Arizona Indicators

Content Contributors

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  Samuel DiGangi - Education Indicators

  Dr. Samuel DiGangi is Associate Vice President, University Technology and Associate Professor of Education, specializing in the design and development of effective and accessible technology enabled learning environments. Dr. DiGangi is executive director of alt∧I, ASU's Applied Learning Technologies Institute, dedicated to research that benefits the public good through intellectual fusion, social embededness, and global engagement. alt∧I is actively involved in the extension of ASU’s Learning Platform to the K-12 community in Arizona, and around the world. With a focus that combines classical quantitative methodology with Exploratory Data Analysis techniques, Dr. DiGangi has developed and delivered courses that emphasize data-based decision-making and continuous monitoring of student performance as a means for ensuring the most effective educational experience for all learners.

  As co-director of the IDEAL project (Integrated Data to Enhance Arizona’s Learning), Sam leads a collaborative effort between ASU and the Arizona Department of Education centered on the strategic integration of instructional resources with an intuitive, engaging, and scalable learning and professional development environment; a dynamic, lifelong learning resource for all of Arizona’s students and teachers.

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  Patricia Gober - Sustainability

  Patricia Gober received a PhD in Geography from the Ohio State University in 1975 and is currently professor of geography at Arizona State University where she served as departmental chair from 1984 to 1991. She is co-Director of the National Science Foundation's Decision Center for a Desert City which studies water management decisions in the face of growing climatic uncertainty in Greater Phoenix. Her current research centers on issues of water management and environmental change in metropolitan Phoenix. She is especially interested in the use of science and visualization for real-world decision-making. She is a past President of the Association of American Geographers, former member of the Population Reference Bureau's Board of Trustees and the Science Advisory Board of NOAA, and former Chair of the College Board's Advanced Placement Human Geography Committee. She currently serves on the National Research Council's Committee on Geographical Sciences. Her most recent book, Metropolitan Phoenix: Place Making and Community Building in the Desert, was published by the University of Pennsylvania Press in 2006. She holds an honorary doctorate of science from Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin in 1998. Gober serves on the Arizona Schools Facilities Board and edited the 91st Arizona Town Hall volume, Land Use: Challenges and Choices for the 21st Century.

  • Decision Center for a Desert City: http://dcdc.asu.edu/
  • School of Geographical Sciences: http://geography.asu.edu/
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  Dennis Hoffman - Economic Indicators

  Dennis L. Hoffman is a Professor of Economics at Arizona State University where he has published numerous academic articles and a book in the area of macroeconomics and econometrics. He has received both teaching and research awards from ASU. He received the Distinguished Faculty Research Award in 1992 and has carried the title of Dean’s Council of 100 Distinguished Scholar since 1996. He served as a visiting research scholar at the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis during the summer of 1996. In 1997, Dr. Hoffman was named the Arizona Professor of the Year by the Carnegie Foundation.

  In addition to his academic appointment, Dr. Hoffman is Associate Dean for Research and Doctoral Programs in the W. P. Carey School of Business and Director of the Seidman Research Institute. Dr. Hoffman is also director of ASU’s Office of the University Economist.

  Dr. Hoffman's extensive grantsmanship has enabled him to sponsor several graduate students. These students have been assigned academic research tasks or been used in policy analysis conducted for State Government. The experience has afforded students the opportunity to gain valuable experience in applying the tools for academic research to applied problems.

  Dr. Hoffman's sponsored project efforts include the construction and maintenance of the tax revenue forecasting model used by the Executive Budget Office of the State of Arizona each year since 1982. Dr. Hoffman headed groups of economists who measured the economic impact of several fiscal initiatives for the State of Arizona in 1989 and in 1990. The 1989 study was commissioned by Governor Mofford as an input to fiscal initiatives that were contained in her State of the State speech in 1989. The 1990 study was requested by the Joint Select Committee on Fiscal Reform of the Arizona Legislature. In 1996, Dr. Hoffman was appointed to the Joint Select Committee on Economic Incentives of the Arizona Legislature. He has conducted considerable contract research over the last several years, including projects for Del Webb Corporation (1985), the Arizona Department of Transportation (1982,1986,1989), the Arizona Public Service Corporation (1987,1989), the American Express Corporation (1990), the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (1991), the Economic Analysis Corporation (1992), the Greater Phoenix Leadership (1992,1994), the Arizona School Boards Association (1994), Boeing Corporation, (2006), the Arizona Hospital Association (2006), the Arizona Department of Health Services (2007-2008), and Science Foundation Arizona: SFAz (2007). In 2003, Dr. Hoffman served as lead presenter for the series on State fiscal policy conducted by the inaugural Arizona Campus. He also served as technical advisor for Governor Napolitano’s citizen’s fiscal reform committee.

  Dr. Hoffman has closely studied the regional economy in Arizona. His extensive experience with the state and local economy positions him for his current research interests that include defining and measuring the role of research universities in regional development, quantifying the value of education investments to the economic prosperity of a region, and measuring the impact of various fiscal initiatives on regional development. These current research interests align with Dr. Hoffman’s administrative assignment as Director of the Office of the University Economist, undertaken as a strategic university initiative at the direction of Arizona State University President Michael Crow. Dr. Hoffman is also the faculty director of the newly designated Center for Competitiveness and Prosperity Research where the he directs the Productivity and Prosperity Project.

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  Angel Jannasch-Pennell - Education Indicators

  Dr. Jannasch-Pennell is Assistant Vice President, University Technology Office, and director of the Applied Learning Technologies Institute (alt^I) Research and Outreach Initiatives. From collaborative projects across the University to community-based partnerships, Angel's focus brings an applied, research-driven focus to the Institute. Angel assembles teams of researchers, faculty, students and technical experts dedicated to the development and implementation of technology innovation. A unique strength of alt∧I resides in the ability to engage the collective intelligence of our community; leveraging the vast resources of ASU. Angel's efforts bring together the skill, technology, and talent of a seemingly large central organization, with the specific goals and priorities, and ideas of the Colleges, programs, centers and individuals.

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  Nancy Jones - Sustainability Indicators

  Nancy Jones is a Research Associate at the Decision Center for a Desert City at ASU. Her work at DCDC and the Global Institute of Sustainability includes projects that aim to bridge science with practice, such as WaterSim, the Southwest Water Information Project, the Greater Phoenix 2100 Atlas, and the Phoenix Area Social Survey. She coordinated the Consortium for the Study of Rapidly Urbanizing Regions, which provided basic connectivity between ASU and the water-management community. She holds a bachelors degree in Biology from Old Dominion University and is currently completing a masters degree in Urban and Environmental Planning at ASU.

  • See: Decision Center for a Desert City
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  Breandán Ó hUallacháin - Economic Indicators

  Breandán Ó hUallacháin is Professor of Geographical Sciences at Arizona State University, Tempe. He has a Ph.D. in geography and regional science from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, an M.A. in geography from Indiana University, Bloomington and a B.A. in geography and economics from the National University of Ireland (University College Dublin). Ó hUallacháin has held permanent teaching positions at Northwestern University and Arizona State University. He served as Chair of the Department of Geography, Arizona State University from 1997-2004. He has written extensively on the urban and economic geography of the United States. Peer reviewed journals including Annals of the Association of American Geographers, Economic Geography, Journal of Urban Economics, Urban Studies, Journal of Economic Geography, Regional Studies, and Journal of Regional Science have published results of his research. Noteworthy research includes empirical determinants of the growth of producer services in American metropolitan areas, the effects of defense spending on regional economic change, the location of foreign direct investment, and the changing distribution of knowledge production in cities and regions. Current research focuses on two topics: the relationship between technological variety and patenting levels and growth in American metropolitan areas and the urban economic structure of metropolitan Phoenix.

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  Dali Ozturk - Education Indicators

  Mehmet ‘Dali’ Öztürk, Ph.D. is the Executive Director of Research, Evaluation and Development at Arizona State University’s Office of Education Partnerships (VPEP), which works with pre-K-12, public and private sector partners to enhance the academic performance of students in high need communities. Dr. Öztürk oversees VPEP’s research, evaluation and development efforts.

  Dr. Öztürk has extensive evaluation and research experience in the field of education policy, planning and administration, and the development and use of technology in academic settings and for educational purposes. Dr. Öztürk received his Ph.D. in International/Intercultural Education Policy, Planning and Administration from the University of Southern California (USC). He also holds a Master of Arts in College and University Administration from Michigan State University and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Measurement, Testing and Evaluation in Education from Hacettepe University.

  As a postdoctoral research fellow at the Institute for the Study of Social Change at the University of California-Berkeley, Dr. Öztürk’s work focused on identifying, reviewing and assessing exemplary and promising strategies and programs designed to improve educational outcomes for underrepresented minorities in the U.S., especially in the Science, Math, Engineering and Technology fields, at higher education institutions around the country. Dr. Öztürk gathered and produced information and strategies that helped institutions raise the academic achievement levels of their targeted groups.

  Dr. Öztürk’s evaluation and research interests are broadly targeted at the topics of student access, academic success, evidence-based policy development, and the efficacy of university-school (K-12) partnerships in promoting systemic change. In addition, Dr. Öztürk has produced dozens of academic and scholarly research papers, publications & conference presentations. His most recent publication is entitled “Global Competition: America’s Underrepresented Minorities Will Be Left Behind”, Teachers College Record (June 2007).

  • Blog: http://ozturk.asu.edu/blog/
  • E-mail: ozturk@asu.edu
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  Mariko Silver - Project Director

  Mariko Silver is Director of Strategic Projects for the Office of the President at Arizona State University where she implements strategy setting initiatives in areas including: science, technology and innovation policy; economic development; and higher education policy.

  Mariko Silver holds an MSc. in Science and Technology Policy (honors) from the Science and Technology Policy Research Unit (SPRU), University of Sussex, UK and a B.A. in History (honors) from Yale University. She is currently completing her Ph.D. in economic geography with the Department of Geography of the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA). Her research foci are: regional economic development; science, technology and economic growth; the role of multinational corporations in development; and higher education policy. Ms. Silver was a recipient of the Yale University Mellon award for research in history. She is a member of the American Association of Geographers.

• Nancy Welch - Quality of Life Indicators

  Nancy Welch is associate director at Morrison Institute for Public Policy, Arizona's "think tank" for more than 20 years. Morrison Institute for Public Policy conducts research that informs, advises, and assists Arizonans. A part of the School of Public Affairs (College of Public Programs) at Arizona State University, the Institute is a bridge between the university and the community. Through a variety of publications and forums, Morrison Institute shares research results with and provides services to public officials, private sector leaders, and community members who shape public policy. A nonpartisan advisory board of leading Arizona business people, scholars, public officials, and public policy experts assists Morrison Institute with its work. Morrison Institute was established in 1982 through a grant from Marvin and June Morrison of Gilbert, Arizona and is supported by private and public funds and contract research.

  • See: www.morrisoninstitute.org for publications and current research.

• Kyle Whitman - Student Research Analyst

  Kyle Whitman is a student research analyst for the Office of the President at Arizona State University where he assists in research in economic geography and science and technology based economic development policy. He is pursuing concurrent degrees in Economics and Geography through the Barrett Honors College at Arizona State University, Tempe.