Let’s start on the first page.  Just below the fabulous State Data Center logo are some basic stats about Kansas, including a link to a statistical summary.  Many basic questions can be answered here including population, race and ethnicity, economic information and more. 

The Kansas fact of the month presents statistics that highlight both a timely topic and one of the many data sources the SDC uses.  I try to update the fact of the month within the first week of the month.  If anyone has a great idea for upcoming facts, feel free to let me know.

Moving on to the Data and Publications section.  We will look at these sections in detail in upcoming tours.  This area is organized by the geographic and topic area.  Information on the state as a whole or individual counties can be found on the first two links.  The third link, Cities and other places, has data about cities and townships, congressional districts and school districts.  Business and economic data includes information on major industries, labor, and other economic indicies for Kansas.  Library statistics includes statistical profiles of libraries in Kansas by type.  The Links to More Data page has helpful links of Kansas and Federal government resources.

The final section on the home page is everything you ever wanted to know about the State Data Center but were afraid to ask.  Although much of it is painfully dull, it does include information on the State Data Center Network’s Coordinating and Affiliate agencies, and a Census to English glossary.

This conludes Part 1 of our tour.  As always, I would be happy to hear your questions, comments or concerns, via email at phaxton@kslib.info or phone 785-296-2008. 

Thanks,

Peter Haxton, State Data Center Coordinator 

I hope to have quick reference information for librarians, trustees and everyone else.  Hopefully it will be helpful with marketing, fundraising and grant seeking.  If nothing else it’s nice to have numbers behind what we already know – that Kansas’ libraries are second to none and our patrons know it.

It is a work in progress, as I only have public library stats up so far.  I will be putting information on academic libraries soon.  If anyone knows of a good source for school libraries, or if you have any other suggestions, I woud appreciate it.

Thanks,

Peter Haxton, State Data Center Coordinator

What I do want to talk about is some of the new data available from the Census.  Last week, the “sub-county” population estimates for July 1, 2007 were released.  Sub-county simply means any area of geography below the county, which in Kansas includes cities and townships.

These numbers have been certified by the State Budget Office, and will be the official numbers used in collecting library statistics. 

Interesting things to note include: the seven largest percent losses in population came from cities surrounding Fort Riley, and Olathe was listed as one of the 25 fastest growing cities in America.

If you have any questions about these or any other statistics, email me at sdc@kslib.info.

Peter Haxton, State Data Center Coordinator