Academics

Philip Sirinides named director of the Institute for State and Regional Affairs

Credit: Philip Sirinides. All Rights Reserved.

HARRISBURG, Pa. — Penn State Harrisburg has announced the appointment of Philip Sirinides as the director of the Institute for State and Regional Affairs (ISRA), and as a faculty member in the School of Behavioral Sciences and Education.

Prior to joining Penn State Harrisburg, Sirinides was a research assistant professor in the Graduate School of Education at the University of Pennsylvania, where he was also a senior researcher in the University’s Consortium for Policy Research in Education. Prior to that, he was director of Research and Evaluation with the Pennsylvania Department of Education, Office of Child Development and Early Learning.

Sirinides received a doctoral degree in quantitative methods, and a master’s degree in statistics, measurement, assessment, and research technology from the University of Pennsylvania. He holds a bachelor’s degree in secondary education from Temple University.

ISRA was created in 1973 as a means of connecting Penn State Harrisburg with the state capital community. As a Penn State research and services unit, the institute serves to foster understanding in the areas of public policy analysis, community, regional and state planning, information management, public administration, evaluation, and economic development. Faculty members participate in institute projects and activities relative to their area of interest and expertise, while research assistantships provide students the opportunity to gain valuable creative problem-solving experience.

Multiple centers operate within the institute, including -- Pennsylvania State Data Center, the Center for Survey Research, the Economic Development Course in Pennsylvania, and the Integrated Technology Center. ISRA is externally funded and conducts about $2 million in sponsored research activities every year.  

“ISRA is committed to serving the people of Pennsylvania through applied social science research and public service focused on Pennsylvania’s communities. The institute regularly supports state agency partners with trainings and workshops, focus groups, surveys, on-site intercepts, questionnaire design, data analysis and reporting, and general project management,” said Sirinides. “ISRA has the capacity, resources, and decision tools to conduct rigorous inquiry and assist with data driven decision making. The institute is seeking to educate government administration about its services to assist with complex policy and public administration challenges.”

Last Updated March 17, 2020