Evaluating Comprehensive Community Initiatives

Initiatives should include: Many strategies Many efforts Many parts of the community

Goals of evaluation: To understand what’s going on. To empower communities to take care of their own problems.

Why evaluate? To understand how initiatives develop and succeed. To improve programs. To give community members a “voice”. To hold groups accountable.

Community Evaluation System

Supporting Collaborative Planning: Documenting community implementation, action, and change Assessing community adaptation, institutionalization, capacity Evaluating more distal outcomes Promoting dissemination Supporting Collaborative Planning Involves diverse groups of people Clarifies your visions, messages, and strategies Identifies the changes your group seeks Identifies local resources Documenting implementation, action, and change

Documentation of: Local efforts/accomplishments Changes related to mission

How things were achieved Intermediate outcomes. Assessing adaption, institutionalization, and capacity. Look at how intervention has changed. Determine if efforts to sustain initiative are effective. Determine if measures to improve capacity are effective.

Evaluating More Distal Outcomes Use quantitative as well as qualitative methods to understand efforts. Document and recognize intermediate outcomes (i.e., community and systems changes).

Promoting Dissemination Presentations Professional articles Workshops/training Handbooks Media reports The Internet