For some time now, the arts education community has designed for broader outcomes for youth. These programs intentionally foster not only youth achievements within the arts or academics, but also youth and community thriving--through outcomes such as youth civic engagement, occupational identities, and wellness. In this report, the authors seek to…

Community coalitions (CCs) have labored with some difficulty to demonstrate empirical evidence of effectiveness in preventing a wide range of adolescent problem behaviors. Training and technical assistance (TA) have been identified as important elements in promoting improved functioning of CCs. A reliable, valid, and inexpensive method to assess…

In 2006, more than 6 million individuals were victimized by violent crimes. Although violence is below levels of the early 1990s, it remains high. The extent of violence and its impact highlight a critical need to develop and implement effective programs to reduce violence and victimization. Communities have initiated a wide range of such…

This paper describes a split-ranking multiphase questionnaire design used to establish a set of valid evaluation targets, evaluating Community Living Support Services (CLSS) in Victoria, Australia, through a survey of CLSS managers and Disability Program Evaluation Unit managers. Results indicate differing priorities between the groups, but an…

Assesses the effectiveness of a local antismoking contest in Bloomington (Minnesota) that was coordinated with a statewide campaign. Interviews were conducted with 218 local and 198 statewide participants. Finds that the local contest had a higher impact than the statewide contest. (FMW)

Follow-up data are often a neglected part of the evaluation of community programs. Yet, they should be an essential part of the information input to the process of judging effectiveness and whether or not the program should continue. This paper presents follow-up data on a juvenile diversion program which has been operating in a small Western…

Evaluates a point-of-purchase nutrition education program in Pawtucket (Rhode Island). Uses consumer interviews to evaluate the effect of awareness of shelf labels on purchase behavior. Reports increases in shoppers' ability to identify correct shelf labels and in the number of shoppers who were encouraged to buy the identified foods. (FMW)

A survey of directors of 61 Texas early intervention programs found that directors felt that program improvement should be the main reason for program evaluation efforts, that evaluating program goals and child progress are the most feasible strategies, and that evaluating program quality and family progress are the most difficult strategies. (DB)

Describes pilot test of survey of grocery store product displays to measure the amount of health education information provided and the proportion of the display devoted to "healthier" products. Finds that inter-rate reliability ranged between 0.73 and 0.78 for the healthiness indices and between 0.30 and 0.67 for the health education measures.…

Examines the long-term effects of two Australian community antismoking campaigns that used television advertising to set the community agenda. Finds that, at the beginning of the campaigns, there was an immediate 2 percent drop in male and female smoking prevalence, followed by a 1.5 percent decline per year among males. (FMW)

Perspectives are provided to help evaluators of health promotion programs. Eight papers present critical issues in such evaluations, including: (1) conceptual themes of program theory and context; (2) topics related to measurement, data analysis, and research design; and (3) reports of evaluation studies. (SLD)

The general decline in public resources has encouraged government agencies to consolidate job functions, and the internal program evaluator is becoming a scarce commodity. This paper briefly describes a case study about the circumstances and implications of merging two formally antagonistic job roles: program administrator and program evaluator.…

A consensus has emerged in recent years that the fragmented systems serving children and families need to be restructured and integrated in ways that make them accessible, family-focused, and able to accommodate cultural differences. Collaborative partnerships involving schools, families, and other community stakeholders are learning that they are…

The National Assembly on School-Based Health Care (NASBHC) convened a meeting of 23 stakeholders representing a national cross-section of experts in the fields of health and education on April 30, 2004. Among the participants were school health practitioners, educators, researchers, and funders. The meeting's purpose was to clarify and document…