The 2025 SSDAN Webinar Series: Analyzing 2020 Census, 2023 ACS Data, and Mapping with R
The 2025 SSDAN webinar series will be February 5th, 12th, and 26th, 12-3 PM ET. The webinar series will be conducted by Professor Kyle Walker, Director of the Center for Urban Studies at Texas Christian University and author of Analyzing US Census Data: Methods, Maps and Models in R.
During these 3 FREE virtual workshops, participants will learn how to use R to analyze census data for use in courses and research in sociology, economics, public policy, urban studies and related disciplines.
You are welcome to attend any one of the workshops or all three, depending on your interest.
https://x.com/kyle_e_walker
https://bsky.app/profile/kylewalker.bsky.social
To participate, please complete the registration form below.
This webinar series will be recorded and posted here and YouTube following the event.
Webinar 1
Analyzing Data from the 2023 American Community Survey in R
Wednesday, February 5, 2025 12-3 PM ET
The US Census Bureau’s American Community Survey is the best resource for detailed demographic data on the United States population and is used widely across industries for up-to-date local insights. In this workshop, participants will learn how to use the latest data from the 2023 ACS using R and the tidycensus R package. Workshop participants will learn the fundamentals of working with both the 1-year and 5-year ACS datasets; how to analyze ACS data using the tidyverse, a popular framework in R for data wrangling and management; and how to create demographic data visualizations. No prior experience with R or Census data is required to participate.
Applicable Links for Webinar 1:
Webinar 1 PP Slides – (Use arrows to navigate)
Walker-Data Wrangling Census Data with TidyVerse Tools
Walker-Data Intro to Census Microdata
Webinar 2
Working with Decennial Census Data in R
Wednesday, February 12, 2025 12 – 3 PM ET
Decennial Census data are essential for analysts across a wide variety of fields. In 2024, the US Census Bureau released the final datasets from the 2020 Decennial Census, offering insights about detailed demographic groups and geographies as small as the Census block level. This workshop will introduce participants to the range of data available in the 2020 Decennial Census and teach methods for analysis and visualization of these datasets. Participants will also learn how to access and use past decennial Census datasets and gain insights into best practice for analysis of decennial Census data over time.
Applicable Links for Webinar 2
Webinar 2 PP Slides – Navigate using keyboard arrows
Webinar 3:
Mapping and Spatial Analysis with US Census Data in R
Wednesday, February 26, 2025 12 – 3 PM ET
R includes powerful tools for making informative maps and revealing patterns in datasets with spatial analysis. Participants in this workshop will learn how to use GIS tools in R to make both static and interactive maps with a variety of datasets from the US Census Bureau. The workshop will include tips and tricks for customizing map appearance; automating map production; creating unique visualizations like dot-density and migration flow maps; and building interactive reports and dashboards to share analytical results.
Links and Information for Webinar 3
– Webinar 3 PP Slides
–GitHub
–Be added to Kyle Walker’s mailing list
– Request an API Key
– MapGL Link
– install.packages(“terra”) (this should get picked up when you install mapgl, however)
– library(htmlwidgets)
– saveWidget(dot_density_map2, “mapping/dot_density_map.html”)
– library(tidyverse)