Podcast Archives - Glass Frog Solutions

We are excited to be kicking off Season 4 of the Glass Frog Podcast with evaluator and author Chari Smith! Chari is the founder of Evaluation into Action, which partners with nonprofit professionals to create realistic and meaningful program evaluation processes. She teaches workshops aimed at helping nonprofit professionals understand the value of program evaluation, […] The post Making Evaluation Simple with Chari Smith appeared first on Glass Frog Solutions.

Welcome to the final episode of Season 3 of The Glass Frog Podcast! This episode we got to talk with evaluator, consultant, cartoonist, and all around nice guy Chris Lysy. We’ve been following Chris on and off for a few years now through his blog. He recently published a book of evaluation-themed cartoons, Evaluation Illustrated, […] The post Season 3 Finale with Chris Lysy appeared first on Glass Frog Solutions.

In this episode, Jen and Rebecca continue their discussion about their project on the study of the ancillary benefits of education programs. (If you haven’t seen the first part of this episode, you can check it out here. It will get you up to speed on the project and the teacher residency part of the […] The post Jen and Rebecca talk about auxiliary staffing programs appeared first on Glass Frog Solutions.

In this episode, Jen and Rebecca talk for the first time about one of their own projects: a study of the ancillary benefits of education programs. That may sound wonky, so let us explain. All nonprofit education programs have primary goals — some aim to help teachers in the classroom, some train teachers, some provide […] The post Jen and Rebecca talk about teacher residency programs appeared first on Glass Frog Solutions.

We had a chance to talk with Teresa McCaffrey of the Educational Partnership Center (EPC) at University of California, Santa Cruz this month. EPC oversees a collection of 10 programs aimed at preparing underrepresented students for college. Altogether, they serve 11,000 students in the Santa Cruz region. Though each program has a different goal, EPC […] The post Collective Impact Models with Teresa McCaffrey appeared first on Glass Frog Solutions.

This month, we talk with Kathy Haynie, Director of Haynie Research and Evaluation, about evaluating STEM education programs. Kathy has worked in the STEM evaluation field for almost 20 years and was gracious enough to let us pick her brain on her background and approach to evaluation, as well as what she (and the field […] The post Evaluating STEM Education Programs with Kathy Haynie appeared first on Glass Frog Solutions.

This episode, we are excited to bring you the wisdom of Madhawa “Mads” Palihapitiya. Originally from Sri Lanka, Mads currently teaches at University of Massachusetts – Boston and is an expert in conflict resolution and violence prevention, which he came to study as a result of growing up during Sri Lanka’s Civil War. Mads eventually began working as an evaluator in communities around Boston, which is when he started integrating photography into his evaluation work. Jen came across Mads’ photography work while reading the AEA 365 blog, as she is wont to do in her leisure time. His article, “Images as Data for Needs Assessments and Evaluation,” and his discussion of art and images in evaluation piqued her interest in his work. Unsurprisingly, Mads was a great guest. If you listen to the podcast, you’ll immediately see why. Like our episode with Stefanie Singer of EASE last month, he reminds us of the role that the arts can play in revealing our shared humanity and helping research participants express their truth. We really enjoyed talking to Mads and we think you’re really going to enjoy the episode as well! The post Photography and Evaluation with Madhawa Palihapitiya appeared first on Glass Frog Solutions.

Welcome to Season 3! We're kicking off our season by talking with Stefanie Singer, who is the Program Director for Everyday Arts for Special Education (EASE), a New York City-based program operated by Urban Arts Partnership. EASE is an arts integration program that trains teachers on how to use simple arts integration activities and methods to improve outcomes for elementary-aged students. The program was designed to serve special education students, but as we discuss in the interview, the activities can benefit all students. We really wanted to talk to Stef because we haven't talked much about teacher professional development programs on this podcast, nor have we highlighted any programs that explicitly address developing social-emotional skills among students with significant disabilities. Stef has a great perspective on the challenges and stresses that teachers face (even before the pandemic introduced a whole new slew of challenges and stresses!), and talks about EASE's role in helping teachers relax in the classroom and let their students have fun. EASE has a bunch of fun activities, some of which you can now try at home with your own kids (or friends - we're not judging). Check them out on the EASE at Home website. You can follow Urban Arts Partnership on Twitter at @UrbanArtsOrg or on Facebook at @urbanartspartnership. The post Arts Integration with Stefanie Singer appeared first on Glass Frog Solutions.

The Glass Frog Podcast is back for its third season! Amidst the chaos and heartbreak of 2020, we're hoping that the podcast can offer our listeners not just a chance to learn something new, but a brief, monthly respite from all of the disorder. We're really glad you're joining us. Our first episode of the season drops on Monday, July 6. We're kicking off the season by talking to Stefanie Singer, who manages a program called Everyday Arts for Special Education (EASE) at Urban Arts Partnership in New York City. Stefanie shares her experience training special education teachers on how to use simple, arts-integrated activities to encourage social-emotional and academic growth among their students. We'll continue to post episodes the first Monday of every month. They’ll be released through our website and on iTunes and Google Play, so please subscribe if you want to stay up to date each month. Thanks to everyone who continues to reach out with ideas and comments! Please keep the feedback coming! If you have ideas for future episodes, please free to reach out to us via the Contact Us page of our website. See you next week! The post Season 3 Trailer! appeared first on Glass Frog Solutions.

Surprise! You (and we) thought we had finished up season 2, but then we had an opportunity to talk with some folks about an issue we think and care a lot about and we couldn't pass it up. Welcome to our bonus episode on cultivating interpersonal effectiveness (in the classroom and beyond). This season we talked (and learned) a lot about how to be better, more empathetic listeners, how to apply those skills as we help organizations build learning cultures, and how our academic colleagues are training the next crop of future evaluators in these skills. Interpersonal skills have been top of mind. Thus, we jumped at the chance to talk with a panel of actual experts on how to cultivate these skills in ourselves and among our colleagues. Our panel guests include: Libby Smith (she/they) is an organizational healing facilitator. As an experienced and holistic evaluator and educator, she excels at the human component of research and evaluation. Never one to shy away from crucial conversations, Libby deftly balances accountability and compassion. Her work focuses on building equity and accessibility through personal growth and embodiment practices. Libby uses these skills to provide intersectional and liberation-forward guidance to organizations and clients seeking transformative change. She is an AEA Board member, works at the University of Wisconsin-Stout, and is auntie to 10-year-old twin girls. Follow Libby on Twitter: @work_with_libby Tiffany Smith (she/her) is an evaluator, educator, and facilitator. She brings experience as a tenure-track faculty member teaching evaluation and research courses, as well as experience with conducting research and evaluation projects. Tiffany has conducted evaluation work in K-12 education settings, non-profit organizations, higher education environments, and community programs. She stresses the importance of communication, reflective practice, and collaboration in her evaluation work and in training others in evaluation and research methods. Follow Tiffany on Twitter: @Tiffany7001 Deven Wisner (he/him) is a capacity builder for data-driven decision making across a variety of disciplines, including community and social welfare, human capital, finance, marketing, and compliance. He leverages his training in evaluation and industrial-organizational psychology and years of senior level management experience to enable clients to leverage data in their organizations decision-making process. Complementary to his technical skills in program design, statistics, and data visualization and reporting, Deven relies heavily on participatory methods and interpersonal effectiveness training to inspire client ownership and buy-in. He is the Principal Consultant for Viable Insights, an instructor at the University of Arizona and president of the Arizona Evaluation Network. At the root of all his work is a passion for empowering individuals to utilize evidence-based decision making as an effective method for achieving their goals and objectives. Follow Deven on Twitter: @devenwisner The post BONUS episode! Cultivating Interpersonal Effectiveness appeared first on Glass Frog Solutions.

Surprise! You (and we) thought we had finished up season 2, but then we had an opportunity to talk with some folks about an issue we think and care a lot about and we couldn't pass it up. Welcome to our bonus episode on cultivating interpersonal effectiveness (in the classroom and beyond). This season we talked (and learned) a lot about how to be better, more empathetic listeners, how to apply those skills as we help organizations build learning cultures, and how our academic colleagues are training the next crop of future evaluators in these skills. Interpersonal skills have been top of mind. Thus, we jumped at the chance to talk with a panel of actual experts on how to cultivate these skills in ourselves and among our colleagues. Our panel guests include: Libby Smith (she/they) is an organizational healing facilitator. As an experienced and holistic evaluator and educator, she excels at the human component of research and evaluation. Never one to shy away from crucial conversations, Libby deftly balances accountability and compassion. Her work focuses on building equity and accessibility through personal growth and embodiment practices. Libby uses these skills to provide intersectional and liberation-forward guidance to organizations and clients seeking transformative change. She is an AEA Board member, works at the University of Wisconsin-Stout, and is auntie to 10-year-old twin girls. Follow Libby on Twitter: @work_with_libby Tiffany Smith (she/her) is an evaluator, educator, and facilitator. She brings experience as a tenure-track faculty member teaching evaluation and research courses, as well as experience with conducting research and evaluation projects. Tiffany has conducted evaluation work in K-12 education settings, non-profit organizations, higher education environments, and community programs. She stresses the importance of communication, reflective practice, and collaboration in her evaluation work and in training others in evaluation and research methods. Follow Tiffany on Twitter: @Tiffany7001 Deven Wisner (he/him) is a capacity builder for data-driven decision making across a variety of disciplines, including community and social welfare, human capital, finance, marketing, and compliance. He leverages his training in evaluation and industrial-organizational psychology and years of senior level management experience to enable clients to leverage data in their organizations decision-making process. Complementary to his technical skills in program design, statistics, and data visualization and reporting, Deven relies heavily on participatory methods and interpersonal effectiveness training to inspire client ownership and buy-in. He is the Principal Consultant for Viable Insights, an instructor at the University of Arizona and president of the Arizona Evaluation Network. At the root of all his work is a passion for empowering individuals to utilize evidence-based decision making as an effective method for achieving their goals and objectives. Follow Deven on Twitter: @devenwisner

Welcome back! This month, we conclude Season 2 by talking with our old friend and colleague, Pau Aragay Marín. Pau is Director of Impact and Organizational Improvement at Educo. Educo is a global NGO that acts in defense of children, ensuring they are living humanely, particularly in the wake of natural and man-made disasters, and that their rights are protected. He oversees a team that is helping to set the strategy for their global impact and putting the systems in place to collect the data to articulate that impact. We spoke with Pau about the challenges of doing evaluation across geographic boundaries, using local resources for data collection, and how to use that evaluation data to make meaningful improvements to programming. Pau was candid about the challenges he’s up against in doing this work. We think these are challenges that will resonate with folks in the nonprofit sector, even if your work isn’t global. Thanks again for joining us. This is our final episode of the season, but maybe we'll add a bonus episode if y'all play your cards right. We've really appreciated all of you who have listened to the episodes and provided us feedback. We hope you've been able to learn something along the way! The post Evaluating international programs with Pau Aragay Marín appeared first on Glass Frog Solutions.

Welcome back! This month, we conclude Season 2 by talking with our old friend and colleague, Pau Aragay Marín. Pau is Director of Impact and Organizational Improvement at Educo. Educo is a global NGO that acts in defense of children, ensuring they are living humanely, particularly in the wake of natural and man-made disasters, and that their rights are protected. He oversees a team that is helping to set the strategy for their global impact and putting the systems in place to collect the data to articulate that impact. We spoke with Pau about the challenges of doing evaluation across geographic boundaries, using local resources for data collection, and how to use that evaluation data to make meaningful improvements to programming. Pau was candid about the challenges he’s up against in doing this work. We think these are challenges that will resonate with folks in the nonprofit sector, even if your work isn’t global. Thanks again for joining us. This is our final episode of the season, but maybe we'll add a bonus episode if y'all play your cards right. We've really appreciated all of you who have listened to the episodes and provided us feedback. We hope you've been able to learn something along the way!

Welcome back! This may surprise you, but, despite our girlish good looks and youthful dispositions, we aren't spring chickens. It's been a while since we were in school and we're a little out of touch with what young people are learning these days. Since today's students are tomorrow's professionals, we wanted to learn more about how our colleges and universities are training students to be evaluators. To do so, we invited a panel of evaluation professors to tell us all about their approaches to training students to be both smart consumers and producers of evaluation. Our three guests include: - Len Lopoo, Professor of Public Administration and International Affairs at Syracuse University’s Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs. Professor Lopoo is also the Director of the Center for Policy Research at the Maxwell School and the Maxwell X Lab, which uses behavioral science and RCTs to evaluate public and nonprofit initiatives. Professor Lopoo teaches statistics and program evaluation, in addition to other topical classes, to graduate students at the Maxwell School. - Joan Stamler, Adjunct Assistant Professor at Teachers College at Columbia University. Professor Stamler teaches program evaluation to graduate students at Teachers College, though the course is open to students in other disciplines like social work. Professor Stamler worked for many years in the private sector, before going back to graduate school to earn her Ph.D. and then working in research and evaluation positions at education non-profits. - Dana Wanzer, Assistant Professor at University of Wisconsin - Stout. Professor Wanzer teaches program evaluation to students in the Applied Psychology master's program at the university. (Some of these students are actually concentrating in Evaluation Research, which is exciting.) In addition to teaching and research, Professor Wanzer also has a thriving consulting practice. It was fun to peer back into academia, even for a short while. Our guests reinforced that there is not a single route to becoming an evaluator and that evaluators come from all disciplines and may approach evaluation in a unique way. What's more, students in evaluation classes may all go on to work in very different fields, so one of the challenges is to give students a flexible but comprehensive skill set that can be applied across different settings. Our guests felt that building interpersonal skills, as well as giving students a sense of what evaluation, how it can be used, and why it's valuable, are crucial. Thanks again for joining us. Our next episode is the Season 2 finale and we'll be talking to our friend Pau Aragay Marin, the Director of Impact & Organizational Improvement at Educo, a global NGO that acts in favor of children and the defense of their rights, whether it is in the form of education, health, or humanitarian efforts. We’ll talk to Pau about the challenge of doing evaluation across geographic boundaries, using local resources to do data collection as a collateral duty to delivering programming, and the practical challenges of using evaluation data to make improvements to programming when the organization has an international footprint. Please join us in January for this final episode! The post Training Future Evaluators appeared first on Glass Frog Solutions.

Welcome back! This may surprise you, but, despite our girlish good looks and youthful dispositions, we aren't spring chickens. It's been a while since we were in school and we're a little out of touch with what young people are learning these days. Since today's students are tomorrow's professionals, we wanted to learn more about how our colleges and universities are training students to be evaluators. To do so, we invited a panel of evaluation professors to tell us all about their approaches to training students to be both smart consumers and producers of evaluation. Our three guests include: - Len Lopoo, Professor of Public Administration and International Affairs at Syracuse University’s Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs. Professor Lopoo is also the Director of the Center for Policy Research at the Maxwell School and the Maxwell X Lab, which uses behavioral science and RCTs to evaluate public and nonprofit initiatives. Professor Lopoo teaches statistics and program evaluation, in addition to other topical classes, to graduate students at the Maxwell School. - Joan Stamler, Adjunct Assistant Professor at Teachers College at Columbia University. Professor Stamler teaches program evaluation to graduate students at Teachers College, though the course is open to students in other disciplines like social work. Professor Stamler worked for many years in the private sector, before going back to graduate school to earn her Ph.D. and then working in research and evaluation positions at education non-profits. - Dana Wanzer, Assistant Professor at University of Wisconsin - Stout. Professor Wanzer teaches program evaluation to students in the Applied Psychology master's program at the university. (Some of these students are actually concentrating in Evaluation Research, which is exciting.) In addition to teaching and research, Professor Wanzer also has a thriving consulting practice. It was fun to peer back into academia, even for a short while. Our guests reinforced that there is not a single route to becoming an evaluator and that evaluators come from all disciplines and may approach evaluation in a unique way. What's more, students in evaluation classes may all go on to work in very different fields, so one of the challenges is to give students a flexible but comprehensive skill set that can be applied across different settings. Our guests felt that building interpersonal skills, as well as giving students a sense of what evaluation, how it can be used, and why it's valuable, are crucial. Thanks again for joining us. Our next episode is the Season 2 finale and we'll be talking to our friend Pau Aragay Marin, the Director of Impact & Organizational Improvement at Educo, a global NGO that acts in favor of children and the defense of their rights, whether it is in the form of education, health, or humanitarian efforts. We’ll talk to Pau about the challenge of doing evaluation across geographic boundaries, using local resources to do data collection as a collateral duty to delivering programming, and the practical challenges of using evaluation data to make improvements to programming when the organization has an international footprint. Please join us in January for this final episode!