Program Evaluation Training

A REAP-sponsored workshop lead by REAP affiliate Paul Gewwe (University of Minnesota) designed to target foundation and non-profit managers and executives, researchers and government officials.

Introduction and objectives

Numerous programs are implemented by governments and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), which are intended to change individuals’ economic or social outcomes. Common examples of this include agricultural extension services, public health programs and education programs. An important (and admittedly difficult to answer) question is: How effective are these programs in changing economic or social outcomes? Comparing the relative effectiveness of different programs, as well as comparing these programs’ benefits to their costs is crucial for governments to understand.

Objectives

• To obtain a better understanding of how to objectively assess the impacts of programs through program design and data analysis
• To specifically discuss possible scenarios based on how intervention status is decided, and methods for analyzing data for each scenario