This three-year Project Grant from the National Science Foundation's Division of Social and Economic Science, under the Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences federal grant program (CFDA 47.075), provides $256,408 to The Pennsylvania State University to conduct collaborative research on local government officials and the management of religion-state relationships. The research will produce the first empirical portrait of how over 2,500 elected and appointed local officials across municipalities, counties, and school districts interact with and view religion in their governance roles across five domains. A mixed-methods approach includes a nationally representative survey of officials as well as 150 in-depth interviews. The research will result in a methodological report, public-use dataset, and findings examining how officials' religion-state preferences are shaped by individual factors and local contexts. The study aims to demonstrate how local officials navigate religious issues and resolve potential conflicts with limited formal guidance.
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