Hi everyone! We are Eric Barela & Rhonda Williams, this year’s AEA Awards Working Group Co-chairs. I’m Eric and I’ve been a member of AEA since 2000. I’m based in Los Angeles and have served in a variety of TIG and Association roles throughout my tenure, most recently as Co-Chair of the Awards Task Force that revised the Awards Program in 2021-2022 and as last year’s Awards Working Group Co-Chair. I’m Rhonda and I have been a member of AEA since 2017. I am based in Dallas and have served in a variety of TIG leadership roles and this year’s Co-Chair alongside Eric.
The AEA Awards Working Group is dedicated and committed to acknowledging excellence in the field. The AEA Awards are meant to recognize outstanding contributions and achievements in evaluation and to foster a culture of appreciation and recognition. The application window for Award Nominations is now open, and the submission deadline is Friday, April 12, 2024. We want to encourage all members to consider nominating yourself or someone else whose contributions to the field merit award consideration!
AEA has the ability to provide awards in the seven categories below. Please click on the rad resource below to learn more about the requirements for each award.
- Marcia Guttentag Promising New Evaluator
- Robert Ingle Service
- Paul F. Lazarsfeld Evaluation Theory
- Alva and Gunnar Myrdal Evaluation Practice
- Alva and Gunnar Myrdal Government
- Outstanding Evaluation
- Research on Evaluation
For those of you who are unfamiliar with the new award nomination process, it now occurs in two stages. In the first stage, nominators submit a statement of no more than 500 words about the nominee’s contributions and qualifications for a specific award. The Awards Working Group uses these statements to determine who will be invited to submit a full nomination packet in the second stage. You no longer need to submit a full nomination packet right away. You are, however, encouraged to review the full nomination packet requirements to familiarize yourself with requested materials should you be invited to submit.
As examples of the incredible contributions our members have made to the field, we want to highlight two of last year’s awardees, Alva and Gunnar Myrdal Evaluation Practice Awardee Robin Miller and Paul F. Lazarsfeld Evaluation Theory Awardee Hazel Symonette. Robin was honored due to her demonstrated commitment to the health and well being of LGBTQ+ populations and others at high risk of HIV infection. Hazel’s work has focused on democratizing evaluation resources that advance diversity-grounded and equity-enabling personal transformation, organizational development, and social justice change agendas. Their remarkable dedication and contributions to our collective evaluation practice make us proud to have them as part of our community!
If you have any questions or need more information, please feel free to reach out to us. We eagerly await receiving your applications and celebrating the achievements of our members!
Rad Resources
- Learn more about the specific awards AEA offers
- Learn about the revised submission process
- Learn about the 2023 Awardees
- Watch a recording of the AEA 2023 Conference Awards Plenary (5 amazing awardees with 5 incredible speeches!)
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