President’s Message
Dear OPEN Community,
It continues to be a pleasure to serve as your President this year. I hope this newsletter finds each of you well. Keep reading to learn more about some exciting opportunities to learn and connect.
Whether you are just beginning to explore evaluation or a seasoned professional, we invite you to join us! OPEN is seeking members interested in taking a leadership role in OPEN, especially a 2027 President, as I will be stepping down at the end of the year.
In partnership,
Jason Normand
President, Oregon Program Evaluators Network (OPEN)
Call for Southern Oregon Evaluators
Are you an evaluator, researcher, data professional, or evaluation advocate living in Southern Oregon?
The Oregon Program Evaluators Network (OPEN) is looking to connect with professionals in Ashland, Talent, Phoenix, Medford, Klamath Falls, and surrounding communities who are interested in strengthening a regional network of evaluation practice.
Whether you are an experienced evaluator or simply passionate about evaluation, this is an opportunity to:
● Connect with fellow evaluation professionals
● Build meaningful professional relationships
● Exchange ideas and resources
● Learn from peers
● Help strengthen the evaluation community in Southern Oregon
Interested in getting involved? Contact Sarah at [email protected]
for more information.
Visit OPEN’s LinkedIn Page
Big news! Our LinkedIn page has officially relaunched, and we want you to be part of the conversation. Head over to https://www.linkedin.com/groups/4697458/ to follow us for the latest on OPEN and partner events, job opportunities, and community announcements. Let’s make this space a vibrant, supportive hub for connection and resource-sharing. Let us know what you’ve got going on. We can’t wait to see you there!
Announcing a New Membership Model with Multnomah County
OPEN has launched an organizational level membership with Multnomah County COPPER (Community of Practice on Performance, Evaluation, & Research) so their members can access our events. Up to ten employees will be able to register for each OPEN event using a distinct ticket option. A special thank you to Jason’s Multnomah County colleagues and OPEN members Elizabeth O’Neill (2014 OPEN President) and Alison Sachet for making this partnership possible. If you are part of an organization that might be interested in a similar membership model, reach out to us at [email protected]
Events Recap
Over the past few months, the OPEN community has come together for a rich and diverse series of events, from deep dives into evaluation technology and dashboard design to thoughtful discussions on engaging communities and empowering evaluation practices. We are excited to share a collection of resources from some of these sessions below to support your ongoing learning. We encourage you to explore these materials and hope you’ll join us for our upcoming events—we look forward to continuing our professional growth together.
A growing number of our webinars are now being recorded. Recordings are shared with everyone who registers, even if they are unable to attend. For webinars that will be recorded (noted in the event description), we encourage you to register even if you cannot attend so that you can receive the recording after the event.
● August 12 - "Designing Databases, Shaping Practice: How Evaluation Technology Supports Program Clarity and Continuity" by Elizabeth DiLuzio, PhD.
○ Evaluation + Learning offers bi-monthly Skill Sprints, which are 1.5 hour workshops on concentrated topics related to evaluation and data analytics. You can see some of the past workshop topics here and should sign up here to be notified about upcoming offerings.
○ Liz is also the Lead Curator of AEA365, AEA's daily blog for evaluators, by evaluators. It's a great resource to learn about tools, tricks, and resources related to our work from our colleagues. If you're interested in submitting a post, you can do so here.
● July 30 - "5 Things to Know Before You Launch Your Program: Strategy, Data, and Governance" by Dr. Danielle Lemi, PhD, Kapwa Sol Insights.
○ Worksheet
○ Connect with Dr. Lemi: https://calendly.com/kapwa-sol-insights?from=hub
● July 9 - "Engaging Communities and Sharing Power in Decolonizing Evaluation" by Minji Cho, Ph.D.
○ Resources
● June 5 - "Dabbling in the Data: Hands-On Data Analysis Activities for Teams" by Corey Newhouse from Public Profit.
○ Public Profit Toolbox, including a downloadable copy of the Dabbling handbook
● May 7 - "Empowerment Evaluation: A Community Engagement Approach" by Dr. David Fetterman.
○ YouTube video I created by simply uploading a memorial piece I wrote for a colleague, Michael Scriven: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmY_ZdIJBMM
○ Here is the memorial piece I wrote about him and uploaded to NotebookLM which created the YoutTube video above: https://jmde.com/index.php/jmde_1/article/view/1045/807
○ This PowerPoint introduces NotebookLM. It will download to your computer automatically: https://davidfetterman.com/EEAINotebookLMtobaccoPrevention.pptx
○ This is a slide show about tobacco prevention using a number or sources from CDC, web pages, and my evaluation reports. NotebookLM Slide Show: https://davidfetterman.com/Tobacco_s_Target_in_Arkansas.mp4
○ This is an excellent podcast created with the same sources as above. I think it is packed with useful information, especially if you are preventing folks from using tobacco products. NotebookLM Podcast: https://davidfetterman.com/Arkansas_Communities_Fighting_Menthol_Tobacco.m4a
○ This is an infographic using the same mountain of materials. Notebook Infographic: https://davidfetterman.com/infographic.png
○ This is a guide to the podcast I mentioned (timestamped). Guide to Podcast: https://davidfetterman.com/PodcastHighlights.pdf
○ Here is a brief AEA365 podcast I posted with my former student Paul St. Roseman. Gestalt Empowerment Evaluation: Building an AI-Driven Evaluation Knowledge Base (GPT) and an Evaluation Repository (NotebookLM) by David Fetterman and Paul St. Roseman, https://aea365.org/blog/gestalt-empowerment-evaluation-building-an-ai-driven-evaluation-knowledge-base-gpt-and-an-evaluation-repository-notebooklm-by-david-fetterman/
○ Here is one more link to a YouTube video using AI about empowerment evaluation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URY0QJ79ceg
● April 13 - Spring Journal Club - Alana Kinarsky
○ The pre-read for this event was "Passing in the Dark: Making Visible Philanthropy’s Hidden and Passing in the Dark: Making Visible Philanthropy’s Hidden and Conflicting Mental Models for Systems Change".
● April 8 - "Evaluation in the Age of AI: What Changes, What Doesn’t, and What Matters Most" by Charles Gasper. Please contact Charles if you would like to learn more...
○ [email protected] - for those interested in the tool and other tools being developed to support consultants and the organizations they serve.
○ [email protected] - for those interested in exploring how they can use AI more in their work beyond prompt engineering to leverage individual and teams of agents and/or vibe coding.
Upcoming Events
DIY Graphic Design for Evaluation Professionals
OPEN will be hosting a webinar titled "DIY Graphic Design for Evaluation Professionals" by Emma Alston, MPH, Ginko Leaf Writing & Consulting. Register here.
Better graphic design can help evaluation work reach the right audiences, clarify key findings, and support better use of results—but many evaluators do not have easy access to professional design support. Thankfully, there are plenty of beginner-friendly ways to level up the visual impact of reports, presentations, data visualizations, dashboards, infographics, and other deliverables! In this practical session, Emma Alston will share "DIY" graphic design strategies evaluators can use to make their work clearer, more consistent, and more useful. Participants will explore basic design principles, accessibility considerations, branding within real-world constraints, and low-cost tools such as Microsoft Office and Canva.
Step-by-step Introduction to Contribution Tracing
OPEN will be hosting a webinar titled "Step-by-step introduction to Contribution Tracing" by Diego Catalán Molina, PhD.
In this session, you'll learn the steps to apply Contribution Tracing to your evaluation work. CT is a case-study approach that results in (1) a clear trace of evidence that supports a contribution claim and (2) a set of numbers that quantify your level of confidence ("We are 78% confident in our contribution claim based on the evidence"). When interventions are complex and data are messy, CT helps you deliver a clear story about the causal chain of events that led to an outcome. During the session, we'll review the main pillars of CT and get hands-on experience with each practical step.
Evaluation in Progress (EIP)
Are you currently grappling with a needs assessment or facing challenges with a survey question that could benefit from an additional perspective? Perhaps there's a specific area in evaluation that has captured your interest, and you're seeking recommendations or advice. Maybe you want to explore a topic covered in a recent OPEN webinar in more detail or talk about how to apply it in your work. Look no further! Connect with fellow professionals at our next online "Evaluation in Progress" (EIP) event. Join us for an informal and enriching session during your lunch break, where you can bring your burning questions, engage in professional development, and expand your network. Register here.
Save on AEA Evaluation 2026
Early Bird Rates End Monday, October 12!
Planning to attend Evaluation 2026? Register early to secure the best available rate.
This year’s conference will bring the evaluation community together to celebrate AEA’s 40th anniversary.
Charlotte, North Carolina November 16–20, 2026 ⏰ Early Bird Deadline: Monday, October 12
Register before the deadline to save on your registration and reserve your place at Evaluation 2026.
Stay Connected with OPEN
Thank you for being part of the OPEN community!
We look forward to continuing to learn, connect, and grow together. Whether you join us for an upcoming event, share a resource, connect with fellow evaluators, or take on a leadership role, your participation helps strengthen Oregon’s evaluation community.
Have news, resources, job opportunities, or events you’d like to share in a future newsletter? We’d love to hear from you.
Stay connected. Stay curious. Keep evaluating.
Oregon Program Evaluators Network (OPEN)
[email protected]
Thank You for Being Part of OPEN!
Thank you for being part of the Oregon Program Evaluators Network community. We appreciate your continued engagement and look forward to connecting with you at upcoming events.
Until next time, keep learning, connecting, and evaluating!
The OPEN Team
