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The HousingPlus Project: A Collaborative Values-Based Approach to Evaluating the Implementation of Supportive Housing in Ottawa, Ontario
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| Presenter(s):
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| John Sylvestre,
University of Ottawa,
jsylvest@uottawa.ca
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| Purnima Sundar,
Carleton University,
purnimasundar@hotmail.com
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| Matthew Manion,
University of Ottawa,
mmani069@uottawa.ca
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| Jaclynne Smith,
University of Ottawa,
jsmit3@uottawa.ca
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| Katie Bendell,
University of Ottawa,
kbendell@hotmail.com
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| J Bradley Cousins,
University of Ottawa,
bcousins@uottawa.ca
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| Tim Aubry,
University of Ottawa,
taubry@uottawa.ca
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| Abstract:
HousingPlus is a collaboration among eight supportive housing providers (including tenants, senior management, staff) and a university-based evaluation team. The objectives are 1) to develop tools and methods for evaluating the implementation of supportive housing, 2) to evaluate program implementation, and 3) to use evaluation findings to assist participating agencies to collaborate in developing solutions to shared implementation challenges. In support of these objectives, participants developed a tool to evaluate the implementation of supportive housing across the participating agencies. This tool incorporated nine housing values that participants identified as underlying the provision of supportive housing programs. Building on a “key component profile” approach to evaluating program implementation (Cousins et al., 2004), the principles were used to specify levels of program implementation (from low to high) for key program components within four program domains (Housing, Support, Person, Systems). The presentation describes the evaluation tool, and the process used to develop it.
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Developing a Data-Driven Approach to Program Management: Lessons Learned from a Community-based AIDS Service Organization in New York City
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| Presenter(s):
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| Margaretta Fox,
Harlem United Community AIDS Center Inc,
mfox@harlemunited.org
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| Rashi Rohatgi,
Harlem United Community AIDS Center Inc,
rrohatgi@harlemunited.org
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| Abstract:
Using semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders (e.g., Board members, agency executives, managers, and front-line staff, etc.), as well as service and administrative data, this paper will provide a case study of the development of internal evaluation capacity at an AIDS service organization in New York City. It will explore: 1) the history of the agency and the impetus behind our decision to build internal capacity in evaluation; 2) successes and challenges of program/evaluation collaborations, to date, from a variety of stakeholder perspectives; 3) data on how evaluation efforts have reshaped programs and contributed to organizational success; and 4) future directions for our evaluation initiatives. Of particular interest will be how the agency has used evaluation activities to improve and redirect programs and create a more data-driven organizational culture.
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Long-term Evaluation for Service Improvement: Practice and Potential
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| Presenter(s):
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| Sharon Baggett,
Portland State University,
sharon@pcez.com
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| Paul Iarrobino,
Multnomah County Aging and Disability Services,
paul.iarrobino@co.multnomah.or.us
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| Abstract:
Whether an agency service is assessed over-time may be driven by available funding, the need for outcome measures by key stakeholders, and/or the commitment of management to consistent quality improvement. Long-term evaluation, however, allows service agencies to better adapt services to changing customer profiles and needs. In 1999, Multnomah County (Portland, Oregon) Aging and Disability Services (ADS) began a long-term evaluation of their telephone information and assistance services. Five surveys have been completed, including 1997, 1999, 2001-2002, 2004, and 2006. A sixth is scheduled in 2008. The evaluation has, over time, adapted sampling approaches, survey items, and other aspects of implementation, such as telephone versus on-line surveys for after-hours customers, in an effort to improve the information gathered and thus, enhance the information available to staff for program improvement. This presentation describes the evolution of the evaluation, its uses and importance to program staff, and lessons learned over long-term implementation.
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Evaluation of a Statewide Prevention Program: An Illustration of an Effective Research-Practitioner Model
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| Presenter(s):
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| Marcia Hughes,
University of Hartford,
mhughes@hartford.edu
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| Timothy Black,
University of Hartford,
tblack@hartford.edu
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| Abstract:
Since its inception in 1995, program evaluation and research have been integrated components of Connecticut’s Nurturing Families Network, a statewide program that focuses on high-risk, first-time mothers and is designed to promote positive parenting and prevent child maltreatment. Guided by questions at the national level, descriptive and outcome data have been routinely analyzed and used for monitoring changes occurring in areas that the program is trying to impact. Researchers have also worked closely with practitioners and front-line workers using their expertise and observations to gain insight into emerging issues. Interviews, focus groups, and ethnographic field work have been used to acquire an understanding of program intervention, program dynamics, and characteristics of the families receiving services. This paper chronicles key stages of evaluation and research as the program has evolved, and illustrates how carefully designed research can be used to inform and refine practices and create program change over time.
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