The 27,000 Schenectady County residents who found surveys in their mailboxes this winter were answering to a trio of Union students.
The Schenectady County Chamber of Commerce wanted to know what residents thought about perceived strengths and weaknesses and to solicit ideas for improvement.
That's where P.J. Lee '93, Deborah Murray '94, and Nishan Nadaraja '94 came in.
The students began putting the survey together last spring. They refined it over the summer and saw it go into the mail in November. Residents were asked to rate government and community services, shopping, recreation, and entertainment. They also were asked to comment on safety, their reasons for living in the county, and where they prefer to spend their free time.
More than 3,500 surveys were filled out and returned, and tabulation was underway as the magazine went to press. The results of the survey also will be presented to organizers of Schenectady 2000, the revitalization plan for the city of Schenectady.