Research Reports

Using a mixed methods approach that combined state-level institutional data, local interviews with school administrators, and school district data, this research examined how COVID-19 has (re)shaped rural school districts’ ongoing efforts to identify and address equity concerns along geographic, fiscal, instructional, and racial/ethnic lines across Pennsylvania.

This research provides information about Pennsylvania coroner/medical examiners (C/MEs) and their offices. It examined office caseloads, funding, facilities, forensic capacity, vehicles and equipment, and staffing and training resources. It also assessed how the opioid epidemic and the COVID-19 pandemic affected county C/ME offices.

The goals of the research were to investigate whether the COVID-19 pandemic triggered or heightened the crimes of murder and abuse in Pennsylvania, and to identify rural-urban differences in these outcomes both before and during the pandemic.

The goals of this project were to document the educational, career, and residential aspirations of rural youth today, to examine the community, family, and peer factors that might shape these aspirations, and to detail the opportunities and barriers that youth experience.

This study examined access to maternity care in rural Pennsylvania. Maternity care (also known as obstetric care) can be defined as health care services delivered to women during pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum. Access to maternity care is defined as the availability of birthing facilities (hospitals or birth centers) and practitioners (physicians and midwives) providing these health services.

This research provides a profile of the social and economic well-being of rural Pennsylvania women through a detailed understanding of their lives, livelihoods, and families. It used data from the 2005-2009 and 2014-2018 American Community Survey (ACS).

This study examined the agricultural industry in Pennsylvania and provides descriptive profiles of farm operations and farmers, as well as trends in Pennsylvania agriculture.

Access to affordable broadband technology has been a long-standing challenge for many rural Pennsylvanians. In November 2021, the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act set aside $65 billion to improve access to high-speed internet across the nation. Part of that act requires states to prioritize projects for those with the most limited access to broadband connections. The Pennsylvania General Assembly passed Act 96 of 2021 shortly after the federal law. Act 96 established the Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority to improve internet access across the Commonwealth.

This research assessed the demand for mental health services in rural Pennsylvania with a focus on youth and the elderly. It identified challenges these populations face in accessing mental health care to provide options for improving and expanding mental health care services for underserved rural Pennsylvanians.