CDHA Guiding Principles

CDHA Guiding Principles established in 1962 & 1999. THE CENTER IS TO BE A SHARED RESOURCE AND A SHARED RESPONSIBILITY. At its founding, the center “set up a steering committee on the model of a departmental executive committee. The committee owned the Center. The directorship was to rotate with a term of five years. Everyone was expected to take a turn. This was unbelievably revolutionary at the time. No other demography center operated this way.” MEMBERS ARE EXPECTED TO SHARE AND COOPERATE. Research funds were to be “from each according to today’s luck and to each according to today’s need,” and the availability of some flexible Center funds made this work. MEMBERS ARE INDIVIDUALLY AND COLLECTIVELY RESPONSIBLE FOR SECURING NEEDED COLLECTIVE RESOURCES. Resources include data, books, computing facilities, and survey research facilities. Members then decided individually what was the most important work that they could do within the limits of the resources and funding possibilities available.