Extension has developed a strong evaluation culture across the system for the last 15 years. Yet measures are still limited to the private value of programs, looking at problems in a linear way and at isolated efforts. Across the country, Extension evaluators and administrators need to step up to help answer the "so what?" question about…

The focus of this chapter is on the evidence to date that documents the impact of PDS engagement on four specific groups of participants: veteran P-12 teachers, university faculty, P-12 school principals, and parents and community members. In reviewing the literature concerning the impact of PDS engagement on these four groups, the authors'…

Presents "Alcohol, Drugs, Driving and You" (ADDY), a comprehensive program designed to prevent adolescent alcohol- and drug-related crashes and to prepare young people to be more responsible drivers and passengers. Describes program modules, evaluation results, and school and community benefits that may result from adopting this program.…

Smart Start is North Carolina's model early childhood initiative to help all North Carolina children enter school healthy and prepared for success. Serving all 100 counties in the state, Smart Start's services include child care subsidies and health and family support services. This report describes the program, focusing on its impact on the…

Community education programs have seldom presented quantitative data to validate the usefulness of the program. This study was an attempt to establish a beginning community education program while planning for quantitative evaluation from the initiation of the project. Based on a group process, community residents were involved in the development…

Rural school districts in five Arkansas towns set up school-based development corporations (SBDCs) to provide vocational and career training relevant to the needs of rural high school students and the community and to improve the economic and social welfare of the community as a whole. Each SBDC owned and operated businesses using student labor…

The Student Service and Philanthropy Project (SSPP) was designed to afford students an opportunity to assume leadership roles in promoting positive social change in their community. This document presents a 1992-93 evaluation of the SSPP concerning the program's implementation and the perceptions of its success on the part of students and project…