In the Spring Semester of 2019, I completed the course, HMSV 440W Program Development and Funding. Throughout my time in this course I learned a variety of valuable concepts and techniques about conducting a program evaluation which is an area I had never really explored before. I was definitely a true novice in this area as I had never conducted a program evaluation before. This course took me step by step through every aspect of the process, from identifying an agency, to research and identifying a need and understanding the population, to developing my evaluation methods and conducting the evaluation.

For my evaluation I chose to focus on the Salvation Army’s Center of Hope homeless shelter. My next step after selecting an agency was to develop an evaluation question that my entire evaluation would be based on. I chose to focus my question on the effectiveness of the agency in serving the needs of the homeless population and aiding them in finding and remaining in permanent housing. The next step in the process was to research the population and similar agencies to familiarize myself with the need for the shelter and how other shelters effectively tackle similar issues. For my research I searched databases for peer reviewed research articles and completes an annotated bibliography and Mindmap to organize my findings. I then developed a research plan which outlined my entire evaluation process, from who the stakeholders were to my data collection methods. Most of my evaluation was qualitative and I gathered my data from interviews with stakeholders and observations. The next step in the evaluation process was to plan out my protocol for carrying out my evaluation, such as developing my interview questions. I then created a timeline which highlighted a timeframe for each aspect of the evaluation including times for meetings with stakeholders before going out to officially conduct my evaluation. During my evaluation I observed the daily activities at the Salvation Army and interviewed several stakeholders from employees to shelter residents. The final step in the evaluation process was to report my findings in a formal report.

I learned a lot through the work associated with the course. I had never conducted an evaluation of any kind before and this course was designed very well to walk students step by step through the process without feeling overwhelmed. I now feel more comfortable in all aspects of conducting an evaluation. I felt I was most successful in the research aspects of this course as that is what I was most familiar. I learned through this course that evaluations are an important part of the field of human services as when working with people it must be ensured that programs are effective and achieving their goals. I definitely see the skills I learned in this course about conducting an evaluation intersect with my future career if I am ever in the position of evaluating a program or agency. I have not been able to apply any concepts so far, but I believe an intersection will come quickly once I begin working in the field after I graduate.