How Big is RI’s “Brain Drain?” New URI-Led Study Looks to Find Out
Friday, May 06, 2022
The University of Rhode Island (URI) has announced that DataSpark, located at the URI Libraries, is about to undertake a major, multi-state effort to determine whether Rhode Island and its neighboring states are, in fact, experiencing a “brain drain.”
In 2019, a U.S. Congressional study ranked RI high on the list for "brain drain."
DataSpark operates and maintains Rhode Island’s statewide longitudinal data system (SLDS), also known as the RI DataHUB, linking individual-level data from early childhood through time in the workforce.
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About This Study
According to URI, in collaboration with New Jersey and Virginia, DataSpark will be leading the effort to create a multi-state postsecondary report for New England and the Mid-Atlantic. Funded by the Coleridge Initiative's Democratizing Our Data Challenge, the effort will securely link education and employment records cross-state and explore to what extent postsecondary graduates work out-of-state following graduation.
“This will be the first time we are really sharing and analyzing data across state lines in this way to understand ‘brain drain’ and whether or not our students and professionals who are trained in Rhode Island, then actually work and stay here, or if they are leaving Rhode Island and being pulled into other states," says DataSpark Director Dana Brandt,
“Especially for those who would hope to attract outside companies into our state and want to tout that we have a well-trained, well-educated workforce this is an extremely important study,” said Dean of University Libraries Karim Boughida. “For policymakers, economic development officials and business leaders having access to accurate data that can be collected, analyzed and used in decision-making is invaluable.”
About DataSpark
DataSpark was founded in 1992 as part of the non-profit Providence Plan to connect data and people, with the goal to inform, empower and inspire innovative decision-making. For 30 years it has assisted policymakers in state and local governments, community leaders in nonprofits, and academic researchers across the country. In 2017, it became part of the University of Rhode Island and is now housed at the Robert L. Carothers Library & Learning Commons.
“We believed from the start that this would be a great collaboration,” said Boughida. “Our libraries were already in the business of providing and curating data in a variety of forms, working with students, faculty and researchers to solve complex problems from an interdisciplinary perspective. By bringing in a skilled team with additional data analysts and engineers, we’ve been able to work together to serve the best interests of Rhode Islanders.”
DataSpark has an extensive amount of individual-level education, health and labor and workforce data (more than 50 datasets) from 11 sources over the last 30 years.
Among the resources offered to policymakers and stakeholders through DataSpark is the Rhode Island Talent Dashboard, an interactive site that demonstrates links between K-12, postsecondary education, and the workforce. The site enables the tracking of student performance over time, assisting agencies in evaluating program performance, answering questions across systems; and better communicating outcomes related to education and workforce programs.
This includes data such as grade level proficiency, percentage of students graduating high school in four years, percentage graduating college-ready and median income post-graduation, which can be filtered by sex, race, school district, level of education and more.
Also available is a longitudinal analysis exploring “Credentials of Value” conducted in collaboration with the Rhode Island Governor's Office, the Governor's Workforce Board, and contributing agency partners: the Rhode Island Departments of Education and Labor and Training, as well as RIOPC, with technical assistance from the National Skills Coalition; that assesses workforce outcomes for those who have no postsecondary degree, but possess another non-degree credential.
The analysis includes median wages for dozens of credentials and certifications and can be looked at through various equity lenses (e.g., race, gender, socio-economic status) to assess whether certain credentials may be more valuable than others.
For more information on DataSpark, or to explore its various reports and dashboards, visit: datasparkri.org.
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