When conducting an evaluation, it is important to consider the stakeholders of the agency being evaluated. A stakeholder is an individual who takes an interest in an agency or program. Stakeholders come in different forms; people who invest in the agency, employees, communities, and clients of the agency, to name a few. For the evaluation that I will be conducting, I will be meeting with an employee of that agency; someone who is an employee of Denbigh House. The employee that I will be talking to in my evaluation is the Clubhouse Director at Denbigh House, I do think given her job title she is a perfect person to interview for my evaluation as I will be interacting with someone who interacts with the clients at Denbigh House. When I asked the agency whether I would be able to interview and evaluate their agency, they directed me to her, which she agreed to do. Since she works at the clubhouse, she will be able to show me how the Denbigh House is run and how the clubhouse impacts the clients it serves.

            The type of evaluation that I will be conducting for my evaluation is a combination of outcome-based and goal-based, as I feel like doing both helps address both of my questions. For an outcome-based evaluation, the focus is on the results of the program being evaluated. When doing an outcome-based evaluation the evaluator will determine whether or not the program needs to change in any way or not. If change needs to be made, then the evaluator will recommend whatever changes they think will be beneficial in making the program succeed better. With a goal-based evaluation, there is a focus on measuring if the program’s goals are being implemented well. This can also help evaluate whether or not the program needs to make any changes based on whether the goals are being met or not. Combining both outcome-based and goal-based evaluation will help me organize my evaluation better to determine the effectiveness of the Denbigh House and how beneficial the program is to people with traumatic brain injury (TBI).

            The first question that I plan on asking during the evaluation is: how effectively does the Denbigh House’s goals align with addressing the needs of its target population? For this evaluation question, it’s helpful to have a goal-based evaluation approach, as it aligns with measuring the goals of the Denbigh House and seeing how those goals serve people with TBI. When conducting an evaluation, it’s important to see how effective the goals of the agency are, especially when it comes to its target population. Which was why I chose this question as my first one for the evaluation. Good goals are specific and easily measurable, which will help me determine if the agency’s goals are being met. My second evaluation question is: how effectively does the Denbigh House track the effectiveness of its program and ensure sustainability? For this question, it’s important to also include a goal-based evaluation approach, as it deals with understanding the effectiveness of the program. With this question, I will be able to determine if any changes need to be made to the way the Denbigh House is currently running things. I feel like these two questions are two helpful questions to ask for an evaluation and will give me a lot of information that I will need to form my conclusion after the evaluation.

            The method of data collection that I will be using for my evaluation is an interview and observation. Interviews involve the evaluator asking those involved in the evaluation process a series of questions that answer the information that they wish to learn about the program. There are different ways to go about using an interview as a data collection method. First, there is a structured style of interview where all the questions are planned out beforehand. Second, there is a semi-structured interview where there will be predetermined questions as well as flexibility for open dialogue between the interviewer and the interviewee. Third is an unstructured interview which involves having no planned questions going into the interview, and asking whatever comes to mind during the interview. Also, with interviews, there are individual interviews and group interviews. For my evaluation, I will be doing a structured-style individual interview with the Clubhouse Director at the Denbigh House. I feel like having the questions planned out before the interview is the best way for me when conducting an interview. Doing a structured type of interview will make sure that I don’t forget to ask anything that may be necessary for my evaluation. I also feel that out of all the methods of data collection, doing an interview will work best for me as I am the type of person who likes to prepare for things like an interview beforehand. It will help me get the necessary information that I need after the evaluation is over and I need to conclude about the program. Observations as a method of collecting data involve looking at the environment around a person and gaining information based on what they see. When I conduct my interview, I will be observing the stakeholders and the overall environment of the Denbigh House. This will be helpful in gaining more information that I need for conducting a good evaluation, which will also help me determine my conclusion in the end. I feel that having both methods together will help me get the most out of my evaluation and all the information that I need. I will be mainly using the interview as my method of data collection, but observation will make sure that I don’t miss anything during the evaluation process. There are a lot of things people can learn by observing. Plus, these two methods are the ones I am most comfortable with which help ensure that the evaluation process runs smoothly and will help me in the role of the evaluator.

            The research method that would work best for my evaluation is the qualitative method. Qualitative research when conducting an evaluation involves the evaluator focusing on understanding the meaning and perspectives of the program being evaluated. This research method is great for getting descriptive data that will help the evaluator better understand the program being evaluated. The reason that this research method works best for me is that both interviews and observations are best for qualitative research, especially interviews. While I will be using observation as part of my evaluation my main focus is the interview that I will be conducting. It would not make sense to have a research method that differs from the data collection method, as that would just cause a mess and make things harder for the evaluator. I do think it’s helpful to go with the research method that will work best for the individual, based on their method of data collection, as it will make sure that they get all the information that they are looking for.

Plus, using qualitative research will help me answer my two evaluation questions for my evaluation. Doing a qualitative research method will help me learn the impact of the program (the Denbigh House) and is helpful in looking at a program’s goals and outcomes. All of this will be helpful in determining the effectiveness of the program, especially in defining how their goals align with those people with TBI. This answers my first evaluation question. From doing my interview and observation, I will see how effective these goals really are based on the information I gather from my questions and from what I see. It will also be helpful for looking at the effectiveness of the program and determining the sustainability of the program, which answers my second question.