/news-archive/tag/little-rock-congregations-study-lrcs/ 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock Mon, 07 Feb 2022 14:51:27 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 /news-archive/2022/02/07/lrcs-receive-research-funds/ Mon, 07 Feb 2022 14:51:27 +0000 /news/?p=80507 ... 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock Researchers Receive Grant to Investigate Faith-based Racial Justice and Reconciliation in Little Rock]]> The newest study, 鈥淩ace and Faith: The Role of Congregations in Racial Justice,鈥� is funded by a $5,000 Jack Shand Research Grant from the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion. The support projects on racial, ethnic, and religious minority groups. The Little Rock Congregations Study, a longitudinal, community-based research project that began in 2012, is led by 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock professors Rebecca Glazier, Gerald Driskill, and Kirk Leach, in consultation with the project鈥檚 Clergy Advisory Board, a group of eight clergy members in Little Rock who advise the Little Rock Congregations Study. Recent data from the Little Rock Congregations Study indicates that religious people and spaces present an opportunity for progress on race relations. Since 2012, an increasing percentage of clergy members have recognized the importance of the issue of race relations. Last year, nearly 2,300 congregants from 35 diverse congregations in Little Rock said that race relations is the issue they most want their place of worship to get involved in helping to solve. 鈥淲e know people sometimes have a difficult time talking about race, but they see their religious leaders as people who can lead those conversations and their places of worship as a safe place to have those difficult conversations,鈥� Glazier said. 鈥淲e wanted to look at what is being done for faith-based racial justice and reconciliation in Little Rock.鈥� The researchers will learn more about faith-based community engagement in Little Rock, and they will use what they learn to inform congregations and activists who are hoping to make progress on race relations in their city. Glazier is working with a team of students from the 糖心Vlog传媒-Clinton School of Public Service who are conducting research with faith leaders in Little Rock as well as faith-based racial justice leaders around the country. 鈥淚鈥檓 so excited to be able to join such a long-standing and important project like the Little Rock Congregations Study,鈥� said Kate Deegan, a Master of Public Service student. 鈥淗aving these difficult discussions about race in a time of political polarity and social division is important for moving forward.鈥� The LRCS Team also plans to conduct focus groups with congregations that are making substantial efforts on race relations. They will study how Little Rock congregations address the issue of race relations as well as how clergy and congregation members view efforts to address race relations. In addition, the researchers will interview experts about best practices for faith-based racial justice programs. Once the study is complete, the LRCS members plan to hold a conference where they can share their results and resources that will help Little Rock congregations address faith-based racial justice programs. 鈥淲e are partnering with the and the Race Under Grace Project at City Church Network,鈥� Glazier said. 鈥淭hese community partners are helping us make sure the final resources we provide to our congregations fit best with our city and community. They are all passionate and excited about this work and want to help our city move forward.鈥� Researchers said this new project is also in response to the increased activism, public demonstrations, and community conversations about race that took place in Little Rock and around the country last year. “We are responding to the 2020 Summer of Resistance where people worldwide went to the streets to express their dismay for, and rage against, the structural violence that melanated peoples are made to endure,鈥� said Kwami Abdul-Bey, a Master of Public Service candidate and co-convenor of the Arkansas Peace & Justice Memorial Movement. 鈥淲e hope that our present research will yield actionable data on racial justice and reconciliation that the City of Little Rock and its houses of faith can use to address this problem collectively to create a more equitable society for our citizens.” In 2020, LRCS researchers interviewed 38 clergy members from Little Rock. Many described undertaking efforts in response to the racial climate in the city, including holding reading groups, meeting with local law enforcement, recording podcasts with clergy from other congregations, and engaging in conversations about racial justice. 鈥淭his qualitative data has just begun to scratch the service of what is happening in the Little Rock faith community regarding racial justice and reconciliation,鈥� Glazier said. 鈥淎lthough many places of worship are making efforts to learn about and improve race relations, we don鈥檛 know much about what is currently being done in Little Rock, how clergy view the efforts, and whether Black and white congregants think they are working.鈥漖]> /news-archive/2021/06/16/dekay-examines-community-issues/ Wed, 16 Jun 2021 13:00:31 +0000 /news/?p=78960 ... DeKay examines factors that affect how Little Rock congregation members prioritize community issues]]> Landon DeKay, a senior graduate with a degree in political science, received a Signature Research Grant from 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock to examine how LRCS study participants prioritize healthcare, race relations, and income equality. 鈥淭he data from the 2020 Little Rock Congregations Study presents a unique opportunity to examine the interplay of religion, politics, and income,鈥� DeKay said. 鈥淭he extensive survey contains variables that enable me to test hypotheses regarding the influence of income, politics, and religion on the community issues that congregants prioritize.鈥� DeKay recently won first place in the Social Sciences Division in the 糖心Vlog传媒 Little Rock Student Research and Creative Works Expo for his presentation, 鈥淐ommunity Issues in Little Rock: The Interplay Between Religion, Politics, and Income.鈥� 鈥淭his spring, I worked with Landon on an independent study where he is digging deeper into the data, learning more sophisticated statistical analysis techniques, and seeking to better understand these complex social phenomena,鈥� said Dr. Rebecca Glazier, DeKay鈥檚 faculty mentor and head of the LRCS. 鈥淟andon is an excellent student, and this grant allowed him to have an educational experience that pushes his learning beyond what he would have received in a traditional classroom. I am really excited for him and proud of what he has accomplished.鈥� The 2020 LRCS contains survey results from 2,293 people from 35 congregations in Little Rock. Additional factors such as age, income, tithing, political activity, and race were also explored as factors that affect issue prioritization. His findings include:

• Community engagement is the factor that has the greatest impact on whether people prioritize healthcare

• Ideology is the factor that has the greatest impact on whether people prioritize income inequality

• Community engagement is the factor that has the greatest impact on whether people prioritize race relations

While past explanations of issue prioritization focus on ideology and income, DeKay did not find the same findings for income among the LRCS participants. Income didn鈥檛 have a significant impact on the prioritization of healthcare and income inequality. Although income is a significant factor to determine how people prioritize race relations, it鈥檚 not the most important factor, falling behind community engagement, ideology, political activity and tithing. 鈥淚ncome was not as significant as other factors,鈥� DeKay said. 鈥淐ommunity engagement and ideology are the factors that are the most important when people look at which community issues to prioritize.鈥漖]>