Amplifying and Empowering Voices in Evaluation: Applying Equity in Evaluation Practice

Abstract Information: This 60-minute demonstration focuses on equitable practices including amplifying and empowering voices in evaluation and will provide examples of specific strategies a nonprofit organization has used to disrupt traditional evaluation processes. First, attendees will be presented with an example evaluation project that used ideas from various resources, including the Equitable Evaluation Framing Paper (Equitable Evaluation Initiative, 2017), tools from We All Count’s Foundations of Data Equity Training, and an internally developed Equity Action Tool to help guide evaluation planning and execution. The chairperson will provide examples of how the Equitable Evaluation Framework and other equity-focused tools were used to guide specific decisions and steps in the evaluation and will also highlight the impacts that using these tools had on the internal project team and the evaluation narrative. Successes and challenges will also be shared. In the second half of the session, attendees will work in small groups to share their successes and challenges with 1) Integrating equitable practices or approaches to their work, and 2) Brainstorm specific ways that they can integrate equitable practices and approaches, including identifying areas where they may be able to amplify and empower voices intentionally and authentically. Participants will gain new insights about what it looks like to apply equitable approaches to evaluation in practice, reflect on how this may shift their evaluation narratives, and leave with a template for planning action steps and application to their own work.