The Evaluation 2015 conference is coming up quickly on November 9 -14, 2015 in Chicago, IL with the theme of “Exemplary Evaluations in a Multicultural World: Learning from Evaluation's Successes Across the Globe,” which will coincide with 2015 being declared the International Year of Evaluation.
This newsletter is full of information and opportunities to meet other
NPFTIG members, including at our Business Meeting and at a social
event. Contact information for the TIG leadership is provided at the
end of the newsletter—please reach out to us if you have any questions,
concerns, or feedback!
NPFTIG AT EVALUATION 2015: BUSINESS MEETING AND SOCIAL EVENT
BUSINESS MEETING DETAILS
The NPFTIG business meeting is on Thursday, Nov. 12 from 3-4:30pm in Comiskey (Session #3215).
For the first half we will have a panel discussion on the topic of
"evaluation excellence in nonprofit and foundation settings" with
Beverly Parsons, Past-President of AEA, serving as discussant/chair. We
have five panelists scheduled to participate, with each panelist
providing their perspective on the topic, followed by audience questions
and discussion. In the second half we will briefly discuss business
items and then leave time for networking and follow-up discussions with
our panelists and other attendees. Light snacks will be provided. We
look forward to your attendance and participation in this discussion!
Our panelists:
- Beverly Parsons, Past-President of AEA, will be serving as discussant/chair.
- Edward Jackson | Consultant and Professor | Carleton University
- Molly Hamm | Associate Director | Dream Project
- Rebekah Levin | Director of Evaluation & Learning | Robert R. McCormick Foundation
- Asma Ali | Director, Department of Evaluation, Measurement, and Assessment | American Society for Clinical Pathology, Chicago
SOCIAL EVENT
Join us for an evening of networking, sharing of ideas
and resources, and getting to know one another during Evaluation 2015 at
a social event hosted by the Human Services Evaluation TIG; Social Work
TIG; the Alcohol, Drug Abuse, and Mental Health TIG; and the Nonprofit
and Foundations TIG. We will be meeting up at Houlihan's (111 E Upper
Wacker Dr, Chicago, IL 60601) on Thursday, November 12
between 7:30pm and 9:30pm--come anytime during this window. The
restaurant is a 5 minute walk away and accessible through an enclosed
walkway from the hotel.
Please note that appetizers will be provided by the TIGs; you are responsible for your own drinks and any additional food.
Please register as soon as possible as space is limited using Eventbrite: https://aea-eval15-jointtigsocialevent.eventbrite.com. Pre-registration is required. If you have any questions, please contact Laura Beals, NPFTIG Business Co-Chair at lbeals@gmail.com. We look forward to meeting you in Chicago!
NPFTIG SESSIONS
We have 36 NPFTIG sessions this year at Evaluation 2015! For the entire list, visit the online program
and select “Nonprofit and Foundations” as the Track type. Many thanks
to Claire Sterling and Molly Hamm, the NPFTIG program co-chairs, for all
of their hard work in managing the conference proposal process this
year!
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITY
Annie E. Casey Foundation
Full Day Workshop
Results Based Accountability.
Internationally renowned author and
speaker, Mark Friedman will focus on his talk-to-action methods for
improving quality of life for customers and communities. Mr. Friedman is
author of the book Trying Hard Is Not Good Enough used by government
and nonprofit agencies in over 40 states and countries around the world,
including the UK, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway, Chile, New Zealand
and Australia. The London Guardian called his work “Simple, common sense and jargon-free.” The New York Times
referred to it as “one of the few serious attempts to bring sanity to
the budget process.” Using clear plain language, the framework presents
step-by-step methods for states, cities and communities to turn around
quality of life conditions (e.g. health, safety, clean environment, and
children ready for school) and step-by-step methods for agencies to
improve services for their customers.
Expanding the Bench is a core
strategy of the Research, Evaluation, and Learning (REAL) Unit at The
Annie E. Casey Foundation. Expanding the Bench seeks to build the
capacity of students and professionals of color in the Results
Accountability approach to improve the quality of life for urban
residents and communities through effective and the quality and
effectiveness of programs, agencies and service systems (Friedman,
2009).
Expanding the Bench engages students
and evaluation professionals of color in an effort to familiarize them
with the RBA framework, in turn improving performance management, and
increasing the quality and efficiency of their work, as well as the
impact that they make on the communities in which they serve.
The Expanding the Bench strategy is
just one of the many ways in which The Annie E. Casey Foundation is
working to achieve its ultimate goal: that all children in the United
States have a bright future.
Friedman’s professional
development workshop will be held on Tuesday, November 10th, 2015
from 8:00am to 4:00pm at The University of Chicago Booth School of
Business' Gleacher Center, just a short 7-minute walk from the AEA 2015
conference hotel in Chicago, Illinois. There is no cost to
participants for this workshop, with registration fees and
meals sponsored by The Annie E. Casey Foundation.
Click the link to RSVP for the professional development workshop. We
have limited space for 100 participants on a first-come, first-served
basis. A confirmation email with further event details will be sent to
all registrants after the application deadline.
SERVICE PROJECT: DONATE YOUR UNUSED TOILETRIES
A TIG-sponsored toiletry collection to
benefit the homeless women served by the Chicago nonprofit, Deborah’s
Place, will be hosted at the 2015 American Evaluation Association
Conference. If attending, please make sure to donate your unused hotel
shampoos, body washes and conditioners in the collection box placed near
the conference registration desk. This year's collection is being
supported by leaders of the following TIGs: Social Network Analysis,
Nonprofit and Foundations, Social Work and Alcohol, Drug Abuse and
Mental Health.
AEA COMPETENCIES TASK FORCE: YOUR INPUT NEEDED
Please see the note from the AEA Competencies Task Force below about opportunities to provide your opinion at Evaluation 2015:
As you may already know, the AEA
Board of Directors recently appointed a Task Force charged with
developing a statement on desirable evaluator competencies to guide
professional development. The Task Force is chaired by Jean King. Its
members include Sandra Ayoo, Eric Barela, Dale Berger, Benoît Gauthier,
Michelle Gensinger, Robin Miller, Donna Podems, Laurie Stevhan, Hazel
Symonette, Susan Tucker, and Elizabeth Wilcox.
The Task Force spent the initial
months of its work creating a plan for engaging AEA members and other
stakeholders to solicit their opinions and devising a process by which
the competencies statement will be developed. Our plan outlines avenues
available for members to share their thoughts on AEA defining and
endorsing a set of evaluator competencies and to respond to our
competency statement draft.
As part of AEA’s leadership, we seek your help in making TIG members aware of the Task Force’s mission and activities.
● Please announce to members who
attend your business meeting that the AEA Board has initiated the
process of developing a statement on desirable evaluator competencies.
● Share with members they will have an opportunity to provide input at a listening post-session on Saturday morning from 8–9:30 a.m. in Plaza B.
● Assure members that following
the conference, multiple additional opportunities will be made available
for input through future AEA-sponsored events, local affiliates, and
electronic and mail communications.
NPFTIG ELECTIONS
In December we will be holding an
election for the position of program co-chair of the NPFTIG, as Claire’s
three-year term is coming to an end. Many thanks to Claire for her
dedication and hard work to support NPFTIG’s presence at the past three
conferences! We will be soliciting self-nominations in November. If you
are interested in joining the NPFTIG leadership team and have questions,
please let us know at the business meeting, at the social event, or by
contacting Laura (lbeals@gmail.com).
NPFTIG LEADERSHIP CONTACT INFORMATION
We welcome questions and comments. Our contact information is below:
Business Co-chairs
Laura Beals: lbeals@gmail.com | @laurabeals
Karen Jackson: kltjackson@outlook.com
Program Co-chairs
Claire Sterling: claire.sterling@aspca.org
Molly Hamm: mollymhamm@gmail.com
Webmaster
Dean Nelson: den@pitt.edu