The Social Science Survey Center is seeking proposals from faculty members for its 2009-10 Central Coast Survey. Sponsored by the Division of Social Sciences, the study will be based on a random digit dialing telephone survey of a representative sample of the population in Santa Barbara and Ventura counties.

Issues covered in previous years include health care, housing and growth, the impact of changing economic conditions, mass media, and traffic, but center director John Mohr is especially interested in proposals that raise new, timely topics.

“We’re trying to make the Survey Center a real research center that draws faculty together around common areas of interest,” said Mohr, who is also a professor of sociology. “We want to offer faculty members the opportunity to have a representative survey of our local community asking questions that advance their research interests.”

The lead researcher must be a ladder faculty member in one of the departments and programs in the Social Science Division of the College of Letters and Science, but proposals that involve collaborations with faculty from other divisions are welcomed. Proposals will be evaluated on several criteria, including the timeliness of the topic and its relevance for the local community.

The deadline for submissions is June 1. More information about the call for proposals, including a downloadable version of the cover sheet, is available at < www.isber.ucsb.edu/ccs> or by contacting Paolo Gardinali, the center’s associate director, at ext. 5213.