COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS FOR HEALTHY CHILDREN – AN INITIATIVE OF SIERRA HEALTH FOUNDATION Love is the best gift you can give a child. We did it ourselvesever An Evaluation reveive...Guide Book Written by: SRI International Supported by: Oh Weto did be it ourselves a child An Evaluation Guide Book DEVELOPED FOR: SIERRA HEALTH FOUNDATION again...toCOMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS FOR HEALTHY CHILDREN INITIATIVEfeel WRITTEN BY: the joySRI INTERNATIONAL of the many triumphs and to experi- ence the trials of becoming. AN EVALUATION GUIDE BOOK ❚ PAGE I P A G E II ❚ AN EVALUATION GUIDE BOOK AN EVALUATION GUIDE BOOK ❚ PAGE III Sierra Health Foundation Board of Directors J. Rod Eason Chairman Fr. Leo McAllister Secretary Len McCandliss President and Chief Executive Officer Byron Demorest, M.D. George Deubel Manuel A. Esteban, PH.D. Wendy Everett, SC.D. Albert Jonsen, PH.D. Robert A. Petersen, CPA Carol G. Whiteside James J. Schubert, M.D. (In Memoriam, 1929 - 2000) Copyright © 2000 by Sierra Health Foundation All rights reserved. Worksheets may be reproduced with credit to Sierra Health Foundation. 1321 Garden Highway Sacramento, CA 95833 For more information contact Sierra Health Foundation phone 916 922-4755 fax 916 922-4024 web www.sierrahealth.org Sierra Health Foundation is a private, independent foundation headquartered in Sacramento, California, that supports health and health-related activities in a 26 county region of northern California. DESIGN BY: LORI KUNDER, KUNDER DESIGN STUDIO, RENO, NEVADA 888-818-9722 P A G E IV ❚ AN EVALUATION GUIDE BOOK Dedication This Guide Book is dedicated to the men, women, children, and youth who have dedicated them- selves, and the work in their communities, to the principles and goals of the Community Partnerships for Healthy Children initiative. Principles Goals ❚ Parents and families, supported by ❚ To improve the health and well-being of community resources, are first and children and their families in the Sierra foremost responsible for the healthy Health Foundation region. development and care of their children. ❚ To assist the communities in the region ❚ When appropriate, emphasis should be to identify needs of children and families given to prevention of and early inter- and pursue new opportunities to address vention for preventable conditions. these needs. ❚ The physical and mental health of a ❚ To develop and strengthen the organiza- child is affected by a wide variety of tions and systems that respond to the factors, family quality of life being the needs of young children and families. most significant. Other factors which can also influence child health include the ❚ To develop solutions to the needs of environment, heredity, medical condi- children and families by maximizing the tion and treatment, culture, and geogra- use of existing financial resources and phy. services through increased efficiencies, and/or the reallocation of some re- ❚ Effective solutions to the needs of sources; and where necessary, by develop- children and their families require ing new resources. collaboration among decision-makers, providers, advocates and consumers that ❚ To achieve a lasting, positive impact on represent the diverse interests of the the ability of communities to respond to community. and organize around children’s needs. AN EVALUATION GUIDE BOOK ❚ PAGE V Sierra Health Foundation Community Partnerships for Healthy Children Collaboratives BUTTE COUNTY Community Health Alliance of Oroville D e l N CALAVERAS COUNTY o r t e Siskiyou Calaveras Partnerships for Healthy Modoc Sierra Health Children Foundation's Funding Area EL DORADO COUNTY Lassen El Dorado County Children and Families Trinity Shasta Humboldt Counties Network with CPHC Collaboratives MODOC COUNTY Tehama Modoc Collaborative – Families Matter Plumas NEVADA COUNTY Glenn Butte Sierra Mendocino a da Children’s Collaborative of Tahoe b a S v Colusa u e u N Y Lake t t Truckee er Placer Community Network for Children & Families S a Sonoma Yolo c El Dorado ra Alpine Napa m e r n o t d o a s PLUMAS COUNTY m a r Solano A e M S v a a a Plumas Children’s Network r n l i n J a o C Tuolumne Contra a q Mono Costa u i n San Francisco A SACRAMENTO COUNTY la S m us a ed la n a is Mariposa Cordova Community Collaborative for n M ta a S t Healthy Children and Families e Santa o Clara S Merced Inyo an Children First – Flats Network ta Cr Madera Fresno Hagginwood Community Collaborative uz North Highlands Children’s Coalition Tahoe/Colonial Collaborative SAN JOAQUIN COUNTY SUTTER COUNTY San Joaquin County Healthy Children’s United for Healthy Families Collaborative TRINITY COUNTY SHASTA COUNTY Trinity – Kids First Anderson Partnership for Healthy Children TUOLUMNE COUNTY Grassroots for Kids Tuolumne YES Partnership STANISLAUS COUNTY YOLO COUNTY Ceres Partnership for Healthy Children Yolo Collaborative for Healthy Children and Families Modesto Airport Neighbors United Oak Valley Family Support Network YUBA COUNTY West Modesto/King-Kennedy Yuba Community Collaborative for Healthy Children Neighborhood Collaborative Westside Community Alliance PAGE VI ❚ AN EVALUATION GUIDE BOOK TableTable ofof ContentsContents PREFACE VII P a r t I Getting Started: What Do You Hope to Achieve? Chapter 1 Evaluation: Planning to Learn Page 2 Chapter 2 Outcomes: Putting the Dream into Words Page 4 Chapter 3 Indicators: Looking for Evidence Page 13 Chapter 4 Assumptions: The Connections Between Strategies and Outcomes Page 20 Chapter 5 Evaluation Questions: What Do You Want to Learn? Page 27 P a r t I I Methods: How to Get the Information You Need Chapter 6 Evaluation Methods: Answering Your Evaluation Questions Page 42 Chapter 7 Identifying the Focus of the Evaluation Questions: A Step on the Way to Selecting Page 49 Evaluation Methods Chapter 8 Documenting Your Strategies and Activities: How To Answer Your Implementation Questions Page 56 Chapter 9 Tools for Data Collection: Getting the Information You Need to Answer Page 67 Your Evaluation Questions Chapter 10 Respondents and Sampling Page 81 Chapter 11 Evaluation Work Plan: Pulling It All Together Page 87 P a r t I I I Analysis: What To Do with All These Data? Chapter 12 Introduction to Analyzing and Reporting Data Page 106 Chapter 13 Working with Administrative Data Page 109 Chapter 14 Working with Survey and Interview Data Page 120 Chapter 15 Working with Test and Assessment Data Page 137 Chapter 16 Working with Basic Documentation, Registration Forms, Attendance Sheets, and Logs Page 143 Chapter 17 Preparing to Write Your Evaluation Report Page 165 Chapter 18 Bringing It All Together: Developing and Using the Evaluation Report Page 172 Glossary Page 186 Appendices: A Evaluation Resources Page 191 B Examples of Measurements for Indicators of Selected Child and Family Outcomes Page 195 C Exercise Answers Page 202 D Examples of Data Collection Instruments Page 214 AN EVALUATION GUIDE BOOK ❚ PAGE VII Preface Sierra Health Foundation believes that healthy plans. Throughout all three phases, our support children are the product of healthy communities -- provides funds for the “glue” that keeps such and a healthy community is a place where people mobilization efforts together. have a stake in one another’s lives, and make a commitment to build a future collaboratively. Thirty communities in northern California have participated in CPHC since its inception In December of 1993, we began the Commu- seven years ago. As these Guide Books are going nity Partnerships for Healthy Children (CPHC) to print, 25 of these communities are still engaged initiative to promote the health and well-being of in this very difficult community building process. children, from birth through age eight, by support- ing community-based efforts in many northern To support the collaboratives throughout all California communities. CPHC assists local leader- phases of the initiative, we contracted with two ship in mobilizing community members on behalf organizations that have provided ongoing techni- of children. At its heart is the principle that cal training and support and evaluation. Center parents and families, supported by their communi- for Collaborative Planning has provided technical ties, are first and foremost responsible for the assistance and training on community develop- healthy development and care of their children. ment, strategic planning and implementation; SRI For this reason, the initiative works to build the International has conducted the overall evaluation capacities of communities and residents to of the CPHC initiative and has provided evaluation strengthen families to nurture healthy children. training to the local collaboratives. The focus on children was selected because of It is the collective experience of the communi- our interest in prevention and the sense that ties, the foundation staff, and consultants that communities are most likely to mobilize around serves as the basis for these Guide Books. Even children’s issues. Under this ten-year, $20 million though we have three years to go in this ten year initiative, community-based collaboratives are effort, we feel this information is valuable and working to identify assets and needs, establish worth sharing now. These books are intended to child health priorities, and develop and implement provide practical “how to” assistance on what we action plans. Through a process that involves the have learned so far. In these Guide Books, you will matching of community assets to community learn about: needs, the collaboratives set their own goals and determine what is necessary to reach these goals. ❚ Building a collaborative; ❚ Planning collaboratively; There are three phases to the initiative. During ❚ Evaluating community efforts; and Phase I, Community Development, we supported ❚ Effectively communicating your message. communities in their development of a collabora- tive that would focus on bettering the health of All of us involved with CPHC hope that you infants and young children. Phase I was devoted find these Guide Books useful and inspiring. Our specifically to recruiting members, building a journey has been a remarkable and rewarding one, collaborative, assessing community strengths, assets and we know it can be for others.