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Moving From Here to Where? Using Evaluation to Support Nonprofit Network Development
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| Presenter(s):
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| Barbara Acosta, George Washington University, bacosta@ceee.gwu.edu
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| Janet Orr, Teal Services, jkorr@tealservices.net
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| Nicole Campbell, Deutsche Bank Americas Foundation, nicole.campbell@db.com
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| Karen Kortecamp, George Washington University, karenkor@gwu.edu
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| Abstract:
This presentation reports on an evaluation conducted for a foundation and its emerging network of grantees in a large Eastern city. The challenge for evaluators was to support the emergence of a shared vision for ten grantees with somewhat related yet highly specific goals that differed widely in terms of target populations and strategies. It will focus on lessons learned from the collaborative development of a theory of change through use of a logic model, and the ways in which this kind of evaluation process can support the development of nonprofit networks.
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Multi-Method Participatory Evaluation of a Community Beautification Program
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| Presenter(s):
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| Thomas Reischl, University of Michigan, reischl@umich.edu
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| Susan Franzen, University of Michigan, sfranzen@umich.edu
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| Susan Morrel-Samuels, University of Michigan, sumosa@umich.edu
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| Julie Allen, University of Michigan, joallen@umich.edu
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| Alison Grodzinski, University of Michigan, alisonrg@umich.edu
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| Marc Zimmerman, University of Michigan, marcz@umich.edu
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| Abstract:
This presentation will describe the development, implementation, and preliminary results of a collaborative, multi-method evaluation of the Ruth Mott Foundation's beautification program in Flint, MI. We will describe how we engage stakeholders in a participatory process to guide the evaluation, facilitate critical deliberations about effective strategies, document and disseminate the results of multi-method evaluation study, and increase the capacity of the Ruth Mott Foundation and its grantees to plan and complete beautification programs that achieve measurable outcomes. The multiple methods include GIS mapping of beautification project sites, internet-based project reporting for beautification grantees, community-wide outcome assessments, and case studies of successful projects.
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Connective Tissue: The Learning Opportunities of Online Communities
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| Presenter(s):
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| Gayle Peterson, Headwaters Group Philanthropic Services, gpeterson@headwatersgroup.com
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| Emily Warn, SocialQuarry, emily_warn@yahoo.com
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| Abstract:
Online technologies and social networks are helping run and win political and public advocacy campaigns, and helping implement and evaluate efforts to achieve an organization's mission. They have fundamentally changed how organizations, grantees, and the communities they serve communicate, collaborate, and learn together. Increasingly, organizations are exploring how to build effective social networks that help them generate grantmaking strategies, coordinate activities among grantees working on a common goal, and transform evaluation into an ongoing process. However, online technologies and social networks can also strain an organization's capacity and budget, hampering its use as a learning tool by amplifying conflicts and negative perceptions. This paper outlines the steps to fostering an online community that becomes a place where an organization and its wider community can collaboratively learn. It also offers an overview of how to transform the shared digital histories that such communities create into key tools for identifying and analyzing which strategies and programs work or don't work.
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Collecting Sensitive Data From an Unstable Population
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| Presenter(s):
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| Courtney Brown, Indiana University, coubrown@indiana.edu
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| Alisha Higginbotham, Indiana University,
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| Abstract:
This paper focuses on the challenges and solutions of collecting longitudinal sensitive data from an unstable population. Examples will be provided from an evaluation of a multi-site five-year U.S. Department of Health and Human Services grant to promote and encourage responsible fatherhood. The biggest challenge for this evaluation was collecting impact and longer-term outcome data of the father participants. Two main contextual factors were at play in this evaluation; the sensitive data needs and a transient unreliable population. The methods for working through these challenges will be discussed. Some of these methods included creating standard intake and outtake instruments, hiring data collectors at each of the sites, and creating a system of follow-up with each of the participating nonprofits.
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