| Session Title: Reflections About New Research on University-based Evaluation Training Programs: Implications for Policy and Practice |
| Think Tank Session 352 to be held in Centennial Section C on Thursday, Nov 6, 3:35 PM to 4:20 PM |
| Sponsored by the Teaching of Evaluation TIG |
| Presenter(s): |
| John LaVelle, Claremont Graduate University, john.lavelle@cgu.edu |
| J Bradley Cousins, University of Ottawa, bcousins@uottawa.ca |
| Discussant(s): |
| Stewart I Donaldson, Claremont Graduate University, stewart.donaldson@cgu.edu |
| Abstract: The pre-service preparation of evaluators through university-based training programs (UBTPs) has been the subject of sporadic inquiry for the professional evaluation associations, and occasionally accumulates in the publication of a UBTP directory. Although the profession of evaluation has developed greatly over the past fourteen years, the last comprehensive directory was published in 1994 (Altschuld, Engle, & Kim, 1994) leaving evaluation practitioners and policy-makers alike unsure as to the current state of UBTPs. This has important implications for evaluation policy, because decision makers need to determine fit and competencies when selecting evaluators. Utilizing a combination of Internet research methodologies, curriculum analysis, and qualitative interviewing, the in-depth research, a current view on UBTPs in the United States, with a focus on informing evaluation policy, will be presented. |