Conducting a Community Assessment - Strengthening Nonprofits

APPENDIX BWorksheet: Creating a Data Collection PlanUse this document to plan your data collection efforts. List your key questions and decide whether the data for each question can be found by using a secondary orprimary source. Identify the potential method(s) you will use.Note:• A secondary source provides information you can glean from a website (such as Census.gov) or a conversation (talking with a reporter or professor).• A primary source provides information you produce yourself by creating a survey, holding a focus group, etc.• Secondary sources are listed first because that is where your research will begin.KEY QUESTION SECONDARY? PRIMARY? POTENTIAL METHODExample: What are the basic demographics of my community? (income levels, races/ethnicities, number of youth)Yes No Secondary: Online resourcesExample: What age group in our community is most at risk for becoming involved ingangs?Yes Yes Secondary: Online resources and informal interviewsfor data on gang activity in my communityPrimary: Interviews with former gang-involved youthto add personal testimony to the raw dataCOMMUNITY QUESTIONS