In December and January, two surveys were conducted to learn about opinions regarding a possible bond issue. Here are the links to the surveys, along with a brief description of how the two surveys differ:
- Survey of registered voters: This survey was conducted by Baselice and Associates, a highly regarded research firm. Using the data base of registered voters in GISD, the firm conducted surveys by phone and online in English and Spanish. The work included making more than 20,000 dials, mailing out 6,000 letters containing QR codes, translating the questionnaire, processing and analyzing the data and creating a detailed report.
- Survey of general public: This survey was conducted by GISD using Survey Monkey, and it was developed to allow all those who were interested to have their voice heard. The two surveys were not conducted concurrently so that Baselice and Associates could complete its work with a sample of respondents that reflect GISD voter demographics, which is often a challenge since so many people do not respond to calls and letters.
Some people have asked why there were two surveys conducted. Here is the reasoning:
Leading up to the 2018 TRE election, GISD contracted with Baselice and Associates to survey registered voters. Several members of the public questioned why there was not a public survey conducted, in addition to the survey of registered voters. They said that the community at large -- not just registered voters -- should have had the opportunity to participate.
For that reason, the decision was made to conduct a second survey that was open to the public. While the respondent sample is not the same and Survey Monkey tools cannot analyze the data with the same precision as the research firm, there are some correlations.
