Nate's #MyDataStory: Learning the Language of Public Data

Imagine you are a student in one of the many university programs studying the workings of government and the effects of public policy in our daily lives. In many of your courses, you are trained in formal research methods using some of the most fundamental data available, such as the U.S. Census. When learning how to weigh the costs and benefits of policy choices, you engage with budget tables and estimates such as those produced by the Congressional Budget Office and federal agencies. Your engagement with public data likely began well before your studies, such as when using College Scorecard’s data to choose where to attend, or submitting information about yourself through the Free Application for Federal Student Aid to determine how much you could receive in student aid. 

These were all experiences I shared with my classmates during my graduate studies at George Washington University. Until I began my degree in public administration — and later joined the team here at the Data Foundation — I gave little thought to how immersed I have been in the creation and use of public data as I moved through my life and education. In pursuit of my degree I attended many classes where using public statistics and research was critical to my learning, and in turn my classmates and I were also studied and surveyed to capture information about our programs’ outcomes. Many students, like some of my former classmates, have gone on to work in government to use the same data for the public good. 

The Data Foundation launched the #MyDataStory initiative in February to collect and share real stories about how public data helps them solve problems, make decisions, and serve their communities. As someone whose education and subsequent career in both state and federal policy has been intertwined with public data, I am adding my own #MyDataStory.

For myself, putting public data to use in my education cemented the importance of data’s role in  supporting effective government. How should public officials put taxpayer dollars to responsible use? In teaching public budgeting, my professors employed tax and spending data available on USAspending.gov to demonstrate models for fiscal health in government, and researchers rely on the same data to advocate for better practices. How should programs be designed to meet public needs? When learning how to conduct program evaluations, I relied heavily on resources such as the What Works Clearinghouse hosted by the Department of Education, which publishes rigorous evaluations of educational programs, as a model for best practices. 

As part of my graduate program, I also had opportunities to put my studies into practice through a capstone project. With a team of fellow students, I worked on an evaluation project for a nonprofit organization serving homeless individuals in the District of Columbia. Together we examined the relationship between the opening of new homeless shelters and the incidence of crime nearby, which would have been impossible to assess without access to data on shelters from the D.C. Department of Housing Services and on crime from the D.C. Metropolitan Police Department through the District’s Open Data DC service. Equipped with that data, our team found that crime generally decreased around shelters, which supported the organization’s outreach efforts to build relationships with the local community. 

Over the course of my education, I found myself asking or being asked many seemingly straightforward questions like 'how many Americans are in poverty?' However, to find an answer to even this basic question required me to form a much deeper understanding of the entire data lifecycle, and confront the many scientific and political choices behind any measurement. During courses on social programs, my classmates and I frequently debated measurement issues such as the differences between the Census Bureau's longtime Official Poverty Measure and the newer Supplemental Poverty Measure, examining how each methodology led to different conclusions about poverty in America. It was through these exercises that I began to appreciate the responsibility that comes with creating and interpreting public data — an appreciation only made possible by my access to that data. 

My data story shows only a handful of the ways in which the nation's educators and students — future researchers, civil servants, and policymakers — rely on the public data ecosystem. From choosing their college to launching careers in public service, data literacy and access to quality government statistics form an essential foundation. My education relied on the data stories told by others about themselves, our social problems, and the nation. That’s why I invite you to reflect on your own #MyDataStory and join the conversation about how we can continue to amplify the important role of data in shaping our lives.