No More Dusty Reports

Sometimes, when my to-do pile looks particularly daunting, I encourage myself by thinking about the sheer volume of knowledge that will be gained from all our grantees' evaluations. I get to see our grantees' evaluation plans, annual and final reports, but I always wonder where else all those evaluation results go. To you, it's probably the kind of stuff that seems like common knowledge by the time you're three years into a program: what worked and what didn't, who got better and who didn't, who finished the program and who dropped out. But this is exactly the kind of information that people would love to know before they start something new. What, exactly, happens to all that learning after the final report is turned in? Do people share it, or does it sit in a file cabinet somewhere and gather dust?

Our 2009 Sustainability Survey results tell me that that 69% of our grantees shared their results with other folks in their organization, and that 1/3 of our grantees have shared their evaluation results with a professional audience. I think that's pretty good, but I also think it could be better. Since this week starts the beginning of a new decade, it somehow seems fitting to issue a challenge. So here it is: if you have a final report sitting in a drawer somewhere, I challenge you to share it with someone. And I don't mean the person in the office next to yours (although if he or she is your Executive Director, you really should start there). Think big. Think "publication."

If this sounds a little intimidating, then let me encourage you a little. I see your outcomes, so I know you're doing good work. Other people really want to know how you pulled that off. Plus, if you've finished your final reports to your funders, you've done most of the work already. Don't let all that effort go to waste! Dust that report off and send it in to your favorite journal for publication. Put together an abstract and shop it around to a few state and national conferences. (Since some conferences waive registration fees for presenters, this can also be a budget-friendly way to get CEUs!) You won't know what the interest will be until you put it out there.

Not sure where to start? Check with your coworkers to see what they're reading or what conferences they like. If you need more direction, or you'd like to know what kinds of things other people have done, check with your Senior Program Officer. If you want a little extra support, the Foundation offers a number of resources: our Evaluation department is always available to assist you with data analysis and interpretation, and we have great Communications staff who can help you put together a slick presentation (including posters and PowerPoint) before you head off to your first conference.

(By the way, let us know when you're successful so that we can brag on you!)