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Strengthening Communities

Providing non-partisan research and data analysis to state and local officials, agencies, and community leaders to improve the lives and well-being of West Virginia and broader Appalachia.

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Welcome

We are the Institute for Policy Research and Public Affairs in the John D. "Jay" Rockefeller School of Policy and Politics at West Virginia University.

Located on WVU's Morgantown campus, we pursue funded research on a diverse range of policy issues relevant to the state of West Virginia and the surrounding Appalachian region. Consistent with  WVU's land-grant mission, we provide non-partisan research to state and local officials, agencies, and community leaders to improve the lives and well-being of West Virginians. 

Our research partnerships span the public, private, and non-profit sectors, and we welcome inquiries about collaborations within the state and the broader Appalachian region. We conduct interdisciplinary research on public policy at the intersection of the natural, biological, and social sciences. We have a strong belief that addressing our most important public problems and seizing on its most promising opportunities requires an integrated approach with a broad and deep commitment to social science as the link between natural, biological, and human systems. We endeavor to bridge basic and applied research in our collaborations and in service of West Virginia and its communities.

Flying WV logo with the text Institute for Policy Research and Public Affairs

Rockefeller and Gee, both wearing suits, sit at a desk signing a document

"It would be a big favor to political discourse; to our ability to do our work here in Congress; and to the American people, to be able to talk with each other and have some faith in their government and, more importantly, in their future."

Research and Reports

West Virginia's IDEA Data: Developmental Disability in Time and Space

This report examines temporal trends and spatial variation in independent educational plans (IEPs) documented in IDEA data in West Virginia. The West Virginia Department of Education (WVDE) delivers the IDEA data as a set of cross-tabulations...

View Full Report: West Virginia's IDEA Data: Developmental Disability in Time and Space

IDEA Data Reporting in West Virginia: Challenges and Opportunities

The Institute for Policy Research and Public Affairs at West Virginia University (WVU) completed a study of the quality and usability of West Virginia's IDEA data. The topic and question for the study concerned whether IDEA data were organized and...

View Full Report: IDEA Data Reporting in West Virginia: Challenges and Opportunities

Comparative Business Opportunities in Morgantown

This report provides a gap and void analysis for business opportunites in Downtown Morgantown compared to downtown businesses of college towns in the same region. The study was initiated at the request of Morgantown’s Economic Vitality Committee, which br

View Full Report: Comparative Business Opportunities in Morgantown