School of Humanities and Social Science Division of Social Science 226 Linking Public Records to Investigate Long-Term Social Change Supervisor: David James HENDRY / SOSC Student: PENUMATSA Gitanjali / COMP Course: UROP 1000, Summer This study investigates the long-term political behavior of individuals exposed to a school shooting during adolescence, focusing on the graduating class of Columbine High School in 1999. Using high school yearbooks, public records, and Colorado voter data, the research tracks voter registration and political affiliation over time. A comparison group from a demographically similar school without such exposure serves as a control. The aim is to identify whether direct exposure to school violence influences patterns of civic engagement, political leaning, or participation. While data collection is ongoing, preliminary trends suggest meaningful differences between the affected and unaffected populations. Linking Public Records to Investigate Long-Term Social Change Supervisor: David James HENDRY / SOSC Student: SUN Yingao / QSA Course: UROP 1100, Spring This research report details the process of matching 1989 Columbine High School 1999 yearbook individuals to Colorado voter records, focusing on the first 100 cases. Using manual cross-referencing of Ancestry.com data, digitised rosters, and raw voter files, the study addresses challenges like name variations, incomplete records, and geographic ambiguities. The four-stage methodology—search, validation, evidence triangulation, and documentation—relies heavily on human judgment to resolve discrepancies, such as alias identification for females and address proximity assessments. Among the first 100 cases, 79 matches were confirmed, 12 were potential, and 9 had no records, highlighting the critical role of transparent, case-bycase decision-making in ensuring accuracy and ethical rigour when associating yearbook entries with voter profiles. Linking Public Records to Investigate Long-Term Social Change Supervisor: David James HENDRY / SOSC Student: YE Lee Man / QSA Course: UROP 1100, Summer This study leverages digitized public records to examine the long-term impacts of the 1999 Columbine High School massacre on affected individuals. By systematically matching 2,000+ names from the school yearbook with Colorado voter records (2010-2023) and genealogical data, we develop a linkage methodology that prioritizes accuracy through multi-stage verification. Our approach addresses key challenges including name changes (particularly marital surname transitions), temporal gaps in records, and geographic mobility patterns. Preliminary results demonstrate successful matching protocols through cross-validation of voter IDs, residence histories, and auxiliary identifiers. This validated dataset will enable future analysis of human capital outcomes, social mobility, and behavioral trends among survivors compared to control populations. The project contributes both methodological innovations in record linkage and substantive insights into the enduring consequences of mass violence.
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