This workshop is designed to teach participants the Essential Competencies for Program Evaluators, a set of knowledge, skills, and attitudes in six categories. The session will begin with the analysis of program evaluation vignettes representing diverse areas of practice to show both the common competencies across settings and those unique to specific contents or contexts. Following a brief history of how the competencies were developed, the session will then examine the competencies in all six categories: professional practice, systematic inquiry, situational analysis, project management, reflective practice, and interpersonal skills. This discussion, which builds on the continuum of interpersonal evaluation practice, will ground participants in the competencies’ content and allow people to ask questions as they think about their own evaluation practice. After a short break, participants will develop concept maps to explore how the competencies make sense in their roles or content areas. Comparative discussion will further illuminate the competencies, and then participants will complete a self-assessment tool and discuss how to set priorities and action steps for professional development. Most of the session will consist of interactive exercises with just enough lecture to frame the discussion.#2012Institute