Student Resources

This page is meant for a wide range of courses at the undergraduate level in particular. If you are in one of my classes, then you are required to use several outside research sources as part of your paper assignment. This page is intended to provide you with resources that will make this process easier.  

Library Resources
Albin O Kuhn Library Site

Technology Resources
E-Learning Resources (Start Here for All Online-Related Technology Questions)
VoiceThread Essentials (We Will be using this in Fall 2020)

Dissertation Resources
Core elements of a research project, tailored to doctoral students

​State Resources
Governing Magazine (Resource about news and information on states and localities)
National Council of State Legislators (Resource for state legislative news and information)
National Governors Association (Source for state information)
Council of State Governments (Website for Council of State Governments)
NASBO (National Association of State Budget Officers)
Pew States (Pew Charitable Trusts section on States)
Maryland Department of Planning (State Data Center and SDC Affiliates)

City Resources
US Conference of Mayors (Resource for city information)
ICMA (International City/County Management Association)
NATAT (National Association of Towns and Townships)
US Mayors (Website of US Conference of Mayors)
National League of Cities (Website of cities)
National Neighborhood Indicators Partnership (Local neighborhood issues and policy)
City Lab (Resource for current events and interesting news on cities)
City Observatory

County Resources
ICMA (International City/County Management Association)
National Association of Counties (Resource for county information)

Urban/Regional/Metropolitan Resources
National Neighborhood Indicators Partnership (Local neighborhood issues and policy)
National Association of Regional Councils (National voice for regional cooperation)

Maryland Data Resources
Maryland Public School Report Card (Compare different K-12 school's in Maryland)
Baltimore Neighborhood Indicator Alliance (Part of Urban Institute's NNIP above)
Annie. E Casey Foundation Kids Count Data Book (Focus on Children)

Global-Urban Resources
UNHabitat (Global information on urban areas)

Cross-Cutting State/City/County/Urban Resources
Urban Institute (Think tank focused on urban and social policy issues)
Brookings Institution (Think tank focused on range of policy issues)
Heritage Foundation (Think tank focused on range of policy issues)
Rand Corporation (Think tank focused on range of policy issues)
CBPP (Council on Budget and Policy Priorities- useful for state fiscal policy analyses and information)
Lincoln Institute of Land Policy (Great resource for state and local land and fiscal issues)
PolicyMap (Geographical-spatial data by area)
Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond (Includes Baltimore and Charlotte)

Data Sources
HUD State of the Cities Datasystem (Resource that compiles outside data sources for more complete profile of city information)
American FactFinder (Resource tools with social and economic data of the US Census Bureau)
Quickfacts (Census Bureau Quick fact information on population, per capita income, employment, poverty, and other indicators)
Economic Data (Resource of economic analyses of the Bureau of Economic Analysis)
Economic Development Administration (Information on Economic Development Efforts)
Census State and Local Finance
HUD (Housing and Urban Development)
Labor Data (Information on labor data from Bureau of Labor Statistics)
Data.Gov (Great source on various government programs)
FBI Crime Reporting
Government Spending Data (Amount spent on various government programs)
Health Data Sources (Compilation through Brookings)
Good Jobs First Data (Data on economic development subsidies by state and locality)
Ballotpedia (See what is on the ballot in different states; can sort by state)
Government Finance Office Association
Federation of Tax Administrators

Journals
Journal of Politics
American Political Science Review
Public Administration Review
Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory (JPART)
Journal of Policy Analysis and Management
Policy Studies Journal
State and Local Government Review
State Politics and Policy Quarterly
Publius
Journal of Urban Affairs
Urban Affairs Review
Regional Science and Urban Economics
Economic Development Quarterly

*You may want to access the journals through Cook Library to gain access to the actual articles.  These links are to the journals.

News Sources
New York Times
Washington Post
Reuters News
PBS
CSPAN
BBC
Baltimore Sun
Wall Street Journal
Huffington Post
Newsweek
The Atlantic

Basics on US Government
UAB basic guide to US government ​

*If you are struggling with starting your research assignment, consider seeing someone from the library.  If you need assistance with editing, consider visiting the  UMBC Writing Center. 

*Am I missing sources you think would be useful?  If so, contact me at [email protected]du.

Cities have the capability of providing something for everybody, only because, and only when, they are created by everybody.

-Jane Jacobs-