About the GSNE Community of Practice
The GSNE Community of Practice (CoP) is a new series of monthly meetings hosted by TIG leadership for the purpose of building community among students and new evaluators from all backgrounds. It will balance preplanned, focused conversation and freeform, open dialogue. We expect to host two CoP meetings per month (on the 2nd Wednesday and 4th Thursdays of each month), but each meeting will cover the same topic of discussion, so we welcome you to join us once a month if one of the times below works for you.
Save the dates and register!
Mark your calendars for future Community of Practice Meetings:
2026 CoP Meetings
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Month
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Topic
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Description
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February 2026
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Falling Into Evaluation
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Many evaluators find themselves in the field seemingly by accident or happenstance. For some, this may feel like "falling" into the field. Perhaps some of us are actively "falling." What can we do to "fall" with grace? And how do we "stick" the landing?
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March 2026
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Mentorship
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As students and new evaluators, we often seek guidance and mentorship from others who have more experience in the field. That said, finding mentors and making the most of our mentorship experience can be challenging. What does your ideal mentorship relationship look like? What have you found to work well in relationships with mentors?
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April 2026
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Imposter Syndrome
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Many of us have doubts and experience imposter syndrome at some point in our careers. If you've ever asked yourself, "Can I really call myself an evaluator?" or similar questions, then you are among the majority. How do we experience imposter syndrome as students and new evaluators? And how can we manage these thoughts and feelings?
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May 2026
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Methods Mixer
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Many methods of inquiry are fair game in evaluation. Some evaluators bring the methods they learned in other disciplines to the field. Some evaluators stick with a specific methodological schools of thought and hold tightly to their preferred methods, while others search around and sample a variety of methods. What is your method of choice? What methods are you curious about? Are you devoted to a particular method or do you prefer to try a variety?
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June 2026
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Reflective Practice
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Many evaluation approaches consider reflective practice an important part of the job. What is reflective practice? How do you practice reflexivity in your work?
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July 2026
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BREAK
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No CoP meetings this month.
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August 2026
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Facilitation and Group Dynamics
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Evaluators often do more than collect and analyze data. Many of us facilitate meetings, focus groups, workshops, learning sessions, stakeholder conversations, and sensemaking activities. Facilitation can involve balancing multiple perspectives, navigating group dynamics, encouraging participation, and creating spaces where people feel heard and engaged. As students and new evaluators, facilitation can feel both exciting and intimidating. What kinds of facilitation experiences have you had so far? What challenges have you encountered when facilitating groups? What does effective facilitation look like in evaluation work, and how do we continue developing these skills over time?
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September 2026
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Working With Quantitative Data
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Quantitative data plays an important role in many evaluation efforts. Working with quantitative data can involve questions about measurement, analysis, interpretation, communication, and the stories numbers do and do not tell. As students and new evaluators, many of us are continuing to build confidence with quantitative methods while also thinking critically about how data is collected, analyzed, and used in practice. What experiences have you had working with quantitative data? What aspects of quantitative work feel most comfortable or most challenging to you? How do we approach quantitative data in ways that are thoughtful, meaningful, and useful? How do you communicate quantitative findings to different audiences?
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October 2026
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Low Cost Resources to Keep Learning about Evaluation
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Evaluation is a field with wide breadth, requiring evaluators to continually develop new skills across facilitation, leadership, and data analysis. Opportunities for ongoing training exist but are often costly, which limits access for early-career and independent evaluators. A community of practice could address this gap by serving as a resource-sharing hub where members exchange tools, training materials, methodological guidance, and lessons learned across their evaluation work. By pooling knowledge across career stages and contexts, the community would lower the barriers to continued professional development and strengthen the field's collective capacity. |
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November 2026
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BREAK
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No CoP meetings this month.
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December 2026
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BREAK
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No CoP meetings this month.
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Discussion Takeaways
Working with Quantitative Data (September 2026)
Special Guest: Karen Larwin from the Quantitative Methods TIG.
1. Start with the basics and understand your data before conducting more advanced analyses. Begin with basic descriptive analyses, such as frequencies, and visually explore the data to understand patterns, distributions, and potential outliers before moving to more complex methods.
2. Be thoughtful about how quantitative data are summarized and interpreted. The way data are analyzed and reported matters. For example, for individual Likert-type items, examining the frequency of responses is more appropriate than reporting an average response, which you want to avoid the latter.
3. Match quantitative methods to the evaluation question and purpose. Not every evaluation requires sophisticated or higher-order statistical analyses. The appropriate method depends on what the evaluation is trying to understand or demonstrate. In some contexts, monitoring and descriptive analyses may be sufficient, while others may benefit from approaches such as predictive analysis.
4. Consider costs alongside outcomes when demonstrating value. When evaluations are being used to justify programs or support funding requests, demonstrating positive outcomes may not be enough. Cost-benefit analysis can help examine whether the benefits of a program justify its costs. This can be particularly relevant in nonprofit settings, where cost-benefit analysis may be more appropriate than a traditional return-on-investment framework.
5. Build broad quantitative literacy and keep developing practical skills. Rather than feeling pressure to specialize in one quantitative method, emerging evaluators can benefit from developing a broad foundation that allows them to work across different evaluation contexts and collaborate with specialists when needed. Free or accessible tools such as JASP can provide opportunities to practice quantitative analysis. Also consider working with university centers working on evaluations in teams, as these can provide unique opportunities to learn more quantitative skills from others.
6. Recognize the limitations and messiness of real-world quantitative data. Missing data, survey dropout, unusual observations, and limitations in data collection are common in evaluation. Evaluators need to identify these issues early, make thoughtful decisions about how to address them, and acknowledge the resulting limitations when interpreting findings.
Facilitation and Group Dynamics (August 2026)
1. Plan for structure while remaining flexible. Effective facilitation involves coming prepared with activities and a clear structure while being willing to pivot based on the group’s needs, dynamics, and emerging insights.
2. Design for broad and equitable participation. Facilitation should create multiple “ins” for participation rather than relying solely on verbal discussion. Individual reflection, post-its, small-group activities, and other participatory tools can help ensure that everyone has an opportunity to contribute, particularly when time is limited or some participants are less likely to speak up.
3. Build trust and attend to group dynamics. Strong facilitation requires intentionally building trust, creating shared expectations, and navigating tension and disagreement respectfully. Revisiting community agreements throughout a meeting can help reinforce the conditions for productive participation.
4. Make the purpose of activities explicit. Participatory activities can sometimes feel unfamiliar or “silly,” particularly for groups accustomed to traditional meetings. Explaining why an activity is being used can increase buy-in and help participants see how it contributes to engagement, sensemaking, and collective learning.
5. Facilitate inquiry rather than provide the answers. In evaluation settings, facilitators can use questions to help groups examine their assumptions, interpret findings, and arrive at their own conclusions. Rather than immediately framing challenges as problems with predetermined solutions, facilitators can invite inquiry - for example, “This is what I see. What do you see?” - and encourage groups to question whether their targets, goals, or strategies are still appropriate.
Reflective Practice (June 2026)
Here are additional resources.
Methods Mixer (May 2026)
1. Evaluators tend to be pragmatic rather than methodologically dogmatic, expressing a preference for drawing from multiple approaches and selecting methods based on the evaluation context, questions, and constraints.
2. Real-world evaluation often requires adapting methods to imperfect conditions. Many participants discussed the realities of evaluation practice, including small sample sizes, limited resources, and data that may not meet ideal research standards.
3. Evaluators showed that it’s important to consider not only methods, but also values, power, and knowledge. Conversations about post-qualitative inquiry, decolonizing methodologies, liberatory approaches, and the construction of metrics suggested that participants are interested in more than technical method selection. They are also grappling with broader questions about whose knowledge counts, how reality is understood, and how values shape evaluation.
4. Mixed methods emerged as a particularly attractive approach because it allows evaluators to leverage the strengths of both quantitative and qualitative inquiry.
5. Participants expressed a desire for continued learning and exploration around approaches and methods, including systems thinking approaches, foresight methods, design thinking, compassionate evaluation, and alternative or emerging methodologies.
Here are additional resources.
Imposter Syndrome (April 2026)
1. Imposter syndrome isn’t something you “get over.” It can show up as a student, new evaluator, and even later in our careers and can shift depending on context.
2. The nature of the field of evaluation as a generalist field, with no single pathway, can also contribute to us feeling imposter syndrome.
3. Comparison to others and internal pressures to be highly competent can contribute to imposter syndrome.
4. Imposter syndrome is often tied to caring deeply about doing good work.
5. What can help reduce imposter syndrome is to talk openly with peers, have mentors and allies who can shed light on our strengths, and build community.
6. It’s also important that we value ourselves, focus on our assets and things that are unique to us that help us bring value to the field of evaluation. We should also recognize that we are all developing our voice as an evaluator and we should be normalizing learning.
7. We should use this mantra because it is important to remind ourselves of this: “I have a right to be here."
Here are additional resources.
Mentorship (March 2026)
1. Consider a “network” or “team” of mentors rather than relying on a single person. Different mentors can meet different needs (e.g., career advice, technical skills, navigating workplaces).
2. Mentorship does not always occur in traditional one-on-one mentor-mentee relationships. There are several forms of mentorship which can broaden our access to guidance and support, including peer mentorship among colleagues at similar career stages and supervisor-based mentorship, where supervisors also provide professional guidance.
3. Mentorship can emerge organically, but structure and the setting of intentional touchpoints can also help.
4. Proactive outreach is key and can be low-pressure. For example, can reach out for informational conversations or short, time-bound asks (e.g., 30-45 minutes). The focus can be on learning, not asking for mentorship outright.
5. For more structured mentorship relationships, mentors and mentees should set clear expectations and structure. This can include setting a timeline, establishing regular meetings, and maintaining open communication. Structured touchpoints help sustain the relationship while acknowledging that mentors often have limited time.
6. Cultivating a productive mentorship relationship requires effort from both mentors and mentees but can also be mutually beneficial.
7. Mentorship can play an important role in building professional confidence, especially for early-career evaluators. Guidance from mentors can help mentees navigate the field, develop skills, and feel more confident in their professional identity.
Here are additional resources.
Falling Into Evaluation (February 2026)
1. Entry into evaluation is often nonlinear. This can create uncertainty about career identity and professional direction, especially for those navigating adjacent roles.
2. Questioning whether we truly identify as evaluators is common. For example, the role of evaluator can be one of many “hats” we wear or our role can center on technical or analytical support rather than leading the overall evaluation process, leading us to questions like, “Am I actually an evaluator? Did I actually fall into the field? Can I be an evaluator 100%?”
3. Evaluation itself involves a range of roles and skill sets, from project manager to methodologist, data analyst, and facilitator of learning.
4. There are many ways to contribute to evaluation, and strict definitions of who counts as an evaluator may be limiting. Individuals may engage in evaluation through different professional identities, roles, and industries. This flexibility can allow more people to connect with evaluation practice, even if they do not formally hold the title of evaluator.
5. Building connections with others doing evaluation work helps practitioners develop confidence, share strategies, and clarify career pathways. Helpful supports include mentorship from experienced evaluators, peer networks of others entering the field, professional communities such as those associated with the American Evaluation Association.
6. It is important to take advantage of opportunities to learn, be curious, and explore different aspects of evaluation work.
Here are additional resources.