APPLIED RESEARCH

My private practice in sociology began in 1987, while working at Drexel University in Philadelphia, PA.  During that time, I was a statistical subcontractor for the 
Social Research Corporation in Philadelphia.  Early in 1996, I began the Atlantic Social Research Corporation (ASRC) in Allentown.

Conducting applied research serves two broad professional interests.  First, through the many methodological, analytical and ethical challenges faced in my practice, 
I have improved my qualitative and quantitative skills, become more aware of community-level politics, and have bridged new alliances with community leaders in several 
parts of the state. Second, my experiences make me doubt, more than ever, the usual dichotomy between academe and practice.  I find my teaching is enriched and animated 
by my practice – by my research, consulting, and work with clients.  My teaching benefits from dozens of ready examples, analogies, and real life details.  It reflects an 
excitement from having participated in fixing things, in designing systems, in making or changing policy, and even confronting others who represented competing interests.  At 
this point, I can't imagine teaching sociology well without doing sociology.

Since the Spring of 1996, ASRC has conducted research across the U.S. in areas associated with consumer satisfaction, diversity in the work place, global talent management, 
community revitalization, and program evaluation.  The following highlights my sociological practice.


EMPLOYMENT IN RESEARCH

President.                         Atlantic Social Research Corporation (ASRC), Allentown, PA.  March 1996 – Present.

Project Director.              Social Science Research Institute (SSRI) at Cedar Crest College, Allentown, PA.  Fall 1998 – August 2007.
 

Subcontractor.                 Social Research Corporation, Wyncote, PA.  December 1987 – Present.
 

Project Director.              University of Texas Health Science Center at Dallas.  Southwest Long Term Care Gerontology Center.  
August 1986 to August 1987.

 

RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS IN SOCIOLOGICAL PRACTICE

HART HOPE VI for Allentown, PA.  Spring 2006 through Fall 2009.  The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) awarded  the
              Allentown Housing Authority a $20 million HOPE VI Revitalization grant to demolish and rebuild Hanover Acres and Riverview Terrace public
              housing developments and introduce a new mix-income model of affordable housing and community revitalization.  The first year of this longitudinal 
              evaluation began in spring 2006 and will carry on through fall 2009.

Salisbury PROSPER (Promoting School/Community-University Partnerships to Enhance Resilience) Team, Fall 2005 and is ongoing.  Using my Strengthening 
              Families Program (SFP) experiences and background in applied sociology, in cooperation with PROSPER team members, I developed a research plan that 
              seeks to evaluate the combined impact of the Strengthening Families Program on participating Salisbury Middle School students and their families.  This 
              longitudinal research study, called the Salisbury Families Project, began in fall 2005. The next round research began early spring 2006.

Northampton County ProJeCt For People Organization, March 2003 through October 2005.  Longitudinal program evaluation
              of the Easton Area Middle School Success Program in the Easton Area School District.   The first year of the program evaluation
              began in the 2002-2003 academic year.   The 2004-2005 EMSSP evaluation concluded in October 2005. 

Organizational Resources Counselors Worldwide (ORC.WW), New York, New York.  September 2003.  Focused on instrumentation and
              statistically analyzed primary and secondary surveys used to assess and compare level one management and line managers
              in largest corporations worldwide in ORC’s Global Talent Management (GTM) Project.

Northampton County ProJeCt For People Organization, March 2003 through August 2003.  Program evaluation of the Make Your M.A.R.K. Pilot 
              Program in the Easton Area School District.  Also funded in 2003-2004.  

Boy Scouts of America, Minsi Trails Council, March 2003 through August 2003.  Program evaluation of the Adult Leader Training and Scout Retention 
              Programs of seven Eastern Pennsylvania BSA districts.

Northampton County Communities That Care Organization.  January 2003 through September 2004.  Program evaluation of the Adopt-A-Class mentoring program 
              in the Easton Area School District; a longitudinal assessment study.

Lehigh University, Integrated Product Development (IPD) Program.   August 2002 through March 2004.  Independent program evaluation of IPD’s Department of Labor-funded 
              demonstration project titled “A Demonstration Project Linking Academic Entrepreneurial Courses with Dislocated and New Entrant Workers for Self Employment and 
              New Company Start-ups.”  This longitudinal program evaluation concluded in March 2004.

Bethlehem Housing Authority, Bethlehem, PA.  June 2002 through September 2002.  Designed and implemented a day care needs assessment survey to assist in decision-making 
 to introduce a new day care facility for families.

 

Pennsylvania Power & Light Company, Allentown, PA.   July 2001 to January 2002.  Evaluation study on energy deregulation examining four years of choice by PPL Utilities’ 
Customers.  Focus was on awareness, understanding, attitudes, expectations, actions & information sources, survey of residential customers, survey of low-income 
customers and comparisons with pre-pilot study survey.  This study included two additional sub-studies on anticipated responses to future rate policy changes and demand 
side management-response.

 

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development; Allentown, Bethlehem and Easton Housing Authorities, Lehigh County, PA.  November 2001 through January 2002.  Designed and 
implemented quantitative studies of resident perceptions of crime and safety vis-à-vis the Federal Drug Elimination Program (PHDEP) under the auspices of HUD’s local Housing 
Authorities.  Separate studies have been undertaken in Allentown (1999, 2000 and 2001), Bethlehem (2000 and 2001) and Easton (2001) over the past three years.

 

Pennsylvania Power & Light Company, Allentown, PA.  August 2001 through October 2001.  Worked with the Social Research Corporation to conduct focus groups to address customer 
understanding, awareness and attitudes of PPL Electric Utilities’ Electric Choice Program.  We also sought to ascertain expectations and planned actions regarding two future choice 
related issues: Demand side response/management and Elimination of rate caps.

 

Alzheimer’s Association in Washington, D.C.   September 2000 to August 2001.  Worked with the Social Research Corporation on a quantitative and qualitative national study, commissioned by 
the Alzheimer’s Association in Washington, D.C. and a major pharmaceutical company.  Measured the instrumental dimensions of informal care to seniors with Alzheimer’s Disease and 
estimated the financial cost nationwide to families and other informal care providers that is associated with this condition.  Involved in survey development, sampling, conducted and analyzed 
focus groups, and linked primary data with available secondary data on Alzheimer’s Disease. 

 

Epilepsy Foundation of Southeast Texas.  June 2001 to August 2001.  Worked with the Social Research Corporation to assist the Epilepsy Foundation of Southeast Texas to conduct and analyze two 
dozen national qualitative studies (mainly focus groups) to develop educational programs for teens regarding epilepsy.  Gathered information was passed onto the National Office to better 
understand how teens in our communities view epilepsy.

 

Pennsylvania Power & Light Company, Allentown, PA.  July 2000 through December 2000. Worked with the Social Research Corporation conducted eight focus groups on residential customers 
to solicit feedback on several forms of educational material prepared by PPL and one by the PUC to better understand customers' perceptions of these electric choice publications. 

 

Pennsylvania Power & Light Company, Allentown, PA.  March 2000 through June 2000. Worked with the Social Research Corporation to conduct four focus groups to solicit feedback on 
“competitive default supplier” policy (CDS).  The goal was to better understand customers’ perceptions of, and beliefs about, this new policy.

 

Pennsylvania Power & Light Company, Allentown, PA.  March 1999 through January 2000.  Worked with the Social Research Corporation to conduct focus groups throughout the state to evaluate 
responses to energy deregulation policy.

 

ABACUS Custom Research, Emmaus, PA.  August 1998 to October 1998.  Worked with ABACUS Custom Research to conduct an RKS residential customer survey, provide cross-tabular analysis, 
customer profile development, segmentation (Chi-Squared Automatic Interaction Detector or CHAID) modeling and analysis, and develop the final report. 

 

Pennsylvania Power & Light Company, Allentown, PA.  June 1997 to September 1997.  Worked with Social Research Corporation to determine customers’ perceptions and awareness of PP&L’s 
customers regarding deregulation affecting the purchase of electric generation; the choices of, and effects on, individual households and small businesses; and PP&L’s outreach and educational 
efforts about the Customer Choice Program.

 

Pennsylvania Power & Light Company, Allentown, PA.  November 1996 to April 1997.  Worked with the Social Research Corporation to conduct agency-based process interviews to evaluate PPL’s 
Community Partnership Program (CPP); $2.4 million in community grants for community revitalization, small business starts, and affordable housing.  The focus was on the PPL CPP’s 
broader social and economic effects.

 

Pennsylvania Power & Light Company, Allentown, PA.  September 1995 to December 1997.  Worked with the Social Research Corporation to evaluate PP&L’s Customer Choice Pilot Program, including 
focus group evaluations of the Pilot Educational Program and of a sample of Non-Pilot Participants.

 

Organizational Resources Counselors (ORC) and Simmons Associates, New York, NY.  October 1995 to July 1996.  Designed a multidimensional diversity training instrument, factor analyzed instrument data 
across industries served by ORC-Simmons, Inc., and determined the construct validity of the resulting instrument.

 

TV Guide, Radnor, PA.  January 1996 to March 1996.  Conducted a qualitative assessment of TV Guide customers across four U.S. cities to determine customer preferences and pricing thresholds.  

 

TV Guide, Radnor, PA.  October 1994 to August 1995.  Quantitative report based on secondary data from the 1995 TV Guide Subscriber Study.  Segmentation models also were developed to further address 
project objectives.

 

Pennsylvania Power & Light Company, Allentown, PA.  December 1987 to June 1988.  Research consultant for the Winter Relief Assistance Program (WRAP) study.  Co-designed the WRAP study using 
a four-post design along with the Social Research Corporation to examine the interactive effects of energy conservation services on energy usage behaviors and attitudes of program participants.  

 


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