Kentucky State Data Center

Janet is a Professor of Urban and Public Affairs, the Director of the Master of Public Administration Program and the Director of the Urban Studies Institute.  Additionally, she is the Business and Industry Data Center (BIDC) leader for Kentucky. Her background in economic data analysis, coupled with extensive knowledge of state and local finance make her the “go to person” for all questions economic and fiscal.

Michael’s signet on KSDC is profound.  He has been the State Demographer for Kentucky for over thirty years. Michael also serves as the principle liaison to the Census Bureau for KSDC and is the State Data Center (SDC) leader for Kentucky. Over those years, the reports he has produced on population, housing and demographic trends have been plentiful, highly utilized, and incredibly accurate. Call Michael with any question concerning Kentucky demographics.

Tom is KSDC’s Statistical Analysis System (SAS) expert. Using SAS and other statistical tools (most importantly his “between-the-ears-computer”), he assists Michael in the production of population projections for every Census tract in Kentucky. Tom is also a geocoder - he takes data like street addresses or zip codes and formulates distinct geographic areas like Census blocks. Finally, Tom serves as the liaison to the Census Bureau for population research for Kentucky. 

Vernon has been the ever-friendly and always-helpful voice on the receiving end of your data requests for 31 years. His dedication to public service makes him the best in the business for assisting in data retrieval and analysis. In addition, Vernon coordinates KSDC’s outreach and training programs. Contact Vernon for any data need, and you will understand true customer service, as his pleasant personality guides you exactly where you need to go. 

NOTE: Vernon Smith decided to retire on December 1st, 2012.

Sarin, a doctoral student in the Department of Urban and Public Affairs, provides KSDC with expertise in formal modeling and data analysis. Trained as an architect, he enjoys spatially linking data to geography and people to place. Sarin’s plethora of technical knowledge makes him the tech expert of the group - in fact, he helped us design this whole website.

Mitch, a Master of Public Administration student, serves as KSDC’s resident expert in performance measurement and benchmarking. His background in political science informs his passion for sound data-driven decision-making. Mitch also serves as editor-in-chief of KSDC publications, helping staff make their research findings accessible and meaningful to the public.

Pratiksha Bhattarai is a Masters of Urban Planning student in the Department of Urban and Public Affairs, University of Louisville. She has an expertise in statistical techniques and spatial analysis using GIS. Having a background in architecture, she also has a keen sense of detailing on everything she does. 

Sarah Ehresman is a Master of Urban Planning student in the Department of Urban and Public Affairs. She brings expertise in economics and GIS mapping to KSDC. Sarah often monitors the KSDC telephone and website for data inquiries, where she is known for being prompt and accurate.