Toolkit:Building Our Wisdom

We are deeply committed to demonstrating the impact of our prevention programs. We know that transformation is happening.  We see it in the increased connectedness of community members and in the changed school climates where students and adults alike are speaking out against bias in all its forms.

For many years, social justice activists have grappled with how to measure and document the impact of our prevention work.  We are challenged by the "evidence-based" evaluation models that often drive our funding and programming.  We seek to "reclaim” evaluation to better communicate results not only to funders but to our communities.  We are exploring innovative, participatory evaluation tools to partner with our communities and honor their lived experiences and vision of social change.

We invite you to explore some of these community-based evaluation resources:

• "Reframing Evaluation as a Tool for Social Justice & Community Empowerment" online tool.
• Engaging the Power of Community: Participatory Evaluation is a webinar hosted by TC-TAT and authored by Threshold Collaborative. Learn about methods and tools to surface community voice, build local leadership, and realign resoruces to strengthen community-based prevention efforts. View PowerPoint Slides. 
• Evaluation Handbook for Community Mobilization: Evaluating Domestic Violence Activism authored by TC-TAT offers practical steps and tools for planning/evaluating a community action campaign.
• Close to Home Digital Storytelling uses digital stories and short multi-media videos created by youth and adults to share their stories about domestic violence.
• DataCenter provides trainings, tools and support to organizing efforts led by poor and working class people of color to reclaim community knowledge and access information to create power and social change. 
• Evaluation Access is interactive learning community and resource center that provides nonprofits and youth with tools to lead their own evaluation design.
• PhotoVoice supports those who have traditionally been the subject of evaluation to take control in sharing their stories and experiences.
• Youth Participatory Evaluation: Strategies for Engaging Young People authored by Kim Sabo-Flores and draws upon on theories of evaluation, youth development, and performance activities to engage youth in evaluation and social change.