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Partner Survey Frequent Questions
Partners | Partner Roles and Responsibilities | Becoming a Partner | Sustaining Your Partnership | Current Partners and Accomplishments | SC3 Partner Survey
- What is the SC3 Survey?
- What should Partners do under the SC3 Survey?
- What will EPA do under the SC3 Survey?
- Why do I need to submit a survey annually and what will EPA do with my survey data?
- What are the benefits to my company from participating in the SC3 Survey?
- Can I submit my completed survey to EPA by regular mail?
- Will my survey results be treated confidentially?
- Some of the questions ask for a Yes or No answer but don't give the option for a "Don't Know" or "Not Applicable." If I don't know the answer or it doesn't apply to us, how should I respond?
- Where can I find information on a school's enrollment?
- Why does Question 1.1 of the Annual Update ask whether I reported a school in a previous SC3 Survey and how important is it for me to remember this?
- Some of the worksheets give me the option of submitting an electronic copy of documents (e.g., records of our chemical inventories). Which computer programs are acceptable to EPA?
- What if I provided services or resources that aren't addressed in the survey forms. Should I report them to EPA, and if so, how?
- How can I simplify my task of completing the survey?
- How can I avoid common errors in completing the survey?
- What best practices should I follow in completing Worksheet 4 regarding wastes removed from schools?
- What best practices should I follow in completing Worksheet 5 regarding the recipients of our outreach/communications?
- What does the term "outreach/communication" mean and what types of activities are included in it?
- Who should fill out the survey if two or more organizations were involved in providing a service/resource to a school?
- Can I see other partners' survey data?
- If I need assistance under the SC3 Survey, whom should I contact?
- Which survey form should I complete if I participated in the pilot last year and already completed a version of the Initial Survey?
What is the SC3 Survey?
Beginning in 2009, EPA is asking all of our partners to participate in the annual SC3 Survey. Its purpose is for partners to provide feedback on their experiences and needs under the SC3 Program. Their information will help us develop and improve the Program (e.g., by providing needed assistance to them) and share information with others (e.g., at this Web site).
We have created two survey forms, which partners should download for their use. Partners should submit their completed survey to us by September 30 of each year of their partnership.
- Initial Survey. This survey
form should be completed only by partners who
are participating in the SC3 Survey for their
first time. It is designed to give us a general
idea of a partner's background, accomplishments,
and needs under SC3. We estimate that it will
take a partner one hour, on average, to complete
the Initial Survey. However, a partner's completion
time could differ substantially from this estimate
depending on several factors (e.g., whether the
partner has planned its activities ahead of time
to simplify completion of the survey form).
- Annual Update. Partners should complete an Annual Update in each subsequent year of their partnership. The Annual Update is designed to describe a partner’s accomplishments and needs since the previous survey. We estimate that it will take a partner 45 minutes, on average, to complete the Annual Update. Similar to the Initial Survey, however, a partner's completion time could differ substantially depending on several factors.
Both survey forms are organized as follows:
- Part 1 asks for general information
about the partner (e.g., how it became aware of
the SC3 Program).
- Part 2 asks for information
on the services and resources that the partner
has provided to schools (e.g., support on chemical
inventories).
- Part 3 asks for lessons learned
under the Program (e.g., successes and barriers
to success) that can be shared with others. Part
3 also asks about the partner's future involvement
under the Program.
- Worksheets are attached at the end of the surveys to help the partner provide some responses.
What should partners do under the SC3 Survey?
Following are broad steps to take to complete the survey each year. See other questions in this FAQ for additional best practices and tips.
- Plan your data collection ahead of time.
As an initial step, you should familiarize yourself
thoroughly with the survey form that you need
to complete (i.e., the Initial Survey or Annual
Update) and identify the information needed. Next,
you should identify readily available information
sources (e.g., staff in your company, existing
documents, online sources) and ways to obtain
the information during the year. For example,
you should identify opportunities to speak with
school personnel and others to ask questions and
collect documents. It would also be helpful to
prepare a simple timeline (e.g., a set of deadlines)
to stay on schedule to submit the survey by September
30. If you have questions about the survey forms,
please do not hesitate to contact
us.
- Follow your plan to collect data during
the year. You should make sure that your
plan is being carried out during the year (e.g.,
Are you staying on schedule? Are appropriate records
being kept?). Many of the survey questions ask
about activities conducted during the year (e.g.,
trainings, cleanouts). It is more effective and
easier to collect information during or soon after
an activity than long after it is done. As such,
you should collect information on an on-going
basis as activities are performed.
- Complete and submit the survey by September 30. You should complete the appropriate survey form to reflect your experiences and needs under SC3 and perform a thorough review for errors before submittal to us. Note that some of the questions and worksheets may not apply to your company. If so, you should skip them. Additionally, you should feel free to submit samples of relevant work products (e.g., trainings, outreach materials) with your survey so we can share them with others at this Web site.
What will EPA do under the SC3 Survey?
We will perform the following activities:
- E-mail reminders to partners to submit their
survey by September 30. Of course, it is the Partner's
responsibility to remember to submit the survey
on time.
- Respond to partners’ questions under the
Survey during the year.
- Receive and review completed survey forms and
follow up with partners if needed (e.g., if we
have a question or find an error).
- Analyze and interpret the survey data to develop and improve the Program and share information with others. This includes, for example, posting helpful information on this Web site to support partners under the Survey (e.g., additional FAQs).
Why do I need to submit a survey annually and what will EPA do with my survey data?
We need a completed survey from you each year to keep us updated on your experiences and needs under the Program. Your feedback will help us identify ways to develop and improve the Program and communicate with others about your accomplishments and lessons learned. For example, the survey forms ask for the hours and dollars that you have spent in supporting schools under the Program. This will help us assess your existing burdens and identify ways to reduce them (e.g., by providing additional resources). The forms ask for information about your services and resources to schools. This will help us learn about your accomplishments and describe them to others. The forms also ask about your lessons learned and best practices under the Program, as well as suggestions on how to improve it. This will help us evaluate the Program's effectiveness and incorporate your feedback to ensure that it meets your on-going needs and expectations.
What are the benefits to my company from participating in the SC3 Survey?
There are a number of benefits to you:
- The SC3 Survey is your best opportunity to tell
us about your needs, expectations and difficulties
under the Program. Based on your feedback, we
can take appropriate action (e.g., by providing
the particular resources that you need).
- We will share your and other partners' lessons
learned and best practices at this Web site. This
will benefit all partners in finding better ways
to perform their activities.
- We will communicate with the public about your
accomplishments and successes in helping schools
under the Program. This will give public attention
to your efforts.
- Your survey data will help you communicate directly with your own stakeholders about your accomplishments (e.g., your supervisors, local community).
Can I submit my completed survey to EPA by regular mail?
We discourage the submittal of surveys by regular mail because of security measures in the federal government that can significantly delay delivery. In general, we find that e-mail and special delivery are the fastest, most reliable methods of submittal. Following are submittal methods in the order of our preference:
- E-mail to: Cynthia
Merse (merse.cynthia@epa.gov).
- Special delivery (e.g., FedEx) to:
Cynthia Merse, N-5932
Two Potomac Yard
2733 S. Crystal Drive
Arlington, VA 22202
- Fax to: 703-308-1561 (c/o Cynthia Merse). Note:
Please call (703 308-0020) or e-mail Cynthia
(merse.cynthia@epa.gov) to notify her of your
fax.
- Regular mail to:
Cynthia Merse, N-5932
Two Potomac Yard
2733 S. Crystal Drive
Arlington, VA 22202
Will my survey results be treated confidentially?
We do not expect any survey data to be deemed Confidential Business Information (CBI). If you believe that you are submitting CBI, please indicate this in your submittal. We will manage your information according to our regulations on confidentiality at 40 CFR Part 2, Subpart B.
Some of the questions ask for a Yes or No answer but don't give the option for a "Don't Know" or "Not Applicable." If I don't know the answer or it doesn't apply to us, how should I respond?
We used "Don't Know" and "Not Applicable" sparingly in the survey forms because we do not believe they are needed for most questions. For example, we expect that Partners will know if they have supported schools in chemical inventories, trainings, and other activities during their partnership, and therefore, we did not provide a "Don't Know" response option for such questions. Please do your best to answer the questions using the response options provided.
Where can I find information on a school's enrollment?
A number of Web sites provide data on school enrollment,
such as SchoolTree.org/
and City-Data.com/
.
You also may find school enrollment data through
a basic Web search (e.g., Google, Yahoo) using the
school's name, state, and "enrollment statistics"
as search words.
Why does Question 1.1 of the Annual Update ask whether I reported a school in a previous SC3 Survey and how important is it for me to remember this?
As you know, Question 1.1 asks you to list the schools that you have supported under SC3 since the previous year's survey. You have the option of listing them by name or anonymously. To list a school anonymously, you would use a unique identifier such as "School A." Your response to Question 1.1 helps us to quantify the schools that you supported under SC3 during the year.
We are also interested in quantifying the schools that you have supported during all of the years of your partnership. However, if a school is reported anonymously, we have no way of knowing if you supported it in a previous year. Therefore, Question 1.1 asks you to indicate if a school listed anonymously had been reported on a previous SC3 Survey. Your response will help us quantify the unique number of schools that you have supported during your partnership. That is, we will avoid double-counting schools that you supported in multiple years.
Given this, it is essential for you to keep track of the identity of all schools that have been listed anonymously in your survey forms. For example, you can keep a list of their names in your files and refer to it when completing Question 1.1.
Some of the worksheets give me the option of submitting an electronic copy of documents (e.g., records of our chemical inventories). Which computer programs are acceptable to EPA?
Please submit electronic documents to us in a Microsoft Office program, such as Word or Excel, if possible. We strongly prefer Microsoft Office programs because they are installed on our computers and include helpful tools for data analysis. However, we will accept documents in other programs so long as we can read and print their information (e.g., Adobe Acrobat). If you have any questions about software compatibility, please contact us.
What if I provided services or resources that aren't addressed in the survey forms? Should I report them to EPA, and if so, how?
We believe the survey forms give you enough flexibility to describe all of your services and resources under SC3. A number of questions, for example, ask you to describe your services and resources by completing a checklist of activities. An "Other" category is included in the checklists in case your particular activities are not listed. You can check "Other" and describe them in a text box. In addition, the surveys ask you to provide best practices for conducting cleanouts or other activities under SC3 (see Question 3.6 of Initial Survey and Question 3.4 of Annual Update). This may be an appropriate place to describe additional activities that you have completed.
How can I simplify my task of completing the survey?
Following are some best practices to make it easier to complete the survey.
Planning your data collection ahead of time
- Familiarize yourself thoroughly with the survey
form that you need to complete (i.e., the Initial
Survey or Annual Update) to identify questions
and worksheets that apply to your company. Identifying
your information needs is an essential first step.
- Identify readily available information sources,
e.g.:
- People in your company or the school(s)
who know or have information to respond to
a question.
- Documents that contain information requested
by the survey. Relevant documents may be generated
as a result of the service or resource that
you provide (e.g., invoices, shipping papers,
manifests, chemical inventory lists, meeting
notes).
- Online information (e.g., enrollment information
on the school(s) you will be supporting).
- People in your company or the school(s)
who know or have information to respond to
a question.
- Identify simple ways to collect the information,
e.g.:
- Delegate to others in your organization
if needed based on their expertise and responsibilities.
For example, if a staff person will be taking
the lead in providing trainings to schools,
you may want to ask this person to collect
information on the trainings (e.g., experiences,
hours/dollars spent, additional needs) during
the year. In addition, you may want to hold
periodic meetings with staff and/or upper
management to ensure your survey responses
reflect the collective experiences of your
company under SC3.
- Create simple tools to help track information.
For example, the Annual Update asks you to
describe the services/resources that you provided
to schools during the year and to identify
the schools. It also asks if you provided
the services/resources to them in previous
years. To know if you provided a service/resource
to a school previously, you may need to keep
a list of schools that have received each
type of service/resource. This may be easier
and more effective than trying to remember
the schools that you supported previously
based only on your memory.
- Look for convenient opportunities to ask
questions and collect information from school
personnel and/or contractors (e.g., during
a kick-off meeting or routine phone calls
or visits).
- Delegate to others in your organization
if needed based on their expertise and responsibilities.
For example, if a staff person will be taking
the lead in providing trainings to schools,
you may want to ask this person to collect
information on the trainings (e.g., experiences,
hours/dollars spent, additional needs) during
the year. In addition, you may want to hold
periodic meetings with staff and/or upper
management to ensure your survey responses
reflect the collective experiences of your
company under SC3.
- Contact us with questions or difficulties and visit this Web site periodically for updates and additional assistance on completing the survey forms.
Collecting data during the year
- Oversee and coordinate the data collection efforts
of your company during the year to make sure your
plan is carried out. For example, make sure that
staff in your company are keeping track of their
respective experiences and hours/dollars spent
under the Program if you assigned this responsibility
to them. It is more effective and easier to collect
information during or soon after an activity than
long after it is done.
- Keep organized records during the year. For example, you should collect relevant documents as you conduct your activities and retain them in a convenient location. This will make it easy to access them when you want to prepare survey responses.
Completing and submitting the survey
- Complete the survey on an on-going basis during
the year as activities are performed, if possible.
For example, bring the survey (or relevant pages)
with you when you work with a school and jot down
draft responses to relevant questions during or
immediately after your activities. This will make
sure you have easy access to relevant information
sources if needed (e.g., other people involved
in the activity, such as school personnel). Later
on, you can review your notes and finalize your
responses.
- Use existing documentation (e.g., shipping papers)
to respond to questions or worksheets when appropriate
(e.g., Worksheet 4) instead of entering the information
into the survey form.
- Retain a copy of your completed survey so you
can use it as a starting point in preparing next
year's survey. This applies primarily to the Annual
Update. Please note, however, that we may update
the survey forms at this Web site from time to
time. Hence, before using a previous year's survey
as a starting point, make sure that it is not
out-of-date.
How can I avoid common errors in completing the survey?
Following are some ways to reduce the likelihood of making errors:
- Read the survey ahead of time to make sure you
understand the questions and information being
requested. If you do not understand a question,
please contact us for clarification.
- Give yourself plenty of time to draft survey
responses so you do not need to hurry to meet
the due date. A good practice is to complete the
survey on an on-going basis during the year so
you are not in a rush to complete it all at once.
- Use existing documentation (e.g., shipping papers, inventory logs) to respond to survey questions when requested, instead of keying the information into the survey form. This can reduce data entry errors.
Following are some ways to identify errors:
- Review the raw data that you have compiled during
the year and look for data entry errors (e.g.,
missing data) and other problems before drafting
survey responses.
- Perform a thorough quality review of your draft
survey responses. For example, look for and resolve:
- Missing and incomplete responses;
- Misinterpreted questions;
- Responses that do not directly and clearly
address the survey questions; and
- Data entry errors (e.g., typographical errors).
- Missing and incomplete responses;
What best practices should I follow in completing Worksheet 4 regarding wastes removed from schools?
Worksheet 4 asks you to describe the types and quantities of chemicals and other wastes that your company has helped to remove from schools. You have two options for providing this information. You can either provide information in an existing format (e.g., a hardcopy shipping paper) so long as it includes the requested data, or you can complete the "Table of Wastes Removed." The table asks for a brief narrative description of the wastes, their quantity or volume, and their chemical properties. Following are some best practices to complete the table.
Planning your data collection ahead of time
- Before conducting the cleanout, review the table and instructions carefully and identify the information needed and ways to collect it.
Collecting data during the year
- Collect documents during the cleanout that include
information requested in the worksheet (e.g.,
hazardous waste manifests, shipping papers, invoices).
- Jot down notes during the cleanout to describe
the wastes removed. You may be able to gather
information via the following:
- Speak with school personnel and/or the
contracted hauler involved in the removal.
For example, a teacher may have purchased
the chemicals being removed and have information
about them (e.g., product labels, personal
knowledge). In addition, seek input from others
with expertise in chemical properties if needed
(e.g., someone in your company with a background
in chemistry).
- Visually inspect the waste containers to
see if labels describe the contents, chemical
properties, etc.
- Speak with school personnel and/or the
contracted hauler involved in the removal.
For example, a teacher may have purchased
the chemicals being removed and have information
about them (e.g., product labels, personal
knowledge). In addition, seek input from others
with expertise in chemical properties if needed
(e.g., someone in your company with a background
in chemistry).
- Consult readily available documents and databases
to address additional data needs, e.g.:
- Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDSs) - documents
that describe the properties of chemicals.
They can be found online, e.g.: Chemical
Abbreviations and Acronyms
with links to MSDSs. In addition, the school
might have MSDSs for the chemicals it uses.
- EPA's
Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS)
- an electronic database containing information
on human health effects that may result from
exposure to various substances in the environment.
- Lists of chemicals that are known to be
dangerous in schools, e.g.:Florida Department
of the Environment's Excessive
Risk Chemicals - Risk Exceeds Educational
Utility (4 pp,
20K, about
PDF) .
- OSHA/EPA Occupational Chemical Database - a convenient reference for the occupational safety and health community. This database compiles information from several government agencies and organizations. A range of information is provided (e.g., physical properties, emergency response information, Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS) Numbers).
- Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDSs) - documents
that describe the properties of chemicals.
They can be found online, e.g.: Chemical
Abbreviations and Acronyms
Completing the Table of Wastes Removed
- Narrative Waste Description - this will help
us learn about the types of chemicals and associated
hazards/safety risks that you removed from the
school. We are interested in knowing about all
wastes removed, i.e., chemical wastes as well
as non-chemical wastes (e.g., old furniture, classroom
supplies).
- Indicate the generic names of the chemicals
and their Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS)
registry numbers, if known. A CAS registry
number is a unique numerical identifier for
chemical substances (e.g., organic compounds,
metals, polymers).
- Indicate if the waste is a solid, liquid,
or gas.
- Indicate the general type of waste (e.g.,
used solvent, old chemical product) and other
readily available information.
- Aggregate the following onto one row of
the table if desired: 1) all "unknown" chemicals;
and 2) all lab packs. For lab packs, please
specify one or a few of the predominant chemicals
in the lab pack waste. Do not
aggregate other waste types onto one row,
unless they share a common waste description
and properties. For example, they should contain
the same chemical types and be in the same
state - solid, liquid, or gas.
- Indicate the generic names of the chemicals
and their Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS)
registry numbers, if known. A CAS registry
number is a unique numerical identifier for
chemical substances (e.g., organic compounds,
metals, polymers).
- Quantity or volume (specify unit of measure).
Indicate the estimated weight or volume of all
wastes described in the row (i.e., their collective
weight or volume) and the unit of measure. Indicating
weight is preferred over volume; however, either
is acceptable.
- Estimate a range if you are uncertain of
the exact amount (e.g., 5 to 10 pounds). Use
the narrowest range practicable.
- Do not provide measures
other than weight or volume. For example,
do not simply say "2 large dumpsters" because
this would not let us know the weight or volume.
- Use care in selecting the most precise
unit of measure. For example, if you are reporting
a small quantity of waste, a smaller unit
of measure will allow greater precision (e.g.,
"9 ounces" is more precise than "half a pound").
- Estimate a range if you are uncertain of
the exact amount (e.g., 5 to 10 pounds). Use
the narrowest range practicable.
- Properties - this will let us know more about the hazards you removed from the school(s). Be sure to check all known properties (e.g., based on product labels and MSDSs), especially the most dangerous ones.
What best practices should I follow in completing Worksheet 5 regarding the recipients of our outreach/communications?
Worksheet 5 asks you to describe your outreach/communication efforts related to SC3. A table is provided for this purpose. To complete the table, you should select the types of outreach/communication methods that you have used and indicate the number and types of recipients of that outreach/communication. Following are some best practices to complete the worksheet.
Planning your data collection ahead of time
- Before conducting the outreach/communication, review the table and instructions carefully and identify the information needed and ways to collect it.
Collecting data during the year
- Gather readily available information to estimate
the number of recipients. For example:
- If you are making a presentation about
SC3 at a conference, you should estimate the
number of attendees. You may be able to do
so based on a scan of the room. For larger
conferences, you may be able to base your
estimate on room capacity, or a list of attendees
might be available from conference organizers.
- If you posted information about SC3 on
your Web site, you can speak with your Web
administrator to see if a Web report can be
developed to indicate the number of hits on
the Web pages displaying the information.
Normally, a Web site can track the number
of hits on its pages. You will want to ascertain
the number of unique hits
on these pages to avoid double-counting repeat
visitors.
- If you are making a presentation about
SC3 at a conference, you should estimate the
number of attendees. You may be able to do
so based on a scan of the room. For larger
conferences, you may be able to base your
estimate on room capacity, or a list of attendees
might be available from conference organizers.
- Gather readily available information to characterize the recipients. For example, if you handed out a flier about SC3 at a conference, you may have a good sense of recipient types based on your observations.
Completing the table
- Select the approximate number of recipients
who received the outreach/communication in the
second column of the table. Note that the table
provides ranges for you to select from (e.g.,
1-50; 51 to 100). Please use "information not
available" only as a last resort.
- Select the type of recipient of the outreach/communication in the third column of the table. The table provides a list of recipient types and you must select one. If many types of recipients received your outreach/communication, select the type that describes the majority of them.
What does the term "outreach/communication" mean and what types of activities are included in it?
The term refers to both formal and informal information-sharing with external stakeholders about SC3. It includes, for example, conferences, seminars, radio broadcasts, and text in paper or electronic media that convey information about SC3. It also includes such informal communications as e-mails and phone calls in which you discussed SC3.
For purposes of the surveys, the term does not include trainings, such as classroom trainings, on-the-job trainings, etc. Training is addressed separately in the survey forms.
Who should fill out the survey if two or more organizations were involved in providing a service/resource to a school?
The organizations should coordinate among themselves on how to complete the survey. In general, we recommend that the organization that performed most of the hands-on work should take the lead in completing it.
Can I see other partners' survey data?
We will compile partners' survey results and share relevant information with others (e.g., success stories). However, we do not intend to share a partner's entire survey form with other partners.
If I need assistance under the SC3 Survey, whom should I contact?
Please contact Cynthia Merse (merse.cynthia@epa.gov) at EPA or by phone (703-308-0020).
Which survey form should I complete if I participated in the pilot last year and already completed a version of the Initial Survey?
We would like for all partners to complete the Initial Survey for the first full-scale SC3 Survey. In particular, several changes were made to the surveys since the pilots were conducted, which could affect your responses.