Amy Grack Nelson Email & Phone Number

Greater Minneapolis-St. Paul Area

Develop and implement front-end, formative, remedial, and summative evaluations of a wide variety of project types, incorporating equity-based practices throughout the evaluation process. Develop and conduct learning research and research on evaluation in informal learning environments.Serve as project leader for evaluation and research studies, managing the project team and quality of evaluation and research practices while ensuring deadlines are met within budget… Show more Develop and implement front-end, formative, remedial, and summative evaluations of a wide variety of project types, incorporating equity-based practices throughout the evaluation process. Develop and conduct learning research and research on evaluation in informal learning environments.Serve as project leader for evaluation and research studies, managing the project team and quality of evaluation and research practices while ensuring deadlines are met within budget. Conceptualize and plan new evaluation and research projects, including internal work, state and federal grant proposals, foundation proposals, and external contracts with outside organizations.Manage and support Evaluation & Research Associates to achieve program and project goals, ongoing skills acquisition, and continued professional growth.Responsible, with the Director of Evaluation & Research, for strategic, project, and budget management to support and further the department’s evaluation and research work in service to the museum’s mission, vision, and strategic plan. Show less

Developed and implemented evaluation and research studies of STEM education and informal learning using qualitative and quantitative methodologies.Served as project leader for evaluation and research studies; managed the project team, collaborative work across departments and divisions, external partnerships, budgets, and quality of deliverables while ensuring deadlines were met within budget.Shared findings and insights from evaluation and research work within the museum and… Show more Developed and implemented evaluation and research studies of STEM education and informal learning using qualitative and quantitative methodologies.Served as project leader for evaluation and research studies; managed the project team, collaborative work across departments and divisions, external partnerships, budgets, and quality of deliverables while ensuring deadlines were met within budget.Shared findings and insights from evaluation and research work within the museum and with the fields of informal education and evaluation through articles, webinars, conferences, and blogs.Conceptualized and planned new evaluation and research projects, including internal work, state and federal grant proposals, and external contracts with external organizations. Show less

Developed and implemented close to 100 evaluations, including front-end, formative, remedial, and summative evaluations of professional development workshops, conferences, adult programs, websites, camps, afterschool programs, school-based programs, exhibits, theater programs, volunteer programs, and community outreach. Responsible for all aspects of the evaluation process while maintaining relationships with project teams and stakeholders to ensure evaluation use.Led evaluation… Show more Developed and implemented close to 100 evaluations, including front-end, formative, remedial, and summative evaluations of professional development workshops, conferences, adult programs, websites, camps, afterschool programs, school-based programs, exhibits, theater programs, volunteer programs, and community outreach. Responsible for all aspects of the evaluation process while maintaining relationships with project teams and stakeholders to ensure evaluation use.Led evaluation capacity building and participatory evaluation activities with internal museum staff and through workshops for professionals at national conferences.Trained, mentored, and helped supervise part-time evaluation staff who assisted with data collection, entry, and analysis.Wrote grant proposals, developed research and evaluation plans, and managed funded evaluation and research projects. Founded and led the museum’s Green Team to encourage sustainable practices among staff. Show less

Consulting jobs include: Research advisor on the NSF ITEST project "Engaging Blind, Low Vision, and Sighted Students in STEM with Storytelling through Podcasts," which is studying podcasts as a classroom tool to engage blind and low vision students, focusing on representation and accessibility in STEM fields. Was a research advisor on Oregon Museum of Science & Industry's NSF AISL project "Designing Our Tomorrow: Mobilizing the Next Generation of Engineers," which promoted… Show more Consulting jobs include: Research advisor on the NSF ITEST project "Engaging Blind, Low Vision, and Sighted Students in STEM with Storytelling through Podcasts," which is studying podcasts as a classroom tool to engage blind and low vision students, focusing on representation and accessibility in STEM fields. Was a research advisor on Oregon Museum of Science & Industry's NSF AISL project "Designing Our Tomorrow: Mobilizing the Next Generation of Engineers," which promoted family engagement and engineering learning via exhibit-based design challenges presented through a biomimicry lens.Was a member of the Measurement and Evaluation Task Force for the Center for the Advancement of Informal Science Education (CAISE), the former resource center for NSF's AISL program. The task force developed resources for practitioners to advance evaluation and measurement work around the common outcomes of STEM identity, engagement, and interest in the informal science education and science communication fields.Revised and developed content for the evaluation pages on CAISE’s website (the center is now called REVISE), which provides a resource for NSF AISL program proposal writers and awardeeswww.informalscience.org/projects/evaluation.Led validation studies for an NSF-funded project creating performance-based assessments to measure the skill development of adult volunteers in citizen science programs.Co-led the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Education Outreach Section through the process of developing logic models to help identify evaluation priorities across their department’s range of educational programs.Co-led a formative evaluation of Minnesota 4-H's Power of the Wind inquiry-based learning training model and resulting youth experiences as well as 4-H Robotics and GPS volunteer trainings and youth activities.Co-led a summative evaluation of the Science Museum of Minnesota's Big Back Yard (educational mini-golf) before my time as a museum employee. Show less

Carried out case study research in collaboration with a team studying evaluation capacity building within a complex adaptive system, the Nanoscale Informal Science Education Network, an NSF-funded national network of museum practitioners, University students and faculty, and industry scientists involved in educating the public about nanotechnology-related topics.

Assisted with the graduate level class titled "Qualitative Research Methods in Educational Psychology".

Served on a national workgroup to evaluate the development of a website for all the US Department of Education Office of Special Education's federally-funded Regional Resource Centers.Researched and responded to information requests submitted to the North Central Regional Resource Center on a variety of special education topics from state and local education agencies within the north-central region. Collaboratively taught a weekly program for local teens with disabilities that… Show more Served on a national workgroup to evaluate the development of a website for all the US Department of Education Office of Special Education's federally-funded Regional Resource Centers.Researched and responded to information requests submitted to the North Central Regional Resource Center on a variety of special education topics from state and local education agencies within the north-central region. Collaboratively taught a weekly program for local teens with disabilities that helped them plan for transitioning from high school to postsecondary education. Show less

Designed and carried out a comprehensive formative evaluation of the development of the MinnAqua’s Fishing: Get In the Habitat! Leader’s guide, an angling and aquatic education curriculum for formal and informal educators.Carried out summative evaluation of MinnAqua's angling and aquatic education clinics for youth.

Developed and carried out a summative evaluation of the The Lion’s Mane exhibition. Trained and supervised an undergraduate who assisted with data collection.

Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States

Developed educational content and assessments for “Ranger Rosie," an online natural science learning module where students solved eco-mysteries to learn about the ecosystems in North Dakota and related natural science topics. Trained formal and informal educators to use the module with students in their settings. The module was developed as part of a larger US Department of Education grant-funded project. Assisted in the creation of natural science educational exhibits and museum… Show more Developed educational content and assessments for “Ranger Rosie," an online natural science learning module where students solved eco-mysteries to learn about the ecosystems in North Dakota and related natural science topics. Trained formal and informal educators to use the module with students in their settings. The module was developed as part of a larger US Department of Education grant-funded project. Assisted in the creation of natural science educational exhibits and museum programming. Developed and taught after-school and summer youth science classes.Team taught the undergraduate class “Technology Integration in the Classroom” at the University of North Dakota.Supervised the Environmental Education Field Associate at Turtle River State Park. Show less

Arvilla, North Dakota, United States

Developed and presented guided nature hikes and educational amphitheater programs throughout the summer for park visitors of all ages.Created, taught, and evaluated a weekly summer class for children. Supervised summer interpretive interns. Assisted in developing Dakota Science Center’s Ranger Rosie activities.

Phd, Educational Psychology - Quantiative Methods In Education, Evaluation Track

Dissertation topic: Development and validation of an instrument to measure perceived team communication skills in middle and high school.

M.A., Educational Policy & Administration, Evaluation Studies Track

M.S., Natural Resources Science & Management, Environmental Education Track

Museum Studies Minor

B.S., Ecology, Evolution, And Animal Behavior

Spanish Minor