Reporting requirements for capturing data on the delivery of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education (SNAP-Ed) have evolved. University of Minnesota (U of M) Extension developed the SNAP Education Evaluation and Database System (SEEDS) to capture unduplicated participant information for SNAP-Ed programming conducted by U of M Extension…

Super Parents is a group-based, Extension-led parenting program developed to enhance the parent-child relationship. Implemented by trained Head Start staff using the train-the-trainer model, this effort is achieved by teaching positive parenting practices, increasing parents' knowledge of child development, instructing parents in activities and…

Social marketing campaigns are effective in promoting health behavior changes in individuals and communities. Mississippi State University Extension Service's (MSU Extension) Office of Nutrition Education launched a statewide social marketing campaign branded HappyHealthy to target nutrition and healthy lifestyle-related behaviors of Supplemental…

Food Talk: Better U (FTBU) is a healthful weight management curriculum developed by the University of Georgia's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education (SNAP-Ed) team. FTBU addresses the high burden of obesity among low-income Georgians by focusing on healthful weight management practices. Topics include practicing portion control,…

Documenting evidence of impact demonstrates that organizations and programs are making a difference and/or accomplishing something positive. The results of a program must ultimately change people's attitudes or behavior, or benefit society in other ways (Diem, 1997). As competition increases and the availability of financial resources decreases,…

Multilevel programs--that is, programs with multiple levels of administration, funding, and implementation--present dynamic and challenging environments for the conduct and use of evaluation. The challenges include questions, priorities, audiences, and purposes that vary at each level. This chapter discusses the challenges as well as the…

Discusses the political and economic factors that lay behind a federal mandate for evaluation of the 4-H program. Reviews the themes of other articles in this journal issue dealing with various aspects of the evaluation. (GC)

Briefly describes the content, organization, and multiple influences on the 4-H program in relation to a national program evaluation. Discusses influences of the sponsors and evaluators on the evaluation and problems encountered because of competing values and perceptions. Reviews evaluation findings and speculates on the utilization of the…

This report describes the Council's major activities during 1965-67, its work plan for 1967-68, and several recommendations which will assist program coordination and effectiveness. Findings of the inventory of Federally-supported programs in extension and continuing education (contracted to Greenleigh Associates, Inc.) indicate that program…

Discusses the experience of the 4-H program with the challenging Federally mandated evaluation. Explores how tensions around both design integrity and practicality were manifested and how this conflict affected a large scale evaluation. Also describes the design that 4-H employed to respond to the Congressional evaluation mandate. (Author/GC)

Reviews characteristics of the 4-H program in America. Discusses the Congressional mandate of 1977 which called for evaluation of the program. Briefly reviews historically the controversy surrounding this mandate in terms of the shift in emphasis in the 4-H program which may result from a call for accountability at the national level. (CS)

Discusses applications of evaluation methodology for educational programs to extension evaluation. Reviews alternative evaluation designs, makes specific suggestions for interpreting past evaluation studies, and presents ideas for future extension evaluation. (CS)

A study of the Kansas Cooperative Extension's Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP) was intended to determine the effectiveness of instruction provided by this federally funded program. The program endeavors to benefit low income families by improving participants' food and nutrition practices, behaviors, and food consumption…

Reviews the process employed in evaluating the national 4-H program. Holds that the evaluation design was influenced by political, rather than methodological, concerns. Takes examples from the 4-H evaluation to illustrate dilemmas that have emerged in current evaluation process and theory. (Author/GC)

Many problems are encountered when evaluating a complex, decentralized national program such as 4-H. Good effects of the federal evaluation mandate include local concern with program quality. Bad effects include that local agencies are forced to utilize noxious methodologies or to collect information they consider to be unimportant. (Author/GC)