Over the last 15+ years in the field, I have had many opportunities to provide research and evaluation support to nonprofits and foundations. The most rewarding part of the work has been to help program leaders think strategically about how to strengthen their impact. A few highlights:• Consulting with The Colorado Health Foundation to strengthen staff well-being efforts for grantees within the youth development portfolio (including interviews and conversations with 100+ grantees).• Collaborating with HALOS, a nonprofit kinship care program in Charleston, SC, to train kinship caregivers to lead each stage of a participatory evaluation—from designing questions, to collecting data, to analyzing and reporting results. • Partnering with Faith in Action—a national community organizing network based in Washington, D.C. that works to dismantle systems of injustice—to identify community interests and issues collected through a listening campaign across 16 states.

I supported our center in examining the early impact and potential for scale of promising new initiatives in mental health. With our team, I conducted a survey of mental health needs across all emergency responder departments in Colorado, interviewed K-6 teachers to understand the experience of a trauma-informed training, explored the impact of a theatre performance on student empathy, and created an inventory of mental health assets on our campus—from faculty expertise to grant funding.

I collaborated on research and evaluation projects examining equal access to educational opportunities. I was the Lead (PI) of a policy analysis of child care access and prices across Colorado. I was also on study teams exploring the impact of pipeline programs, namely initiatives to support traditionally underrepresented students on their pathway to PhD programs in neuroscience and into teaching.

I contributed to applied research and evaluation projects at the Center for Youth and Communities in the areas of academic enrichment, youth employment, arts education, college access, service learning, and philanthropy. A few highlights:• For the Skillman Foundation, I led a survey team exploring youth development opportunities in Detroit neighborhoods. • For the Hyams Foundation, I supported a coalition of grantees in evaluating their GED programming. • For the U.S. Dept. of Labor, I served on the study team exploring the use of summer stimulus funds to employ low-income youth. • For the Sillerman Center for the Advancement of Philanthropy, I served on the team examining how colleges incorporate philanthropy education.