Overview of the Community Building Assessment
and Evaluation Tools Project

The Center for Community Builders, in partnership with Urban Strategies Council, the National Community Building Network, the Development Leadership Network, Building Community Technology Partners, and the Education Development Center, has embarked on a project to develop a set of user-friendly training materials and tools for community builders that will provide instruction on how to conduct community assessments and program evaluations.

Community assessment and program evaluation are important components of a successful and sustainable community building process. Community assessments provide stakeholders with data and information to document and understand conditions in their community, which is critical to developing effective implementation strategies. Program evaluations enable stakeholders to track and measure the results of their community building efforts. While a variety of assessment and evaluation tools exist, often they are not designed or disseminated in a way that the people most involved in community change efforts—residents, organizers, and the staff of community-based organizations—have access to them. This project aims to develop training curricula and tools that will enable community members to participate in the design and implementation of their own assessments and evaluations.

We do not intend to develop curricula and tools from scratch, but to collect existing assessment and evaluation training materials, select the best tools available, and then develop curriculum and instructional materials that will teach people how to adapt and use these tools in their own communities. The tools that are produced through this project will be offered to communities through an interactive DVD-ROM format as well as a more standard training manual. The DVD-ROM will use cutting edge computer technology, including digital video, animation, interactive activities, and an interactive glossary.

Phase I of the project will involve identification and analysis of existing materials and tools, assessment of gaps and needs, establishment of standards for assessing the suitability and effectiveness of tools and materials, and the development of instructional goals and objectives. Phase II will involve the development of pilot curriculum materials, field testing, and revision and finalizing of the training tools.

The development process will begin with a convening on September 29th-30th in Baltimore, MD for project partners and a select group of representatives from organizations that are at the forefront of thinking and practice around community assessment and evaluation. The goal of the convening is to: 1) review perspectives of practitioners, foundations, intermediaries, and evaluators on assessment and evaluation; 2) develop a framework for assessment and evaluation that reflects the needs of stakeholder groups; 3) identify existing models and tools that should be reviewed for use in the training materials; and 4) establish a work plan for the development of the training tools.

This project is being coordinated by the Urban Strategies Council with funding from the Waitt Institute, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, and the Marguerite Casey Foundation. For more information contact: Elizabeth Johnson, Urban Strategies Council, 672 Thirteenth Street, Oakland, CA 94612, 510-893-1377, lizj at urbanstrategies.org.