Evaluation 2002 Presentations

The following presentations were sponsored by the Needs Assessment TIG at Evaluation 2000:

The Visual Display of Needs Assessment and Strength, Weakness, Opportunity and Threat (SWOT) Analysis Data

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Assessing Needs in the Health Care Sector

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MultiPaper Session 515 to be held in the Kennedy room
Sponsored by the Needs Assessment TIG
Chair:

Uyen H Bui, AIDS Project Los Angeles
Measuring Community Based Organization's (CBO's) Capacity to Perform Evaluation for HIV Prevention and Care Programs: A Needs Assessment Study
Presenters:

Uyen H Bui, AIDS Project Los Angeles

Matt G Mutchler, AIDS Project Los Angeles

Ronald Brooks, University of California at Los Angeles

Henry Anaya, University of California at Los Angeles

Miquel A Chion, AIDS Project Los Angeles

Summra Shariff, AIDS Project Los Angeles
Abstract:

As a part of a capacity building initiative, Los Angeles County (LAC) Department of Health Services awarded funding to AIDS Project Los Angeles (APLA) and the UCLA Center for HIV Identification, Prevention, and Treatment Services (CHIPTS) to develop an evaluation training program for CBOs in LAC. A cross-sectional survey was piloted and mailed to key program staff at local CBOs providing HIV/AIDS services. Our objectives were to measure self-reported knowledge, skills, technical capacity, and training interest in regards to evaluation and to identify barriers to performing evaluation activities. Agencies were selected using stratified sampling based on the number and types of contracts (prevention, care services, or both) and the number of sites per agency. Data were collected during March and April 2002. Data analysis was conducted using SPSS 10.1 software. Study findings, program development, and lessons learned will be will be presented.
Community Landscape Asset Mapping: An Innovative Approach to Community Community-level Needs Assessment
Presenters:

L Michele Issel, University of Illinois at Chicago

Lisabeth M Searing, University of Illinois at Chicago
Abstract:

The purpose of this presentation is to disseminate an innovative strategy to assess communities, based on a philosophical approach. The strategy, called Community Landscape Asset Mapping (CLAM), provides a structured approach to community assessment that can be used in conjunction with more traditional data sources. The CLAM allows for investigating the nature of geography and its relationship to communities and personal health. The geography of health involves both space and place and may add key explanatory and mediating variables relating to variations and disparities in chronic disease and health. The paper contributes to the needs assessment session by expanding the realm of needs assessment for program planning. Because using the CLAM can be done from a participatory perspective, it fits with the theme of reforming systems, in this case, the community as a system.

Using Formal Needs Assessment Data in Ongoing Strategic Planning

	PowerPoint Presentation not available
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Paper Session 537 to be held in the Kennedy room
Sponsored by the Needs Assessment TIG
Chair:

Doug Leigh, Pepperdine University
Discussants:

Doug Leigh, Pepperdine University

Ryan Watkins, George Washington University

Ingrid Guerra, University of Michigan at Dearborn
Presenters:

M Sue Hamann, Coastal AHEC

Helen Suarez DeCasper, SERVE

Karla M Ewald, Association for Retarded Citizens of Greensboro
Abstract:

The Association for Retarded Citizens of Greensboro (ARCG) is committed to securing for all people with mental retardation the opportunity to choose and realize their goals of where and how they learn, live, work, and play. Its mission includes leadership and the development of necessary human and financial resources to attain its goals. Consistent with this mission and as part of its 2000-2005 strategic plan, the ARCG conducted a community wide needs assessment of services for children and adults with disabilities. Surveys and focus groups were the primary sources of data for the needs assessment. Findings from the needs assessment have been incorporated into the revised strategic plan. The purpose of this paper is to present an analysis of the quality of the needs assessment, the findings of the needs assessment, and the utility of the findings to the ongoing strategic planning efforts of the agency. Moreover, the role of the external evaluators in conducting strategic planning sessions to incorporate the findings from the needs assessment will be discussed.

Assessment: A Useful Tool for Evaluators
Roundtables Session 603 to be held in the Tidewater room

	PowerPoint Presentation (Internet Explorer only)
	Article not available
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Presenters:

Ryan Watkins, George Washington University

Ingrid Guerra, University of Michigan at Dearborn
Abstract:

Data and information are required for effective decision-making. In order for useful decisions to be made about what works, what does not, what to keep, and what to change, it is essential that such data be linked to relevant questions. Assessments, specifically needs assessments, can be an indispensable tool for evaluators as they collect data and make useful decisions. Like evaluation, assessments are designed and implemented to answer specific questions that can be used to improve individual and organizational performance. However, the questions that assessment seeks to answer commonly have a distinct function from those of evaluation, and selecting the appropriate perspective for collecting and viewing data can be the difference between success and failure. In this session participants will learn how to apply the related, yet distinctive, perspectives of assessment and evaluation in effective organizational decision-making.

The Visual Display of Needs Assessment and Strength, Weakness, Opportunity and Threat (SWOT) Analysis Data

	PowerPoint Presentation (Internet Explorer only)
	Article (PDF): Leigh, D. (2000). Causal-Utility Decision Analysis (CUDA): Quantifying SWOTs. In Biech, E. (Ed.) The 2000 Annual, Volume 2, Consulting. Jossey-Bass/Pfeiffer, pp. 251-265.
	Photo: Doug Leigh, Ph.D.

Demonstration Session 786 to be held in the Kennedy room
Sponsored by the Needs Assessment TIG
Chair:

Ryan Watkins, George Washington University
Presenter:

Doug Leigh, Pepperdine University
Abstract:

This presentation will introduce techniques for the visual display of needs assessment and SWOT analysis findings in an evaluation setting. First, conventional narrative and numeric methods of data presentation will be compared to visual counterparts. Next, conventions for the truthful representations of data using visual techniques will be introduced, followed by a discussion of techniques for collecting, analyzing and presenting needs assessment and SWOT analysis data using visual representations. Subsequently, the visual representation of needs assessment and SWOT analysis data will be demonstrated through participant involvement in a scenario-based example, followed by provision of templates for the collection and presentation of their own data in a visual format. Lastly, a discussion will be facilitated regarding the conversion of needs assessment and SWOT findings into visual displays, concluding with a question-and-answer session.