OREGON PROGRAM EVALUATORS NETWORK

[OPEN]
Last updated September 23, 2006

Networking Information on Evaluation

Activities in Oregon and the Northwest.

Originally prepared as a resource for the American Evaluation

Association “Evaluation 2006” Annual Conference
This information was originally compiled by the Oregon Program Evaluators Network
[OPEN] in cooperation with the American Evaluation Association [AEA] to help
“Evaluation 2006” Conference Participants to network with their professional colleagues
in Portland and the West Coast. All of the entries have been cleared by the respective
organizations. Where requested clearance has not yet been received an entry is not
included. OPEN will continue to update the information as clearances are obtained and
more information becomes available.

1. Consulting firms involved in evaluation

As part of its national directory, the AEA website lists more than 50 consulting firms on
the West Coast who have at least one AEA member on their staff and who conduct
evaluations. The directory gives the location, number of staff, areas of focus, website (if
there is one) and names of AEA members on their staff. The directory is searchable by
state.

Source: www.eval.org Go to “Find an Evaluator”.

The AEA website includes links for firms wishing to add their names or to edit the
existing listing.

2. Volunteer and not-for-profit organizations

This section lists sources for locating volunteer and not-for-profit organizations in the
Portland area. Some of these agencies also operate throughout Oregon or the Northwest.
While most volunteer and not-for-profit organizations report on their activities, not all
have evaluators on their staff.
A. TACS (Technical Assistance for Community Services). This Portland-based
organization provides technical support and training to non-profits. It offers the
following services:
• Consulting support to non-profits in strategic planning, organizational
development, financial management, cultural competency and other elements of
nonprofit management
• Customized training and public workshops and clinics
• “NPower Oregon” Program of TACS helps nonprofits improve their use of
technology
• Interim Nonprofit Executive placements and executive searches
• Peer networking through professional workshops
• Promoting peer networking through professional networks.
• Nonprofit telephone and e-mail helpline
• Sponsorship of OregonInvolved, a new online resources that makes it easy for
Oregonians to connect with nonprofits making a difference in every community
[www.oregoninvolved.org]
• Special assistance to small, grassroots community and faith-based nonprofit
organizations that provide social services to the community
• Fiscal sponsorship emerging nonprofit organizations

The website provides links to:

• TACS support organizations
• Funding resources
• Government entities that non-profits need to know about
• Technology networks
• On-line job banks and volunteer opportunities.

Source: www.tacs.org

B. OregonInvolved: A new online resources that makes it easy for Oregonians to

connect with nonprofits making a difference in every community [see also TACS].

Source: www.oregoninvolved.org.

C. VolunteerMatch for Portland and Vancouver Washington. The following

information was provided for this website:

Bringing People Together

VolunteerMatch is a leader in the nonprofit world dedicated to helping everyone find a

great place to volunteer. The organization offers a variety of online services to support a
community of nonprofit, volunteer and business leaders committed to civic engagement.
Our popular service welcomes millions of visitors a year and has become the preferred
internet recruiting tool for more than 40,000 nonprofit organizations [the website lists
over 600 volunteer organizations in the Portland and Vancouver area who are looking for
volunteers]. Read more in our latest annual report.

[2005 Annual Report | 1.1MB]

Source: http://www.volunteermatch.org/about

D. CNRG provides a resource network for engaging people in the nonprofit

community. It connects people, communities and organizations, and helps individuals
gain skills to act as agents of change in collaboration with others.

Source: www.cnrg-portland.org

3. Foundations and philanthropic organizations

The mission of Philanthropy Northwest is to promote effective philanthropy in the
Northwest States, Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington. It provides
assistance to both grantmaking organizations and to organizations applying for a grant.
The website lists over 185 grantmaking members. There are also committees responsible
for: public policy, corporate affinity, early childhood learning, education, and
grantmakers of color. Philanthopy Northwest provides the following services to its
members:

• A three-day Annual Conference and Member Meeting, investigating "big

picture" issues in philanthropy.
• May Gathering: A time of fellowship and skill building as grantmakers gather
training and a reception.
• Member briefings on current trends and issues
• Regional conferences, held in Seattle, and occasionally in Spokane, Portland,
Anchorage, and Boise.
• Grantmaking Basics, a day-long hands-on workshop.
• Occasional conferences designed for a particular type of grantmaker, such as
corporate grantmakers or family grantmakers.
• Networking with national and Northwest grantmakers through affinity groups
and programs.
• Educational workshops that offer technical assistance on a variety of topics.
• A link with national peer organizations.
• Alerts and briefings on public policy action that affect grantmakers and their
grantees.
• A bi-annual newsletter and monthly e-mail updates to members.
• A Membership Directory.
• Use of a Common Grant Application designed to streamline the grantwriting
process.

Source: www.philanthropynw.org
GRANTMAKERS of Oregon and Southwest Washington is a membership association
of private, public and community foundations; corporations with foundations or giving
programs; and, individuals with donor advised funds. GRANTMAKERS exists to
provide programs and services to funders. GRANTMAKERS has one hundred member
organizations, representing about 500 individuals affiliated with a grantmaking
organization in the region. Its mission is to inspire effective philanthropy.

GRANTMAKERS programs and services include:

• Monthly programs on community issues, trends or skill areas;
• Programs specific to corporate funders or small family foundations;
• Grantmaking Basics Course for new grantmakers;
• Family Philanthropy Teleconference Series;
• Resources on Good Governance;
• A two-day conference on issues;
• A network of national and regional peer organizations;
• Public policy alerts;
• Links to research reports and philanthropic resources;
• Newsletter, website and library for members.
•

Source: www.gosw.org

4. Government evaluation activities

Almost all State and local government agencies in Oregon are responsible for the
assessment of their programs and activities. There is no central State-level evaluation
office coordinating all of these activities and the activities are organized differently in
each agency. Information on the research and evaluation activities of particular agencies
can be found at:

www.oregon.gov

One interesting coordinated evaluation initiative is the Oregon Progress Board. This is
part of the US (and worldwide) managing for results initiative. Ninety (90) statewide
performance benchmarks have been developed to measure progress in the areas of the
economy, education, civic engagement, social support, protection (substance abuse, child
abuse, elder abuse, tobacco during pregnancy), poverty, public safety, community
development, and environment

Source: http://www.oregon.gov/DAS/OPB/2005report/obm_list.shtml.

Each government agency is required to define goals, key performance measures, annual
targets and to indicate the responsible unit or division. Annual reports are prepared by
each agency:

http://www.oregon.gov/DAS/OPB/APPR05.shtml

The aggregate state level indicators are presented in an annual report “Is Oregon Making
Progress?” - available online at
http://www.oregon.gov/DAS/OPB/docs/2005report/05BPR.pdf

The City of Portland and several other agencies also produce their own progress reports.
For information on the Portland (Multnomah County) Progress Report:

http://www.portlandonline.com/auditor/index.cfm?c=27358

Source: For general information on the Oregon Progress Board:

http://www.oregon.gov/DAS/OPB

5. Evaluation Offerings in Universities and Colleges in

Oregon and Washington State.

The information in this section and only includes information

from universities and colleges that have responded to our
requests to provide or confirm information on their evaluation-
related activities. The site will be updated as more
information becomes available.

Evaluation Offerings in Oregon Universities and Colleges

Concordia University
2811 NE Holman Street, Portland, OR 97211
503-288-9371, 800-321-9371, www.cu-portland.edu
contact: Jan Albricht, 503.493.6236
Course: EDU 605 Evaluation of the Teaching Process is a course for
administrators and teachers interested in evaluation of the teaching process.

George Fox University

414 N. Meridian Street | Newberg, OR 97132
503-538-8383, 503-538-8383, www.georgefox.edu
contact: Rhonda Bonham, 503 554 2266
Coursework: Ed.D. program preparing students for administrative positions in
school districts offers a specialization in Curriculum and Instruction which
includes coursework in assessment and classroom change.

Oregon State University

Corvallis, OR 97331-4501
541-737-1000, http://oregonstate.edu/education
Faculty includes five practicing evaluators working with the OSU Extension
Service, College of Health and Human Sciences, College of Education
 Department of Adult Education, and Department of Public Health. The Extension
service has ongoing extensive evaluation activities.

Portland State University

PO Box 751, Portland, OR 97207-0751
503-725-4697 503-725-4619, 800-547-8887, www.ed.pdx.edu
contact: Melissa, 503-724-4754
Courses in Public Administration include evaluation. The Educational Policy and
Foundations and Administration Department also lists an evaluation course which
has not been offered in the past few years.

University of Oregon
Eugene, OR 97403
541-346-5171, 541-346-1000, www.uoregon.edu
contact: Phil McCullum, 541-346-0804, [email protected]
In Educational Leadership, a D.Ed. program includes evaluation coursework, and
an administrative licensure program embeds personnel evaluation. In Special
Education, there is a 2-part sequence of evaluation courses.

Evaluation Offerings in Washington Universities and Colleges

Washington State University

Main campus: Pullman, WA 99164-2114, www.wsu.edu
contact: Mike Trevisan, director, 509-335-7063
Assessment and Evaluation Center, created in 1997, provides assessment and
evaluation services to school districts, state agencies, and other social service
organizations and hands-on experience for graduate students.
Vancouver campus: 14204 NE Salmon Creek Ave., Vancouver, WA 98686-9600
contact: Linda Mabry, 360-546-9428
An evaluation and assessment specialization in Ed.M. master's program is being
developed.
Social and Economic Sciences Research Center
contact: John Tarnai, executive director, Pullman, 509-335-3840
SESRC supports social science research at Washington State University and
responds to the policy needs of public agencies and others in Washington State
and the nation. Data collected, predominantly survey data, is sometimes used for
evaluation purposes.
contact: Dave Pavelchek, Puget Sound office, 360-586-4583
This SESRC office do data collection, management, and analysis for quantitative
and qualitative analyses of programs and services.
contact: Paul Stern, Vancouver office, 206-528-4622
Vancouver office will open Fall 2006 in the WSU Extension Services building.

Acknowledgements
The information was compiled for OPEN by Linda Mabry (Section 5 Evaluation offerings
of universities and colleges) and Michael Bamberger (all other sections). The OPEN
“Evaluation 2006” Local Arrangements Committee would like to thank the following
people (listed alphabetically) for their help in compiling or clearing this information.
Chris Cartwright (Graduate School of Education, Portland State University); Rita
Conrad (Acting Chair, Oregon Progress Board); John Dougherty (Multnomah County
Health Department); Claudia Escobar (VolunteerMatch Corporate Solutions); Sherril
Gelmon (Professor of Public health, Mark Hatfield School of Government, Portland State
University); Victor Kuo (Melinda and Bill Gates Foundation); David Landers
(Philanthropy Northwest); Margaret Mahoney (TACS); Derek Reinke (Oregon
Department of Consumer and Business Services); Eva Schweber (Forethought
Consulting); Joyce White (Executive Director, Grantmakers of Oregon and Southwest
Washington)