At the beginning of the school year, Mercyhurst College opened the Mercyhurst Center for Applied Politics (MCAP), a new center for public opinion research.
Dr. Joseph Morris, the director, and Dr. Rolfe Peterson, the assistant director, each guide the center.
The project’s biggest tool is a state-of-the-art computer-assisted telephone interviewing (CATI) facility , made up of sixteen sound-protected workstations located on the fourth floor of the Hammermill Library.
In September, the MCAP launched its inaugural poll, teaming up with the Erie Times-News.
The poll weighed public opinion among registered voters on the 2010 midterm elections, as well as other issues.
The poll lasted from Sept. 22 to Oct. 5.
The information gathered was then processed using statistical data software. The results are available for viewing on the department’s