Youth Focused Evaluation
Jenna Sethi, PhD (she/her/hers)
Founder, Principal
Informed Change
Roseville, Minnesota, United States
Clare Eisenberg, M.Ed. (she/her/hers)
Consultant
Informed Change/Clare Eisenberg Consulting, United States
Location: Room 201
Abstract Information: Youth are often not seen as experts in any of the spaces they inhabit, yet their insights are crucial for telling stories of impact and driving change. Evaluators have a unique opportunity to partner with young people to share their wisdom and stories, but it takes intentionality and planning to do this well. In this workshop, the presenters will share practical tools to engage youth in focus groups or listening sessions (highlighting specific strategies for virtual engagement) and to engage youth on an evaluation team so they can fully participate in the evaluation process.
Relevance Statement: Inviting youth perspectives and seeing them as “competent citizens with a right and responsibility to engage in their communities” can lead to active engagement of youth, yet in many organizations and programs, this perspective is an afterthought (Richards-Shuster, 2012, p. 88; Noguera, 2003). Young people have much to tell us if we create spaces together that honor their voices and stories. Though often overlooked, they are the experts of their own experiences and their insights are crucial for telling stories of impact and informing program improvement across a range of environments and programs. This is why evaluators have an important and unique opportunity to intentionally partner with them in evaluation. In this workshop, the presenters will share practical tools to engage youth in focus groups or listening sessions (highlighting specific strategies for virtual engagement) and to engage youth on an evaluation team. Through a generous grant with 3M and in partnership with Youthprise, the presenters recently led a team of 16 youth through an eight month evaluation process, focusing on skill-building, data collection, analysis, presentation of findings, and design thinking with the funder. They will share lessons learned as well as practical strategies to support young people who may be engaging in evaluation for the first time. Noguera, P. (2003). City schools and the American dream: Reclaiming the promise of public education (Vol. 17). Teachers College Press. RichardsâSchuster, K. (2012). Empowering the voice of youth: The role of youth advisory councils in grant making focused on youth. New Directions for Evaluation, 2012(136), 87-100.