REACH provides consultation and professional learning to increase the capacity of organizations to implement evaluation studies, measure social impact, and develop evidence-generating projects.
Purpose
Our goal is to ensure that educational and community-based programs serving young people, families, and schools receive the consultation and professional learning necessary to generate data and evidence that is responsive to the needs of communities that have historically been excluded, underserved, or harmed by traditional research and evaluation practices. Using a collaborative and partnership-focused approach, REACH aims to:
- Strengthen the capacity of organizations to conduct rigorous research and evaluation projects, and
- Build knowledge for the broader field by convening organizations to elevate learnings from evidence-generating efforts across shared issues.
Who We Serve
REACH works with a range of organizations:
- Foundations or corporate social responsibility units supporting grantees’ strategic planning, evaluation, and fundraising capacity,
- State or city agencies seeking shared and integrated learning across departments and localities, and
- Schools, districts, community-based organizations, or nonprofits seeking customized consultation.
Service Model
We support organizations to develop systems and projects that:
- inform goals and strategy for programs or funding portfolios,
- measure program implementation,
- support continuous learning and improvement,
- demonstrate program impact to stakeholders and partners, and
- disseminate policy and practice learnings to the broader field.
One strand of services provide evaluation capacity building through individualized technical assistance and training to organizations, and a second strand provides support with resource development through collaboration on activities such as grant writing.
Services
Evaluation Capacity Building
Technical Assistance to Organizations
- Consult with organizations to develop evaluation frameworks (ie. logic models, theories of change, implementation monitoring tools) that are centered on the lived experiences and local context of community members.
- Support the design and implementation of research and evaluation projects that use quantitative, qualitative, participatory, and multi-method approaches.
Professional Learning Cohorts
- Convene organizations for professional learning across different topics in research, evaluation, and approaches to evidence-building.
- Facilitate field-building cohorts of organizations to share strategies and findings from research and evaluation studies on shared topics.
Resource Development
Grant Writing and Fundraising
- Consult on resources to secure funding for research and evaluation efforts, with a focus on ensuring that under-resourced communities have access to the financial resources needed to conduct meaningful projects.
- Assist with grant writing and reporting, proposal development, and other fundraising activities that align with organizational goals and values.
Dissemination and Translation of Learnings
- Collaborate with organizations to design products that disseminate research and evaluation findings in ways that are accessible and actionable for community members.
- Coach organizations to use evidence from research and evaluation efforts to advocate for policies and practices that advance community thriving, challenge systemic inequities, and create sustainable change.
