Registration open for American Statistical Association DataFest 2026
Registration is now open for the American Statistical Association DataFest 2026 at Penn State, to be held March 20-22 at University Park. DataFest, sponsored by the American Statistical Association (ASA) and Celonis, is a weekend-long data analysis competition. Over the course of two intense days,…
Daniel F. Perkins in College of Ag Sciences named distinguished professor
Daniel F. Perkins, professor of family and youth resiliency and policy in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences, has been named a distinguished professor by Penn State’s Office of the Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs.
The title of distinguished professor at Penn State recognizes the…
Promoting adult wellness through community music
Recreational music’s impact on adult wellness is the focus of a new research workgroup funded by the Social Science Research Institute (SSRI) at Penn State.
The group, led by Bryan Nichols, head of graduate studies in Music Education in the College of Arts & Architecture, and Jennifer Agans,…
SSRI part of Interactive map showcasing statewide community impact
At Shaver’s Creek Environmental Center, elementary school students participate in Outdoor School programs that immerse them in hands-on environmental learning. In South Williamsport, Penn College paramedic students steady gurneys and radios during the crush of the Little League Baseball World…
Penn State names new distinguished professors for 2026
Penn State's Office of Faculty Affairs has named 14 new distinguished professors for 2026, including:
SSRI Cofunded Faculty Member Daniel Perkins, distinguished professor of youth and family resiliency and policy and founding principal scientist of the Clearinghouse for Military Family…
Consortium on Moral Decision-Making announces grant funding
The Consortium on Moral Decision-Making at Penn State is seeking proposals for Ember Grants to support up-start interdisciplinary research related to the conceptual and empirical study of human morality and ethical decision-making.
The grant program is open to faculty-led teams at Penn State, with…
Consortium on Moral Decision-Making Spring Reception
SSRI's Consortium on Moral Decision-Making is hosting a spring kick-off reception Feb. 10, 4 - 5:30 p.m., in the Atrium of Moore Building.
All are welcome to attend, whether they are returning affiliates or new researchers who want to learn more about ethical and moral decision-making through an…
Sustain Penn State to screen ‘Devil Put the Coal in the Ground’ on Feb. 11
Sustain Penn State will host a virtual screening of “Devil Put the Coal in the Ground” at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 11, as part of its Intersections Film Series. The screening will be followed by a moderated panel discussion exploring the connections between coal, economic development, public…
Why Social Science? - Because Psychology Can Help Reduce Police Violence
This month's Why Social Science? post comes from Dr. Kimberly Kahn from the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues (SPSSI) about how psychology can help us build safer, fairer communities by finding solutions rooted in evidence, empathy, and mutual responsibility.
By Kimberly Kahn,…
Lloyd Prize for Innovative Health Research seeks proposals
Penn State emeritus professor Tom Lloyd and the Social Science Research Institute (SSRI) invite proposals for the annual Lloyd Prize for Innovative Health Research at Penn State.
The Lloyd Prize is funded by an endowment of more than $500,000 for an annual prize that will include funds for salary…
Burkhouse and Veturi receive early career professorship awards
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Katie Burkhouse, associate professor of psychology, and Yogasudha Veturi, assistant professor of biobehavioral health and statistics, were recently named as recipients of the Dr. Frances Keesler Graham Early Career Professorship by the Social Science Research Institute at…
Annual Substance Use and Addiction Conference to be held on May 4
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The Social Science Research Institute’s Consortium on Substance Use and Addiction will host its seventh annual conference, in-person and via Zoom on Monday, May 4 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Barron Innovation Hub at the University Park campus.
The all-day event is free, but…
Penn State’s Child Study Center to host 2026 Innovation Hub Symposium
“Community Engaged Research for Public Impact: Process to Policy” is the theme of the Penn State Child Study Center’s (CSC) 2026 Innovation Hub Symposium taking place on Friday, Feb. 6, in the Nittany Lion Inn Ballroom at University Park.
CSC’s Innovation Hub Symposium is a biennial event designed…
Buxton featured on “Sleep Quality, Not Quantity” Podcast
Orfeu Buxton, SSRI cofunded faculty member and associate director at SSRI and CTSI, was featured on The Last Show with David Cooper Podcast in an episode titled “Sleep Quality, Not Quantity” released January 16.
In this 11-minute episode, Buxton, a professor of biobehavioral health and a leading…
Online gambling participation increased in Pennsylvania in 2025, report finds
Online gambling in Pennsylvania continues to increase, according to the 2025 Pennsylvania Interactive Gaming Assessment: Online Gambling Report. The assessment was co-authored by researchers in Penn State’s Criminal Justice Research Center and developed under contract with the Pennsylvania…
Contest puts AI-ready teaching to the test
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State’s Center for Socially Responsible Artificial Intelligence (CSRAI) has announced the “Teach-a-thon,” a competition celebrating innovative teaching practices in response to the rise of large language models and generative AI. The virtual event is open to all Penn…
New Penn State Cores Facility Website
Penn State Research has recently launched a new website for core facilities. These facilities offer critical specialized instrumentation, services, and guidance to researchers and businesses. The goal is to supplement projects with resources and expertise that may be cost-prohibitive for direct…
Fathers’ early interactions with babies may affect child health years later
How a new father behaves toward his baby can change family dynamics in a way that affects the child’s heart and metabolic health years later, according to a new study by researchers in the Penn State College of Health and Human Development.
In the study, recently published in Health Psychology, the…
Center for Socially Responsible AI awards seed funding to seven diverse projects - 2026
The Penn State Center for Socially Responsible Artificial Intelligence (CSRAI) has announced the results of its most recent seed-funding competition. The center awarded more than $152,000 to seven interdisciplinary research projects representing six colleges.
Each proposal was evaluated by peers…
Estate commitment to enhance resources for students from foster care system
Building on her early career advocacy on behalf of abused and neglected children, Penn State graduate Rosemary Katchmar has come forward with a $200,000 estate commitment that will benefit the Fostering Lions Program. The gift will bolster services and programming designed to improve postsecondary…
Roberts retires after leading center from inception to success
Mark Roberts, former director of the Penn State’s Federal Statistical Research Data Center (FSRDC), and liberal arts professor of economics, retired at the end of December after 45 years at Penn State.
Roberts has led the FSRDC, part of the Social Science Institute, since its inception in 2014.…
Penn State professor named among most influential in shaping education - 2026
Erica Frankenberg, professor of education (educational leadership) and demography at Penn State and director of the Center for Education and Civil Rights, was recently named to the 2026 RHSU Edu-Scholar Public Influence Rankings list of top 200 U.S.-based university scholars who influence education…
Revolutionizing Economic Measurement At The Census Bureau’s Center For Economic Studies: Pioneering Research On Firm Dynamics, Employment Flows And Transformative Statistical Products
Written by:
Ron Jarmin, Deputy Director of the United States Census Bureau
I recently had the privilege of speaking at conferences honoring two economists who’ve made huge contributions to the profession and, most importantly for this blog, to the U.S. Census Bureau. Mark Roberts of Penn…
Back pain linked to worse sleep years later in men over 65, according to study
About half of older men suffer from sleep problems, back pain or both, according to Soomi Lee, associate professor of human development and family studies at Penn State. Lee recently led a study to investigate whether one precedes the other and found that back problems…
Night waking impacts cognitive performance regardless of sleep duration
When it comes to sleep, traditional advice has focused on the number of hours a person sleeps. But for older adults, the quality of sleep may affect cognitive performance the following day regardless of their quantity of sleep, according to a new study by researchers from the Penn State College of…