We look forward to welcoming Dr. Dan Goldhaber from the University of Washington on Friday, April 3, at 12:30 PM in Parrington Hall 360 and on Zoom. This seminar is co-sponsored by the Population Health Initiative. To Join By Zoom: Register HERE.

Professional references are widely used in hiring decisions, yet their effectiveness remains largely understudied. We analyze structured ratings collected from the professional references of teacher applicants and conduct an experiment to see whether the ratings influence hiring managers’ assessments of applicants and hiring decisions. We find little evidence that providing reference ratings to hiring managers influences their evaluations of candidates or hiring choices in productive ways. Importantly, we also find that reference ratings are predictive of future job performance. The result is a paradox: reference ratings offer potentially low-cost, high-value information, but hiring managers do not appear to make productive use of them.

 In a new article in Alcohol: Clinical and Experimental Research, CSDE Affiliate Katarina Guttmannova (Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences) and co-authors used machine learning to predict impaired driving among young adults in Washington. Data came from annual cross-sectional surveys of 18- to 25-year-olds participating in the Washington Young Adult Health Survey (2015–2022). For likelihood of alcohol-impaired driving, top predictors included alcohol use frequency, participants’ age, peak drinking quantity, age of alcohol initiation, full-time employment, and cannabis use frequency. For likelihood of cannabis-impaired driving, top predictors included cannabis use frequency, cannabis-related memory problems, simultaneous alcohol and cannabis use frequency, increased cannabis tolerance, and age of cannabis initiation. Two complementary machine learning methods yielded convergent findings on the most salient predictors of impaired driving, increasing confidence in their validity. These methods provide a flexible alternative to traditional models for analyzing high-dimensional data.

CSDE Affiliate Theresa Rocha Beardall (Sociology) published an article in PNAS on the heightened risk to American Indian/Alaska Native (AIAN) peoples of fatal police violence in and around reservations in the United States, and UW News posted an accompanying writeup. Rocha Beardall, along with co-authors Gabriel L. Schwartz and Jaquelyn L. Jahn, analyzed data on all AIAN people killed by police in the US between 2013–2024 from the Mapping Police Violence database. Fatal police violence against AIAN people is strongly concentrated in and around reservations: 73% of AIAN deaths occurred on or within 10 miles of reservations, despite only 39 to 51% of the AIAN population living there. Both structural disinvestment and unique policing models appear to put Indigenous peoples in harm’s way. The authors show that the types of officers responsible for fatal police violence in these areas (mostly federal, state, and tribal) differ dramatically from those of responsible officers elsewhere (mostly municipal and county), as do the reasons police give for stops in and around reservations.

Qiuju Guo is an Associate Professor in the School of Sociology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, joining the Center for Studies in Demography and Ecology (CSDE) at the University of Washington as a visiting scholar for a one-year stay.

Dedicated to gerontological research, Dr. Guo’s core research interests include family and old-age support, aging health and well-being, and older migrants. She has published a series of peer-reviewed papers in both Chinese and English on sociological issues related to older adults. Currently, she is leading a research project on the impacts of intergenerational transmission and feedback on urban adaptation among rural older migrants, exploring social issues concerning aging migration and intergenerational relations.

During her visit to CSDE, Dr. Guo aims to conduct in-depth academic exchanges and collaborative research in demography and aging studies. Colleagues and students are warmly welcome to visit her at Office 218F for discussions on any topics of mutual interest.

Seattle City Light is looking to partner with researchers to apply to a funding opportunity, Fire Science Innovations through Research and Education (FIRE) | NSF – U.S. National Science Foundation, by April 7. City Light has electricity generation infrastructure and transmission lines throughout Skagit, Whatcom, and Pend Oreille counties that we’re looking to protect from wildland fires. The NSD call fits within City Light’s planning for hazard work. Please reach out to tarney.sheldon@seattle.gov if interested in collaborating. 

The Population Council recently announced the March 2026 issue of Studies in Family Planning, a leading peer-reviewed journal publishing public health, social science, and biomedical research from around the world. This issue includes a wide range of articles covering diverse topics from male and female contraception, pregnancy acceptance and ambivalence, and more. Read the new issue here.

Join the Ohio Population Consortium on March 25 at 8 AM PT for a webinar on “The Relational Context of Fertility Goals.”  Register for Zoom link. Most children are born into two parent families, and romantic relationships are likely the most proximal determinants of fertility goals. Yet relatively little research is focused on the relationship context of fertility goals. A major issue is that most demographic studies are restricted to measures of relationship status and do not consider more refined measures of the relationship quality and dynamics.

As the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to consider the future of birthright citizenship – a right guaranteed by the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution – new research is shedding light on what is at stake should the Administration succeed in eliminating this long-established protection.

The Center for Migration Studies of New York (CMS) invites you to join us for a webinar on Wednesday, March 25 from 10 – 11 AM PT /  1 - 2 PM ET exploring new findings from the forthcoming study “Multi-Trillion Dollar and Multi-Million Worker Contributions: An Economic Accounting of Birthright Citizenship.” The study will be available on the CMS website two days prior to the webinar.

The Center for Social Science Computation and Research (CSSCR) offers drop-in office hours for computational and statistical issues in research and coursework. This service is offered Monday - Friday 8 AM - 6 PM in Savery 119. We have graduate student staff from the departments of Anthropology, Economics, Education, Geography, Political Science, Social Work, and Sociology.  The center supports R, Stata, Python, ArcGIS, QGIS, Matlab (limited), and Atlas.ti.  The Center’s consultants can assist with data management, data wrangling, exploratory data analysis, and qualitative analysis. CSSCR also specializes in identifying and procuring data sets that can be used for research or course projects.

IPUMS released multiple data updates, including ACS and PRCS data, NHGIS data, and CPS data.

IPUMS USA

The 2023 5-year Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS) data for the ACS and PRCS are now available on IPUMS USA. See the IPUMS USA revision history for more details

IPUMS NHGIS

IPUMS NHGIS has released its second version of GIS boundary data for 1970 census blocks.This release adds blocks for 17 metro areas, including Los Angeles, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Houston, Newark, Seattle, Atlanta, San Diego, Buffalo, Miami and Nashville. The total count of metro areas with 1970 block boundary data is now 38, including 21 of the top 25 by 1970 population.

IPUMS CPS

IPUMS CPS has added the February 2026 basic monthly data. Note that the January 2026 basic monthly data were re-released by the Census Bureau last week; the originally released version did not account for new population controls (see our blog post on weighted counts in January CPS to learn more). We are working on updating the affected variables, which include weights as well as some geographic and earnings variables. We will update the IPUMS CPS revision history as soon as the data become available.

MDPI has launched a new journal Populations.  They have just reached their one year milestone.  You can read about their first year here. Here is some information about publishing with them: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/populations

The Washington State Department of Housing invites survey responses to inform recommendations for how to structure a new Department of Housing that will serve as the state’s coordinating and problem solving hub for ensuring adequate housing supply and housing stability for all Washingtonians. Your feedback will help inform the Task Force’s final report, due November 15, 2026, which will include recommendations on the mission, structure, programs, and goals of a new Department of Housing.

Despite global fertility decline, many people still hope to become parents or have more children. Yet wanting kids doesn’t always lead to planning for them, and planning doesn’t always lead to having them. Why does this gap exist?

Join the Population Reference Bureau for a timely webinar featuring two new studies that examine different dimensions of unrealized fertility. Luca Badolato (The Ohio State University) “The Fertility Desires - Intentions Gap in the United States", and Ester Lazzari (University of Vienna) will share her research entitled "Infertility and Unrealized Ideal Family Size". This event is hosted by the Center for Public Information on Population Research (CPIPR) at PRB the Coordinating Center for the NICHD Population Dynamics Centers Research Infrastructure Program. Register here.

The European Doctoral School of Demography (EDSD) is an eleven-month, fully funded program that aims to provide students with a comprehensive and rigorous education in demography to pursue their doctoral studies. The EDSD provides students with a comprehensive understanding of the causes and consequences of demographic change, population data, statistical and mathematical demography, as well as modeling, simulation, and forecasting techniques. The program’s coursework, taught by leading experts in the field, emphasizes strengthening the quantitative and programming skills of its participants.

CSDE has 3 openings for the Data Science and Demography Training (DSDT) program. The CSDE Data Science and Demography Training (DSDT) program is a 12-month fellowship for graduate students interested in pursuing a population research career or population health research career that applies advanced data science analytics.  The program description is attached for your reference or more information is available here.  The fellowship program will begin September 16, 2026, and is available to U.S. Citizens or Permanent Residents.  Applications are due Friday, April 24, 2026, by 5:00 PM PT. Join CSDE for an Information Session on Wednesday, April 1, 2026 12:30-1:30 (in-person, Raitt 221, or Zoom: https://washington.zoom.us/j/96804967473 (Passcode: 244881)

The Data Science and AI Accelerator pairs eScience Institute data scientists with researchers from any field of study to work on focused, collaborative projects. Collaborations may center on analysis of an existing dataset to answer a specific research question, an implementation of software for processing or analyzing data, data visualization tools, or tools for data interpretation. This program is centered around building capacity — helping researchers to learn the skills and tools they need to do their projects rather than providing people to write code for them. Projects for Summer 2026 must be received by April 26 at 11:59 PM. PT.

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation invites applications for the following Grand Challenges grant opportunities. Applications for all RFPs are due no later than April 28, 2026, at 11:30 AM Pacific Daylight Time.

• Innovations in Cost-Disruptive Tools for Diagnosis and Screening
• Novel Interventions Targeting Placental and Gut Inflammation to Improve Fetal Growth
• Addressing Physiological Barriers to Micronutrient Absorption from Fortified Foods
• Cost-Disrupting Innovations to Reduce the Cost of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food
• Breakthrough Innovations to Significantly Reduce the Cost of Severe Acute Malnutrition Treatment
• Artificial Intelligence (AI) to Accelerate Charitable Giving

Please join the East Asia Center for a special public panel, "From Malthus to Musk: Searching for Population Equilibrium in East Asia", that will feature CSDE Director Sara Curran and three other scholars on April 30 from 3:30 – 5 PM, in HUB 337, University of Washington.

From Malthus’s warnings of overpopulation to Musk’s urge to boost fertility, the drastic turn of humanity’s relationship with population growth is one of the defining features of East Asian societies. Adopting a regional and comparative perspective, we argue that intense family competition and proactive government intervention—both operating within the context of deep-seated cultural traditions—have defined the region's current demographic challenges. We conclude, however, that policy interventions alone will likely prove insufficient without addressing the fundamental shifts in social values and the complex interplay of economic, cultural, and political factors driving this historic demographic transformation.

IPUMS will be exhibiting at the PAA 2026 Annual Meeting. Stop by their booth to talk with IPUMS research staff. Share any powered by IPUMS work on the PAA program so we can highlight your session and bring some specialty IPUMS swag for you. IPUMS also invites you to connect at these PAA events:

• Advances and Resources in Linking Full Count Census Data from IPUMS: Wednesday, May 6; 9:00am-2:00pm | America’s Center Room 103
• Harmonizing Geographic U.S. Census Data Across Time: Resources from IPUMS NHGIS: Thursday, May 7; 6:30-7:30pm | Marriott St. Louis Grand - Room L1
• The Future of DHS: Supplemental and Alternative Data Sources: Friday, May 8; 6:00-7:30pm | Marriott St. Louis Grand - Room L6

Studies in Family Planning is calling for submission for a special issue on “Pandemic and Epidemic Impacts on Reproduction, Sexual and Reproductive Health, and Family Dynamics: Longer-Term Consequences and Cross-Crisis Perspectives,” due September 16, 2026. The special issue aims to broaden the field by situating COVID-19 within a broader landscape of pandemics and epidemics with demonstrable implications for reproduction, family life, and SRHR. In addition to longer-term analyses of the COVID-19 pandemic, we invite research that explicitly engages with other health crises—such as the Zika epidemic or the mpox (monkeypox) outbreak—that have had well-documented sexual and reproductive health consequences.