Date: Sunday, June 29, 2025
I am David J. Bernstein, owner of DJB Evaluation Consulting. I am a founding member of AEA, and was active in the Evaluation Research Society, one of the two associations that preceded AEA. I was the founding Chair of AEA’s Government Evaluation TIG, the founding Chair of the Student and New Evaluator TIG, a past Chair of the Nonprofit and Foundation TIG, and a Past President of Washington Evaluators, the Washington, DC area affiliate of AEA.
In 2019 I wrote an AEA365 blog in which I reflected on government evaluation and shared five “lessons learned.” I appreciate the invitation from the Government Evaluation TIG to author what will likely be my last AEA365 blog. In the latter stages of my public administration and evaluation career, I would like to provide some reflections, a hot tip, and some references. The opinions expressed here are my own, and do not reflect the position of my clients or their funders.
This year is the 35th anniversary of the founding of the Government Evaluation TIG. Originally conceived in 1989, the TIG proposal was postponed a year because of the earthquake that struck San Francisco just as the AEA Conference was getting underway. Founded as the State and Local Government Evaluation TIG, the inspiration for the TIG was the sense that evaluators working in state and local government could learn from each other, mentor each other, and provide visibility to our work. The mission of the TIG was later broadened to include all government evaluation activities, including tribal government evaluation, and that was a good thing. I have long been a proponent of AEA and the evaluation field casting a wide net since many people from many disciplines are involved in evaluation work. Government accountability benefits from the professionalization of our work by encouraging learning and growth through outreach to anyone involved in government evaluation.
Become active in one or more of AEA’s Topical Interest Groups or AEA Affiliates. Membership in up to five TIGs is included with your AEA membership. Many members do not take advantage of this opportunity. Most AEA Affiliates have inexpensive memberships. Becoming actively involved is a great way to network and get leadership experience that your employment may not provide.
It is not an easy time for government evaluators in the United States, including those working in organizations that get grants from the US Federal government or contractors providing professional evaluation services to those organizations. When politicians dictate that their policies, not evidence, should exclusively drive decision-making, it is an existential threat to well-informed government decisions. Judging public servants by their loyalty to an administration rather than the expectation that they will uphold the Constitution and faithfully execute the duties of their office is a concept that legally and ethically must be rejected by our profession.
AEA leadership, along with the AEA Evaluation Policy Task Force and the Data Foundation can provide good resources to help understand the impact of current circumstances on evaluation, accountability, the evaluation profession, and those that seek to work for the public interest.
I would say that “this too shall pass,” but current events, funding cuts, and threats to Constitutional checks and balances are threats to the proven value of government evaluation and government evaluators. Stay sharp, stay focused, stay informed, and know that your work and that of AEA and the Government Evaluation TIG can and will make a difference if we continue to support our profession. Keep the faith, and happy anniversary to the Government Evaluation TIG.
The American Evaluation Association is hosting Gov’t Eval TIG Week with our colleagues in the Government Evaluation Topical Interest Group. The contributions all this week to AEA365 come from our Gov’t Eval TIG members. Do you have questions, concerns, kudos, or content to extend this AEA365 contribution? Please add them in the comments section for this post on the AEA365 webpage so that we may enrich our community of practice. Would you like to submit an AEA365 Tip? Please send a note of interest to AEA365@eval.org. AEA365 is sponsored by the American Evaluation Association and provides a Tip-a-Day by and for evaluators. The views and opinions expressed on the AEA365 blog are solely those of the original authors and other contributors. These views and opinions do not necessarily represent those of the American Evaluation Association, and/or any/all contributors to this site.