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Session Title: Emerging Evaluators and the Future of Culturally Responsive Evaluation
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Panel Session 737 to be held in SEGUIN B on Saturday, Nov 13, 8:00 AM to 9:30 AM
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Sponsored by the Graduate Student and New Evaluator TIG
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| Chair(s): |
| Helga Stokes, Duquesne University, stokesh@duq.edu
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| Discussant(s):
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| Daniel McDonald, University of Arizona, mcdonald@ag.arizona.edu
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| Karol K Harris, University of Texas, Austin, kk.harris@mail.utexas.edu
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| Michelle Jay, University of South Carolina, mjay@sc.edu
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| Ricardo Millett, Ricardo Millett and Associates, ricardo@ricardomillet.com
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| Abstract:
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) Evaluation Fellowship Program seeks to diversify the evaluation field by providing emerging scholars with the necessary skills and training to become program evaluators. Each RWJF fellow will share her professional and academic experiences in the following areas: gaining technical expertise, training and development opportunities, and cultural competence in evaluation. Three discussants will also share practical examples from the field. The RWJF fellows and discussants will explore the implications for continuing to diversify the evaluation field during this interactive session.
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Teaching a New Dog Old Tricks: Incorporating Evaluation Skills Into Academic and Work Settings
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| Natalie Alizaga, Amherst H Wilder Foundation, nalizaga@gmail.com
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| Monica Getahun, OMG Center for Collaborative Learning, monica.getahun@gmail.com
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| Denise Herrera, Decision Information Resources Inc, herrera_denise@hotmail.com
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| Afabwaje Jatau, National Cancer Institute, abwaje@yahoo.com
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Natalie Alizaga currently serves as a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Evaluation fellow. As a student in the field of Public Health, she often found it difficult to find courses that focused specifically on evaluation. She also encountered few opportunities to build evaluation skills in her research work. As a woman of color, she has sought methods of incorporating culturally responsive evaluation to public health practice and research. Situations where programs involve ethnically diverse participants call for the creation of multiethnic evaluation teams to increase chances of really hearing the voices of underrepresented students (NSF, 2002). An emerging scholar in the field of evaluation, Ms. Alizaga will discuss methods of building evaluation skills into academic as well as work settings. She will also share her thoughts on remaining culturally competent throughout the evaluation process, in order to build the diverse teams necessary in multiethnic evaluation.
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Culturally Responsive Evaluation: Engaging Community Members and Stakeholders Toward Meaningful Policy and Systems Change
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| Monica Getahun, OMG Center for Collaborative Learning, monica.getahun@gmail.com
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Monica Getahun is a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Evaluation fellow at OMG Center for Collaborative learning. She has previous experience evaluating the efficacy of programs that primarily serve communities disproportionately affected by health inequities. Through her experience in community planning of human services, she has come to value the importance of culturally responsive evaluation as a means of engaging community members and stakeholders toward meaningful policy and systems change. Culturally responsive evaluation assures that individuals from all sectors have the chance for input as those in the least powerful positions can be the most affected by the results of an evaluation (NSF, 2002). As a woman of color, the importance of training and including emerging evaluators in cultural competency and responsiveness cannot be stressed enough. Ms. Getahun will share her experiences with culture and evaluation and the role of emerging evaluators in this field.
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Mentoring Novice Evaluators Throughout the Evaluation Process: An Investment Worth Making
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| Denise Herrera, Decision Information Resources Inc, herrera_denise@hotmail.com
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Dr. Denise Herrera is a graduate of UT-Austin and a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Evaluation fellow. While reflecting on her graduate school and professional experiences, Denise will highlight the value of including and mentoring emerging scholars in the evaluation process. To develop the most efficacious evaluation plan possible, creating and fostering a shared vision among stakeholders, community members, and the evaluation team is essential. Including novice scholars throughout the evaluation process can be one cost effective strategy to increase the overall awareness and global valuing of evaluation, while contributing to the skills set of individuals pursuing a career in evaluation or a similar field (Bennion, 2004; Hezlett & Gibson, 2007). The investment in emerging scholars could be returned many times over among academic institutions, small or large governmental organizations, the private sector, or communities that already conduct or have a need for systematic evaluation.
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An Inconvenience or a Necessity?: The Role of Culturally Responsive Evaluation in Agencies When Resources May Be Limited
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| Afabwaje Jatau, National Cancer Institute, abwaje@yahoo.com
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Afabwaje Jatau is a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Evaluation fellow at the National Cancer Institute, Office of Science Planning and Assessment. Because of her experiences in public health, she has gained insight on the value of the services and programs that nonprofit agencies provide to their surrounding communities. In addition, her work with nonprofit organizations that serve minority or low-income communities has afforded her a unique perspective on the role of evaluation in understaffed or under-resourced agencies, where evaluation may be viewed as more of a burden or an inconvenience than a necessity. Though in some non-profit agencies the significance of evaluation may be known, a lack of funding and the availability of staff time often prevent implementation of evaluation activities (Hoefer, 2000). As an emerging evaluator, it is essential to establish and effectively communicate the role of culturally responsive evaluation in these agencies.
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