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LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Universities in Iowa and South Dakota are joining the University of Nebraska-Lincoln to establish a regional, highly secure research data center that will provide researchers access to restricted federal data, the Nebraska school said Monday.
The Central Plains Research Data Center will be based at the school's Whittier Research Center in Lincoln and join a network of 18 similar centers that are jointly funded by the U.S. Census Bureau and the National Science Foundation.
Partnering with the Lincoln school are the University of Nebraska Medical Center, Iowa State University, the University of Iowa and the University of South Dakota.
The center is scheduled to open this fall. Only researchers who have government clearances and who agree to protect the sensitive data will have access. Data available will come from the Census Bureau, the National Center for Health Statistics, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the National Center for Education Statistics, the U.S. Transportation Department, the Housing and Urban Development Department and other federal sources.
"Having this wealth of federal and regional data available on campus will provide unique opportunities for analytics and training across social, behavioral, economic, geographical, environmental and health-related contexts," said Prem Paul, who is vice chancellor for research and economic development at the Lincoln school.
John Anderson, who will lead the center as executive director, said Lincoln faculty members have identified a diverse array of potential projects using the center's data. For example, Anderson said he plans to use the confidential data to study income inequality.
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