December 21, 2007 - 1:05pm
On Dec. 12, 2007 a new executive order initiated a review of nearly every federal agency to determine:
1. If the agency targets were suitably outcome-oriented; and
2. If measures are appropriate for each target
December 14, 2007 - 3:03pm
The Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) manage and monitor eligibility for the federally funded Medicaid and Medicare programs. We recently found their data on Medicaid and Medicare enrollment, use and payments very valuable in preparing a proposal to study senior's use of in-home vs. residential services. Most data is current through 2004.
November 14, 2007 - 10:46am
Last week, Marian and I attended the American Evaluation Association’s annual conference in Baltimore. The theme of the conference was “learning to evaluate…evaluating to learn.” Throughout the four-day conference, we were charged to learn new skills and reflect on the many ways that evaluators learn from our clients in the course of our work together. Looking back, I’m amazed at all that I had gained in a few short days.
November 13, 2007 - 9:11am
Two recent studies have found conflicting conclusions on whether the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) is pressuring educators in struggling schools to focus on students who fall just below the passing threshold on state tests (i.e. bubble kids) at the expense of students at the high and low end of the achievement spectrum. October 26, 2007 - 2:20pm
SAMHSA, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration -- a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services -- has developed National Outcomes Measures for all of its grantees. They are laid out in a clear grid by domain, similar to what a logic model might look like if you tried to model all prevention and treatment programs in one document.
October 16, 2007 - 2:16pm
On a more personal note....
Like everyone we know, disappointment is something we at the Improve Group occasionally face. These disappointments can vary from wishing the results of an evaluation had more positive findings to wishing we were selected for a project.