Special Projects

The Association for Institutional Research (AIR) was awarded a $675,000 grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to focus on three key projects addressing institutional research (IR) capacity in the U.S. One key project was a National Survey of Institutional Research (IR). Kristin McKinley served as a peer reviewer and participated in a pilot test of the survey. The survey was administered in 2015 to establish a baseline of IR office capacities. Data on resources, organizational structures, and assigned tasks were collected. 

The purpose of this study was to provide the city of Appleton with the findings of an evaluation of a passive-activated in-roadway warning light (IRWL) system at two crosswalks on a refuge median, divided four-lane roadway running through the Lawrence University campus. Based on a before-after design, the analysis of videos that tracked vehicles within a 60 feet window which started 200 feet back from the crosswalks indicates that compared to when there was no IRWL system 1) drivers engaged their brakes sooner within the 60 feet window after the lights were installed, 2) there was a larger reduction in velocity from when vehicles entered the 60 feet window to when they exited after the lights were installed, and 3) a higher percentage of vehicles decelerated only and a lower percentage of vehicles accelerated only within the 60 feet window after the lights were installed.