MNEA would like to invite external evaluation organizations, firms and independent consultants to sign-up to present at an upcoming "Meet the Evaluation Organizations event. “We are bringing this series back (by popular demand) and would like to feature YOUR organization in one of the events.

The purpose of these events is to highlight the unique focuses, approaches and contexts of external evaluators in our region and increase the collective knowledge of the work of these organizations.  The intended audience is individuals who are interested in evaluation practice as part of their professional development and those who are curious for potential contract-related needs. This could be students, evaluation practitioners, evaluation users, evaluation funders, and those simply curious about the world of external  evaluation. 

There will be two events in this series, featuring different sized evaluation firms:

• Larger evaluation firms (5+ staff): October 7, 4-5pm (Central)
• Smaller firms/independent consultants (1-4 staff): October 14, 4-5pm (Central)

(Please confirm that at least one representative from your organization is available at this date and time before signing up)

Event format: 
The events will be virtual and last 1 hour.  5-6 organizations will be featured at each event.  Each organization will have 5 minutes to provide a high level summary of your organization.  Then participants will be able to join breakout rooms for organizations of their choice to ask any follow-up questions.  The event will be recorded and information about your organization will be available on our website for MNEA members.

If you are interested in being featured in these events, please complete the form below.

Sign up to be a featured organization here:

https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/6488729/2021-Meet-the-Evaluation-Organizations-Sign-Up-Form

 Please sign up by September 15, 2021 to be considered.

The Seattle Evaluation Association is hosting an event on Journey Mapping for Evaluation on Thursday, July 22, at 2pm PDT/4pm CDT.Affiliate Members receive a discounted rate ($5) using the code found on our "For Members" section of the website.

The Indiana Evaluation Association is having a professional development training focused on Return on Investment (ROI) Methodology. The training will be on Friday, July 16th from 9am-11 CDT. Free to attend if you register as an Affiliate Member. See our "For Members" page for the code. 

The Indiana Evaluation Association has opened a call for proposals for their virtual October 2021 conference (half days on October 1, 8, and 15). The theme is Building Evaluation Capacity for a New Age. Proposals are due at 4 pm CT on June 11th. Submit proposals or any questions you have to Tessa Skidmore, IEA Program Committee Chair, at tessaboeing@gmail.com.

See the RFP for additional details and the proposal submission form.

Interested in learning how to create interactive dashboards using Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets? Tom Withee and Shelly Engelman are offering a two-part workshop where attendees will learn how to create professional, interactive dashboards that are aesthetically-pleasing, informative, and drillable.

They have have presented for AEA Summer Workshop Series, EASL (Evaluation Association of St. Louis), H-PEA (Hawaii-Pacific Evaluation Association), Community Solutions (based in Indianapolis) and Six Nations of the Grand River (based in Ontario) and are excited to offer a 6-hour (two day) workshop this May.

Session 1: May 14th, 2-5pm CT

Session 2: May 17th, 2-5pm CT

Cost: $275.25

Learn more and register at: https://gosheneducationcenter.regfox.com/designing-interactive-dashboards-in-excel-and-google-sheets

The Indiana Evaluation Association is holding a training on virtual and in-person facilitation techniques on April 16th from 12-2pm CT.

In-person and virtual facilitation tools for group learning with activities inspired by the internet and video games. You will learn how to power up participant ideas from multiple perspectives, up-vote for shared decision-making, and facilitate a successful Zoom meeting. These activities are not only fun, but help create a more inclusive and beneficial evaluation, promoting the AEA guiding principles of equity and respect for participants.

For the registration code, please login to your MNEA account and visit "Member Discount Codes" in the "For Members" section of the website.

Registration for the event is available here: https://indianaevaluation.org/Events.

AEA is excited to invite applications for various upcoming volunteer opportunities as we progress through 2021. AEA values broad-based member input and engagement, relying upon your guidance and knowledge about the field to develop policies, programs, events, and other activities to guide the association’s efforts. AEA Executive Director Anisha Lewis will select members for these Working Groups with an eye toward diversity, service to AEA, and overall expertise. The following Working Group will commence their work in early 2021. AEA members interested in participating in this Working Group must submit their applications here no later than Monday, March 8, 2021.   Professional Development Working Group Charge: To provide suggestions and input to the AEA staff team on the professional development offerings through AEA including eStudies, Coffee Breaks, and PD Workshops at the annual conference. The ideal candidate should: ·      Have a high (Senior, executive, well-versed) level of expertise  ·      Be able to commit to monthly calls  ·      Committed to improving the quality and diversification of AEA education for the enhancement of the association and its members

Apply

AEA and the Leadership Team are committed to cultivating and broadening diversity in the governance of the association. As stated in the AEA bylaws, "It is the policy of the American Evaluation Association to actively seek diversity across the Board and all committees, task forces, and other advisory groups, and individuals." Particular attention is paid to adequate representation and balance according to the following criteria: ·      Gender (including nondiscrimination based on sexual representation and orientation or gender identity)  ·      Racial/Ethnic representation  ·      Disciplinary heterogeneity  ·      Practitioner/Academic balance  ·      Geographic heterogeneity  ·      International representation and perspectives  ·      Heterogeneity of areas of application  ·      Tenure heterogeneity  In order to apply for an upcoming volunteer opportunity, click here and select the volunteer groups of interest from the drop down lists.  Important: If you are interested in the above early 2021 volunteer opportunity, please be sure to rank it first based on your interest and speak specifically to how you might contribute to the group(s) in your statement of interest.  To learn more about AEA’s volunteer groups, please visit our AEA Volunteer Opportunities page.  If you have any questions, please contact Mike Zapata at info@eval.org or 202-367-1166. ‌ ‌

You may be familiar with Minnesota Compass, a project that has been a longstanding member of the Community Indicators Consortium community. But are you familiar with their newly redesigned website? How about their special projects that track indicators of COVID-19 and its impacts, the STEM ecosystem in Minnesota, and leadership in the nonprofit, for profit, and government sectors?

Join them for a coffee break with Justin Hollis on March 5 from 3:00 to 3:30p to receive a brief tour of the new website and to learn a bit about each of these special projects. 

Registration link: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/3086607728690110219

This Scholarship supports Indigenous and underrepresented people (including students) interested in the field of evaluation who are interested in attending the 2021 Canadian Evaluation Conference through funded sponsorships.

The primary focus of the scholarship is to help cultivate a diverse and wide array of Indigenous and underrepresented participants in the field of evaluation at the conference. Priority will be given to applicants that identify as Indigenous.

This is part of the active land recognition and active Canadian Evaluation Society's reconciliation objectives and work of CES and work of CES for Indigenous Peoples and Tribal Nations.

The scholarship covers registration costs for the 2021 Canadian Evaluation Conference and does not include funding for workshops. The number of awarded scholarships is contingent on funding. Scholarship applications must be submitted by March 5th, 2021.

Scholarship recipients must be in financial need, 18 Years or Older and one of the following:

1. Self-Identify as Indigenous (American Indian/Alaska Native/Native Hawaiian)

2. Self-Identify with an underrepresented group in evaluation

3. Be interested in the field of evaluation

To access the scholarship application, please visit the AEA IPE TIG's Resources Page at: https://comm.eval.org/aeaipetig/tigresources.

Now Available: In-Depth Workshops

Join AEA for several upcoming education opportunities! You can continue the lessons learned at Eval20 Reimagined: A Virtual Experience with workshops spanning from November to January. Learn more and register below.

Social Network Analysis: Methods and Use

December 4, 12:00 p.m. EDT

Presenter: Kimberly Fredericks, Dr.

The workshop is very hands-on, focusing on the software and concepts and methods to answer research questions. It also covers use of network analysis in applied settings. UCINET and Netdraw will be the base programs utilized to analyze data and discuss results.

More Strategies to Address Weaknesses of Typical Logic Models with an Updated “Condition Modeling” Approach

December 8, 12:00 p.m. EDT

Presenter: Kirk Knestis, PhD

This workshop will share the presenter’s condition modeling logic mapping approach, a unique derivation of models described by W.K. Kellogg in 1998, designed to mitigate problematic aspects of typical modeling strategies. The presenter's recent enhancements to the approach improve the usefulness of condition models to plan, assess, and promote sustainability.

Principles-Focused Developmental Evaluation

December 10, 12:00 p.m. EDT

Presenter: Michael Quinn Patton

Developmental evaluation (DE) guides innovative initiatives in complex dynamic environments. Principles-focused evaluation (P-FE) is one special application of DE focused on evaluating adherence to effectiveness principles for achieving results and guiding adaptive action. Blue Marble Evaluation (BME), addressing global challenges of sustainability and equity, is the latest advance in principles-focused developmental evaluation. The essential principles of DE, P-FE, and BME will be examined and applied. Participants will learn to use the GUIDE framework, an acronym specifying the criteria for high-quality principles.

Learn How to Conduct a Social Inclusion Analysis

December 15, 12:00 p.m. EDT

Presenter: Meri Ghorkhmazyan

This workshop will be based on the curriculum of World Learning’s Transforming Agency, Access, and Power (TAAP) Toolkit and Guide for Inclusive Development phase two on Social Inclusion Analysis. The participants of the workshop will be able to use a case study and apply the social inclusion analysis tools, visualize, analyze and discuss how the data can be used in their work. By consistently mapping the evidence, they will be able to see intersectionality of various identities who may consistently be experiencing exclusion, inclusion and discuss ways to bring the included, marginalized and excluded groups for more impactful programmatic or policy work. 

Living in a Remote-Based World...Let's Learn MURAL, a Digital Workspace for Online Brainstorming, Synthesis and Collaboration

January 8, 9:00 a.m. EDT

Presenter: Mahrukh 'Maya' Hasan

During this workshop, you will learn how to use the powerful interface called MURAL, a digital workspace for visual collaboration. MURAL enables innovative teams to think and collaborate visually to solve important problems. People benefit from MURAL’s speed and ease of use in creating diagrams, which are popular in design thinking and agile methodologies, as well as tools to facilitate more impactful meetings and workshops.  

Introduction to Infographics: Fundamentals and Tools for Developing Infographics

January 12, 12:00 p.m. EDT

Presenters: Stephanie Baird Wilkerson, Anne Cosby

This workshop will cover infographic basics, best practices, and practical tips for using low-cost tools to produce well-designed infographics for a variety of evaluation stakeholders. Participants will learn about the purpose, features, and use of infographics in evaluation as well as criteria for reviewing infographics. Participants will have the opportunity to view demonstrations of tools and steps for developing an infographic and will gain hands-on experience in creating an infographic.

Intermediate Skills in R: Analyzing and Reporting Inferential Statistics

January 15, 12:00 p.m. EDT

Presenters: Dana Linnell Wanzer, Ph.D., Tom McKlin, Ph.D

R is becoming an increasingly popular statistical analysis software for evaluators and researchers because of its free nature and increasing number of resources available on how to use it. This workshop will provide a hands-on opportunity for evaluators to learn how to conduct basic statistical analyses in R using RStudio with example data. This workshop will use the gradual release of responsibility teaching method such that first the statistical technique will be demonstrated, then the entire workshop will do it together, before giving attendees an opportunity to try it out on their own while instructors help anyone with questions. 

Utilization of a Culturally Responsive and Racial Equity Lens to help Guide Strategic Engagement and Evaluation

January 21 & January 22, 12:00 p.m. EDT

The field of evaluation is being challenged to utilize a process that considers who is being evaluated and who is conducting the evaluation. MPHI has worked to develop useful frameworks, tools, and approaches that evaluators could consider to focus on the ways that race and culture might influence an evaluation process; this has resulted in the development of a framework for conducting evaluation using a culturally responsive and racial equity lens. This two-part workshop focuses on the practical use of a racial equity lens when conducting evaluation. 

Presenters:

·         Mindelyn Anderson, PhD, Mirror Group LLC

·         Kristine Andrews, PhD, Child Trends

·         Paul Elam, PhD, MPHI

·         Tracy Hilliard, PhD, MPHI

•    LaShaune Johnson, PhD, Estella Lucia Evaluation LLC