September is an exciting month, as we celebrate the anniversary of EASL alongside Goshen Consulting, a founding organizational member and generous sponsor of our upcoming event.
EASL will welcome distinguished speaker Min Ma of the Boston-based Data+Soul Research conducting a session on (Re)Imagining Evaluation Practice to be more Equitable, Transformative, and Full of Soul, previously presented at AEA's Summer Institute 2024 (full session description below).
We will gather at 8:30am for networking and a light breakfast, then dive into the session together.
Please note registration will only be available through Tuesday, September 10.
Workshop Description - (Re)Imagining Evaluation Practice to be more Equitable, Transformative, and Full of Soul
The field of evaluation is undergoing important shifts as it examines equity within the practice and its role in the social change ecosystem. These shifts are being guided by numerous approaches and methods that challenge evaluators to examine WHAT aspects of traditional research and evaluation practice need to change to be more culturally responsive and in better service of equity. This workshop focuses on HOW. Participants will examine their current evaluation practice through self-reflection, small group discussions, and engaging with real-world examples. We will consider shifts within our own evaluation practice that enable us to be in better service of more equitable, transformative relationships with 1) communities and people most impacted by the work, 2) clients and primary evaluation audiences, and 3) our own evaluation teams. This workshop is grounded in foundational principles of data equity and draws from transformative evaluation, culturally responsive and equitable evaluation approaches, arts-based methods, and appreciative inquiry.
Presenter:
Min Ma (she/her) is the Founder and Principal of Data+Soul Research, a research and evaluation consulting firm in Boston, MA. She practices culturally responsive and equitable evaluation and draws from a broad toolbox of evaluation, social science, and human-centered design methods. With aims to conduct evaluation with "data + soul," her approach is people-centered, creative, and reflective of her commitment to furthering racial equity using evaluation and evaluative thinking as a tool. She has led research and evaluation projects in the social sector for more than 15 years.
Min's current evaluation work focuses on networks and coalitions, tracking and learning from adaptations, and using evaluation to push for system shifts. She uses tools such as Social System Mapping, Outcome Harvesting, and Ripple Effects Mapping to support funder and coalition learning across the many layers of systems change. Min is also the current president of Greater Boston Evaluation Network, a mother, rock climber, and aspiring polyglot. She holds a Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy from the Fletcher School at Tufts University and a BA in Psychology from Haverford College.
