Hello, I’m Jacqueline Singh, MPP, PhD (she/her), an evaluator and program design advisor based in Indianapolis, Indiana. I identify as a first generation low income (FGLI)—and, nontraditional college graduate. What does it mean to be a FGLI and nontraditional college student? For me, it means that I experienced most of the higher education pipeline as a single parent. And, I received degrees from different types of higher education institutions (i.e., community college, state university, prestigious private university). Work responsibilities, at all stages of life, prevented me from participating in extra-curricular activities. My focus had to be on the workplace, coursework, GPA, paying bills, providing for and raising two children—not necessarily in that order. I also attended the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education (GSE) to earn a PhD in higher education. The pathway I took was tough, but it was a viable one. Consequently, I refer to myself as a “Pipeline PhD.”

Greetings, I’m Quisha Brown, the mind behind the Progressive Outcomes Scale Logic Model (POSLM), a methodology designed to uncover systemic issues stemming from unfair systems and policies. Unlike traditional methodologies, the POSLM relies on the real-time experiences of individuals in marginalized communities. When communities seek to initiate policy and system changes, comprehensive engagement is crucial. The POSLM steps in by analyzing qualitative data to grasp community sentiments and converting these insights into actionable indicators for organizations to act upon.

My name is Mike Zapata, and I am the Membership Coordinator at the American Evaluation Association (AEA). I will have been serving AEA for four years this coming April. In my role, I focus on membership engagement, acting as the main point of contact for membership-related questions and leading monthly strategy meetings where my colleagues and I brainstorm ideas to offer greater value to our members.

Hello everyone! We are Adriana Cimetta and Rebecca Friesen with the Center for Educational Assessment, Research, and Evaluation at the University of Arizona. Many of the initiatives that we evaluate aim to increase retention of STEM majors, particularly those from underrepresented populations, through research experiences. Traditional lab apprenticeships are limited and usually reserved for upperclassmen, by which time many aspiring STEM students have changed majors or dropped out altogether. In response, many college science departments have sought to expand access to authentic research opportunities.

Hi again, this is Burt Perrin. I am blessed to live in one of the world’s largely unknown, and spectacularly beautiful spots, the foothills of the Cévennes mountains in France, not far from the Mediterranean. Every turn on almost any road brings another gorgeous, and often quite different, view.

Hi, I’m Kim Norris, Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) Director for American Institutes for Research (AIR)’s International Development Division. I’ve had the joy of establishing, contributing to and benefiting from a number of Communities of Practices (CoPs) in the field of evaluation since beginning professional work too long ago to mention here. From exchanging ideas and perspectives with peers from around the world, to improving skills and learning from our unique and sometimes shared experiences, CoPs have been invaluable to my own development. Like any evaluator, I also realize that for CoPs to be successful, guidelines and measures help everyone involved make full use of CoP resources and opportunities. So, I developed a checklist and questions gathered from experiences, discussions with colleagues and the many resources available on the subject.