FELL SS part B

B. COLLECTIONS OF INFORMATION EMPLOYING STATISTICAL METHODS
1. Describe (including a numerical estimate) the potential respondent universe and any
sampling or other respondent selection method to be used. Data on the number of entities
(e.g. establishments, State and local governmental units, households, or persons) in the
universe and the corresponding sample are to be provided in tabular form. The tabulation
must also include expected response rates for the collection as a whole. If the collection has
been conducted before, provide the actual response rate achieved.
There are six respondent types participating in this assessment. They include: (1) current
fellows, (2) past fellows, (3) current coastal zone management program mentors, (4) past coastal
zone management program mentors, (5) Center partners affiliated with the program, and (6) Sea
Grant directors (recommenders of fellow candidates). This data collection represents a census of
current and past participants in the fellowship program since the program’s initiation in 1996.
For current fellows and current mentors a response rate of 100% is expected. For past fellows,
past mentors, and Sea Grant directors the expected response rate is 75%. This rate is based on
the past performance of these three groups and their response rates to previous information
collections. Table 1 below indicates the number of entities and expected response rate for each
respondent type.
Table 1: Number of Entities and Expected Response Rate per Respondent Type
Respondent Type

Number of entities
in universe
10
52
10
52
4
33

Current Fellows
Past Fellows
Current State Coastal Zone Program Mentors
Past State Coastal Zone Program Mentors
Center Partners
Sea Grant Directors

Expected
response rate
100
75
100
75
100
75

2. Describe the procedures for the collection, including: the statistical methodology for
stratification and sample selection; the estimation procedure; the degree of accuracy
needed for the purpose described in the justification; any unusual problems requiring
specialized sampling procedures; and any use of periodic (less frequent than annual) data
collection cycles to reduce burden.
No sampling will be used; this information collection will comprise a complete census of all
current and past fellowship program participants. For the six respondent types, data collection
procedures are the same. These respondent types include current and past fellows, current and
past mentors, Sea Grant directors and Center partners. The following presents the data collection
procedures for these respondent types:
a. Obtain OMB clearance
b. Finalize the formatting of all data collection instruments based on OMB comments.

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c. Ten days following notification of OMB clearance approval, GEARS will conduct a
conference call with the fellowship Project Manager to review the data collection
instruction, methodology and other communications initiating from GEARS and the
Center. Plans will also be finalized to obtain contact information for respondents,
(email and mailing addresses).
d. Two weeks following notification of OMB clearance, GEARS will receive email and
mailing address information from the Center for respondent types.
e. Three weeks following notification of OMB clearance NOAA will send an
introductory email to survey respondents introducing the assessment. Three days
after NOAA’s introductory email, GEARS will send an email message to respondents
that includes the appropriate survey instrument as an attachment.
f. The data collection period will begin three weeks following notification of OMB
clearance and will end approximately 100 days later. During the data collection
period, GEARS will maintain a confidential log of the surveys’ received from
respondents, noting the respondent’s name and the date his/her survey was submitted.
Each respondent will receive an email (or if they used mail, a letter) thanking them
for their participation and confirming the receipt of his/her survey. In addition, two
weeks after data collection begins, an email (or letter) will be sent to all respondents
reminding them to complete the survey if they want to participate in the assessment
and thanking them if they have already completed the survey. Two weeks following
this communication, a letter will be sent, via postal mail, to all email non-responders,
that includes a paper version of the appropriate survey. This letter will remind
potential participants of the goals of the survey and will ask them to complete the
survey and return it in the enclosed self addressed stamped envelope (SASE), if they
have not already done so. A third reminder notice will be sent, via email and postal
mail, four weeks after data collection begins. A fourth and final reminder notice will
be sent eight weeks after data collection begins.
g. Surveys received via email will be downloaded to a GEARS password protected work
space on a GEARS protected server that will be accessible only by GEARS staff
particular to this project. A hard copy of the survey will also be made and kept in a
locked cabinet at GEARS’ Boston area office. Only GEARS staff particular to this
project will have access to the data in this cabinet. Surveys received via postal mail
and fax will also be kept in this locket cabinet. Although respondents will be
instructed not to provide identifying information on the survey (names, social security
numbers, dates of birth, etc.), any identifying information placed on surveys will be
removed. This includes identifying information hand written on surveys, and those
automatically printed by fax machines or email systems, such as headers or footers
with an individual’s name or phone number.

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3. Describe the methods used to maximize response rates and to deal with nonresponse.
The accuracy and reliability of the information collected must be shown to be adequate for
the intended uses. For collections based on sampling, a special justification must be
provided if they will not yield "reliable" data that can be generalized to the universe
studied.
The following procedures and methods will be used to increase the response rate. These
procedures provide the respondent with information about the data collection through
publications, website, emails and postal mail. They also include a number of reminders for those
respondents who may have forgotten to respond. The procedure to maximize response is as
follows:
1. Two weeks after receiving OMB approval, the Center will announce the programmatic
assessment in its publication, Fellow News and on its website.
2. Three weeks following notification of approval from OMB, an introductory email
requesting respondents’ participation in the survey will come from a NOAA staff
member who is known to the respondent. The purpose of this email is to inform the
respondent about the data collection and enlist respondent support for this activity.
3. Three days after the introductory email from a NOAA staff member, respondents will
receive an introductory email from GEARS and an electronic version of the survey. This
notice is sent within a short period of the introductory email in order to build upon the
respondents’ awareness and importance of the data collection.
4. Two weeks after the survey has been distributed, respondents will be sent an email to
remind them about the survey and the importance of their response.
5. Four weeks after the survey is distributed a paper version of the survey and reminder
letter will be sent, via postal mail, as a reminder to all individuals not responding to initial
email communications. In addition a stamped envelope addressed to GEARS will be
enclosed with the paper survey. These steps are being taken to ensure that all
respondents have indeed been notified about the survey.
6. Six weeks after the data collection begins a third reminder will be sent to all nonresponders via email and postal mail. Also, to the extent possible a search will be
conducted to correct any email or postal mail addresses that are returned to GEARS.
7. A fourth and final email and postal mail (a post card) will be sent eight weeks after data
collection begins. This reminder will briefly repeat the importance of the data collection
and indicate the date by which all surveys need to be returned in order to be included in
the data collection.
4. Describe any tests of procedures or methods to be undertaken. Tests are encouraged as
effective means to refine collections, but if ten or more test respondents are involved OMB
must give prior approval.
The instruments for this assessment were developed by the contractor responsible for data
collection and data analysis. Following their development, these instruments underwent three
revisions based on the feedback of the following Center staff members: the current Director of
the fellowship, the past Director of the fellowship, and two individuals from the Center who
were very familiar with the fellowship program and whose expertise were in survey
development. Additionally, the instruments were administered to contractor staff to determine

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length of time, identify redundancy, and ensure question relevance and necessity. The revisions
of the instruments focused on question format, rating scales, and question content.
5. Provide the name and telephone number of individuals consulted on the statistical
aspects of the design, and the name of the agency unit, contractor(s), grantee(s), or other
person(s) who will actually collect and/or analyze the information for the agency.
Program Contact
Thomas E. Fish, Ph.D.
Human Dimensions Specialist
U.S. Department of Commerce
NOAA Coastal Services Center
2234 South Hobson Avenue
Charleston, SC 29405
Tel: 843.740.1271
[email protected]
Data Collection/Analysis and Statistical Contact
Deborah Brome, Ph.D.
Vice President and Director, Division of Evaluation & Applied Research
Global Evaluation & Applied Research Solutions (GEARS) Inc.
617-328-5140
[email protected]
Michael Milburn, Ph.D.
Professor, University of Massachusetts, Boston
617-287-6386
[email protected]

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