Evaluation
Training

Focusing on Focus Groups:

Structured in a way that mimics a focus group, participants will explore the elements of effective focus groups while practicing skills through real-world case studies and scenarios. Participants will have the opportunity to begin developing their own style of facilitating discussions while strategically guiding conversations to answer the essential questions they’ve set out to explore.

Data Visualization for Program Managers:

Move from swimming in data to sharing numbers in a meaningful–and fun–way. This session is perfect for any member of an organization who is looking for a way to tell a story with their data but may be intimidated or confused by where to begin.

What’s the Logic Behind Logic Models?

In this session, participants will explore the core benefits of program evaluation, the value of strategically aligning a program’s logic model and its evaluation, and where to find helpful resources. Participants will leave this session knowing they won’t have to let another year pass without mastering the evaluation section of grants–leading to more funding for their organization and increased capacity for their mission. 

The What and Why of Outcome Evaluation:

Through a series of activities, this training session is designed to support program leaders in their understanding of the core benefits of program evaluation, the connection between a program’s purpose and its evaluation, and how to identify outcomes for meaningful program evaluation.

Program Quality
Training

Youth Program Quality, Weikart Center Methods Workshops®: Designed to empower youth-serving staff with useful tools, these workshops are a great way to increase quality of work with youth. Specific sessions cover topics such as improving conversations with youth, building emotionally and safe spaces for youth, cooperative learning, reframing conflict, and youth choice.  Learn more about the workshops here.

Youth Program Quality Assessments and Coaching: Sharp Insight, LLC offers external program assessment and personalized quality coaching using the Weikart Center’s Youth Program Quality Intervention ®.  The assessments can be particularly useful if organizations use the YPQI approach internally.  The coaching process enhances this work by providing program leaders and/or program supervisors in youth-serving organizations with individualized support. Learn more about assessments here.  Contact us directly to discussion coaching opportunities.   

MORE program

Since 2016, with funding from Nonprofit Montgomery, Sharp Insight has developed and facilitated the Measurement, Outcomes and Responsible Evaluation (MORE) Program. This adult learning experience includes three aspects.  First, participants engage in a 1.5 day deep-dive in evaluation, available at low cost to nonprofits in Montgomery County, helps teams answer the question, “How do we know our work makes a difference?”  Following the group training, MORE participants receive an individual consultation with Sharp Insight, and a follow-up half-day training session aimed at reinforcing learned concepts.

Customized
Training

Working closely with nonprofits, we recognize the benefits related to enhancing a team’s capacity in evaluation-related knowledge and skills. And while not every staff member needs to become an evaluation expert, having an understanding of how evaluation can improve an organization’s impact can increase buy-in at every level.

Through customized training sessions we’ve helped a diverse group of staff become better prepared to carry out evaluation activities on their own and make a plan for sharing their data after it’s been collected. With others, we’ve worked with small teams to develop departmental evaluation plans that aligns with their organizational mission and vision.

We’ve partnered with various organizations to make customized training experiences happen in a way that meets their needs, budget, and time frame.

Conference Sessions
and Panels

Sharp Insight often shares our work with regional and national audiences focused on program quality and evaluation. The most memorable of these experiences include our clients as co-presenters.

A sampling of recent conference presentations we’ve delivered include:

• Time to Thrive Conference, 2017: Measuring Impact: How Effective Are Your Efforts to Make Schools Safe and Supportive for LGBTQ Youth?
• American Evaluation Association Conference, 2016: Evaluating the Evaluator: Strategies and Tools to Measure Your Firm’s Performance from the Inside Out
• Excel Beyond the Bell Conference, 2015: Show and Tell: Sharing Your Program’s Success Through Numbers and Stories