There seems to be an obsession in philanthropy these days with “data driven decision making.” There is no argument in philanthropy less productive than the supposed fight between strategic vs. compassionate grantmaking. It’s the “versus” […]
Philanthropy could make greater gains in racial equity and social justice if it pursued these six field-tested pathways to progress. […]
Is traditional social science the only way to learn about a nonprofit’s program effectiveness? No. Many nonprofits conduct activities and programs that are subtle and complex, deserving an approach to evaluation that honors that complexity. […]
If there really were a growing trend of cooperation between grantmakers and nonprofits, what would we notice? A partial list includes:
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As evaluators, we are always making choices. These choices may not always be apparent at the time one makes them. We may not even have made them consciously. But in retrospect – and retrospect provides […]
Philanthropy by definition is a noble endeavor. Yet people want to know, “what good does philanthropy do?” The answer is hard to get, partly because philanthropy doesn’t really want to know, and evaluation doesn’t really know how to serve up good answers. This article illuminates the dilemma. […]
Since I made such a big thing about dignity in my last post, can we acknowledge something like a “dignity gap?” Not trying to introduce new jargon, but the notion is this: We’re familiar with […]
Early in my professional life, the Dayton Hudson Foundation (predecessor to Target Foundation) came to me with this challenging opportunity. “Forty percent of our grantmaking budget is now dedicated to what we’re calling ‘Social Action.’ […]
What is “advocacy”? The word is from Latin, meaning “to give voice” to a cause that it might progress and succeed. Advocacy has recently become a legitimate strategy to promote social change. What is advocacy, […]
I went to see “12 Years a Slave” the other night, but was a little apprehensive about going, given what I’d heard. To keep it together I decided to write down all the indicators of […]
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