University of Maryland Extension (UME) is a direct recipient of federal financial assistance and is required to establish a system of collecting and reporting data on participants in Extension programs. As employees conducting educational programs, each of us must be mindful of programming approaches that target residents who are considered underserved, underrepresented, and socially disadvantaged. UMERS is designed to capture the racial, ethnic, and gender (sex) data of our educational program participants so we can monitor whether we are meeting parity and, if not, make adjustments to our promotion and marketing to targeted audiences. 

Preparing for 2025 Reporting | UMERS Data Collection & Data Entry Updates
Video Length: 1:11 | February 28, 2025
Speakers: Aleena Aspervil | UME Civil Rights & Compliance Specialist, Stephanie Orstad, PhD | Director, Evaluation & Reporting, Musab Salman | Data Management Analyst, Evaluation & Reporting, and Dhruti Patel | Senior Agent, Family and Consumer Sciences
Description: This session covers the changes to the UMERS data entry forms for 2025 reporting. It guides Extension faculty and staff on accurately collecting and entering direct contacts and demographic data into UMERS. Faculty and staff learn about tools for streamlining data collection and cleaning, how to run reports in UMERS, and data privacy considerations. Tips for collecting demographic information in several common Extension programming scenarios are included.

  • Direct and Indirect Contact Reporting

  • Report Your Data UMERS

  • UMERS: User Guide for Data Collection, Entry, & Navigation

  • Navigation Guide: Demographics Data Collection

  • Navigation Guide: How to Enter Demographic Information into UMERS