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The Spelman College Census Information Center

About the CIC

The Spelman College Census Information Center (CIC) initiative is a cooperative program between the U.S. Bureau of the Census and 52 national, regional and local non-profit organizations. The CIC Program represents the interests of underserved communities. The centers serve as repositories of census data and reports, making census information and data available to the public and the communities they serve. Spelman College has been part of the program since 2000.

Census Information Centers use census data and tools in areas such as program planning, training, needs assessments, defining service areas, developing new business enterprises, and conducting demographic and social research.

Center History

The Spelman College Census Information Center (CIC) was established in 2000 with the support of faculty members Drs. Romie Tribble and Jack Stone (Economics Department) and Bruce Wade (Sociology Department).

The Center is housed in the Sociology and Anthropology Department and flourished under the leadership of Dr. Wade who served as the director of the program from its inception until his passing in 2018. From 2018-2020, Dr. Mona Phillips directed the program. The CIC is currently directed by Dr. Celeste N. Lee.

Spelman is one of four HBCUs in the nation that have a CIC, serves as the only women-centered college in the CIC network, and is the only historically Black college CIC that is not supported by a graduate student population. As a result, Spelman plays a critical role in elevating the ways in which Census data can illuminate intersectional experiences surrounding race and gender. Likewise, Spelman leads other CICs in training undergraduate students as Census data users.

Center Objectives

To make the CIC a resource that helps disseminate data for diverse community groups
To promote college-community involvement in community development
To promote AUC student and faculty development and involvement in research and community services
To promote awareness of the Census Bureau as a resource base
To encourage AUC students and faculty to integrate Census material in their classrooms and research

Census Data

Migration/Geographic Mobility

Historical and detailed tables on Geographical Mobility, a collection of national- and regional-level tables from the Annual Social and Economic Supplement of the Current Population Survey, are now available. These detailed tables describe the movement of people in the United States, including type of move, reason for moving and selected characteristics of those who moved within the last year. The historical tables incorporate data from as far back as 1948.

For more information on migration, visit the Census Bureau’s migration page.

Health Insurance

The Census Bureau collects health insurance data using three national surveys: the Current Population Survey's Annual Social and Economic Supplement (CPS ASEC), American Community Survey (ACS), and Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP).

Get more information on health insurance in the United States.

Income

The Census Bureau reports income from several major household surveys and programs. Each differs from the others in some way, such as the length and detail of its questionnaire, the number of households included (sample size), and the methodology used.

Get more information on income in the United States.