new reports to write, and new comparison data to offer individual congregations that participate in the survey. It's too bad that this Wave 2 doesn't correlate as much in time with the census, as Wave 1 did with Census 2000. However, congregations were already beginning to wonder about their responses being compared with eight-year-old data, and so we'll have new data for those comparisons. With the stock market - and the foundation's endowment - the way it is now, it may be a while before we have any chance of getting another grant to do a Wave 3. Below, we're going all the way back to the beginning, when the Louisville Presbyterian church was first introducing the survey to folks in their congregation. Click on play to watch and listen to their introduction. You might have to crank up the volume.
-- Perry
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