DOI: 10.3886/icpsr36833
title: Community College Civic Outcomes Survey, Spring 2015
title: Archival Version

description: The Community College Civic Outcomes Survey, Spring 2015 study examines the individual and institutional factors associated with greater civic agency, capacity, behavior, and knowledge among college students. In Spring 2015, two surveys were digitally administered at nine community colleges. These nine colleges were purposively selected for diversity in terms of geography, campus setting, size, and the racial and ethnic composition of their student bodies. From a total of 98,838 recipients, 4,788 usable surveys were returned, for an aggregate five percent response rate (response rates varied from two to 13% among the nine colleges). This data includes a sample of 3,897 from those surveys collected. The Civic Outcomes Survey (COS) was administered to students, and included questions related to voting, political and community engagement, civic knowledge, and leadership development. The Institutional Questionnaire (IQ), was admitted to each college's liaisons to The Democracy Commitment (TDC), and included questions related to college-level factors known to influence student engagement. These questions assessed for institutional intentionality towards civic engagement through college missions and strategic planning, as well as academic and faculty focus on civic involvement. Both instruments were previously tested in a small regional pilot and were subsequently refined to allow for greater response variability. Demographic variables include race, income, gender, and enrollment status.
description: This study was conducted to better understand the extent and ways in which community colleges develop the civic capacities of their students. The research questions guiding this study were:

Holding pre-college civic behaviors constant, what individual behaviors and characteristics are associated with greater civic agency, capacity, behavior, and knowledge among students with at least one year of community college experience?
Holding individual characteristics and behaviors constant, what institutional programs, policies, or characteristics are associated with greater civic agency, capacity, behavior, and knowledge among students with at least one year of community college experience?
description: The data contains 145 variables. 82 variables are from the Civic Outcomes Survey (COS), and 48 variables are from the Institutional questionnaire (IQ). The remaining variables are administrative, composite, and weight variables.
description: Data were weighted by institution to account for substantial differences in the number of respondents at each of the 9 colleges.
description: Response Rates: From a total of 98,838 recipients, 4,788 usable surveys were returned for an aggregate five percent response rate (response rates varied from two to 13% among the nine college). This data includes a sample of 3,897 from those surveys collected.
description: Each participating institution gained approval through their own Institutional Review Board. The purposively-selected institutions were geographically diverse, represented a variety of urban, suburban, and rural environments (as identified by the Carnegie Classifications), and ranged in size from 2,500 to 34,000 full-time-equivalent (FTE) students. The racial/ethnic composition of students at the colleges also varied substantially, with relatively large numbers of African Americans at some, a preponderance of Asians or Latinos at others, and heavily White populations elsewhere. Seven of the 9 colleges received a small stipend for participating; the remaining 2 agreed to participate without compensation.
description: Datasets: 
DS1: Community College Civic Outcomes Survey, Spring 2015
description: Community College Students.
description: web-based survey