NSF State Government Research and Development Survey Interviews

Attachment B: Contact Materials

Initial Phone Call

Hello, my name is Christopher Pece, and I’m calling from the National Science Foundation.  Recently you completed the Survey of State Government R&D.  This year’s survey was completed using a new online data collection system, and my colleagues and I are interested in getting feedback from users on their experiences. I’d like to schedule a brief appointment to discuss your experience with this survey within the next few days.  The conversation should take about 20 minutes.  What day and time would be convenient for you?

[Negotiate and set appointment date and time, to occur within the next few days.]

I’d like to send you a short e-mail that confirms our appointment. Can you please provide (or confirm) your e-mail address?

Thank you for your cooperation. I look forward to speaking with you on [date] at [time].

Confirmation e-mail

Dear [name],

This message serves as confirmation of our appointment for [date] at [time] to discuss your recent experiences with the State Government R&D Survey. Our conversation will focus on the mechanics of the online data collection system, rather than the data you reported. (If the U.S. Census Bureau has questions about the data you reported, you will receive a separate phone call from them.) If someone else was also involved in completing the survey online, please feel free to include them in the meeting.

It is not necessary to prepare anything prior to our meeting, which will last approximately 20 minutes.

A day or two before our meeting, instructions on how to join an online meeting will be sent to you. These instructions will come from me or from my colleague Rebecca Morrison.

This study is being conducted by the National Science Foundation, and is authorized by law (42 U.S.C. 1862 Section 3.a.6). The OMB control number for this voluntary study is 3145-0174.

If you need to reschedule our meeting, please let me know. Otherwise, I look forward to our conversation on [date] at [time].

Thank you,

Christopher Pece

Senior Analyst

National Center for Science & Engineering Statistics

National Science Foundation

703-292-7788

cpece@nsf.gov