This paper presents a new integrated model for documentation and evaluation tested in 2021 on Back Into the Wild project, an Adventure Education project by Equilibero Association (Padova-Treviso, Italy). The project proposes educational walks to groups of at-risk adolescents to promote their psychophysical and relational well-being. Due to the…

Chronic diseases with behavioral risk factors are now the leading causes of death in the United States. A national Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) monitors those risk factors; however, there is a need for national and state evaluations of chronic disease surveillance systems. The Department of Health and Human Services/Centers…

In attempting to use a realistic evaluation approach to explore the role of Community Parents in early parenting programs in Toronto, a novel technique was developed to analyze the links between contexts (C), mechanisms (M) and outcomes (O) directly from experienced practitioner interviews. Rather than coding the interviews into themes in terms of…

The purpose of this article is to set forth an innovative methodological protocol for culturally grounding interventions with high-risk youths in alternative schools. This study used mixed methods to evaluate original and adapted versions of a culturally grounded substance abuse prevention program. The qualitative and quantitative methods…

Outcomes of the program evaluation of "The BreakAway Company," a career-readiness program for at-risk adolescents, are described. Some inconsistencies of observation and measurement in an intervention with 38 adolescents are noted. What and when to observe and measure are essential in evaluating complex interventions for at-risk…

Subsequent to the passage of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, Georgia established 20 gender specific, 6-12 month substance abuse residential programs for TANF mothers and their children. The purpose of this paper is to discuss one aspect of these residential settings, the fidelity of the assessment…

With its roots in clinical and educational psychology, school psychology is an ever-changing field that encompasses a diversity of topics. "The Oxford Handbook of School Psychology" synthesizes the most vital and relevant literature in all of these areas, producing a state-of-the-art, authoritative resource for practitioners,…

AEL's contract with the U.S. Department of Education includes work partnering with faith-based organizations in Kanawha County, West Virginia, to (1) build their capacity to better serve at-risk youth and (2) document what best helps such organizations to successfully impact youth and their families. One of the first faith-based organizations with…

The evaluations of substance abuse prevention programs have been criticized for being incomplete, for lacking a comprehensive approach, and for lacking a process evaluation component. Context factors have been found to have distinctive patterns among alcohol and other drug abusers. Among the variables of interest, family cohesion, family…

Recommendations for feasible and rigorous evaluation design formulated by a 1991 conference on the evaluation of comprehensive community interventions are summarized and illustrated through the example of a program for drug risk reduction. Implications of a multisite design with matched pairs randomized into intervention and comparison conditions…

Explores relationships between evaluators and those who participate in community-based programs, focusing on the Communities That Care (CTC) program in Britain. Discusses different community perspectives toward evaluation, highlighting challenges created for evaluators. Provides examples to identify CTC evaluation strategies, showing the…

Rates of adolescent smoking appear to be on the increase, with a number of authors documenting increases in the 1990's. However, the issue of prevention rather than cessation has received greater attention in tobacco control programmes among youth. This review provides details of published school based and other tobacco cessation programmes for…

Programs targeting at-risk young adolescents, aged 10 to 15 years, were studied through a literature review and examination of issues related to evaluating programs for at-risk youth, and site visits to 9 programs at 6 locations. Chapter 1 introduces the study and its objectives, and chapter 2 reviews the literature on youth at risk. Chapter 3…

Two documents are presented that were used to organize, create, and review portfolio evaluations of 93 community-based social action programs sponsored by the National 4-H, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the Kellogg Foundation. The first document, "Project Portfolio Design," was used to direct local program leaders to assemble…

This paper evaluates two locally driven, school-based programs in Illinois that use a system of care approach to provide services for children and adolescents with, or who are at risk for, developing emotional or behavioral disturbances. These sites included a mental health early intervention pilot program in an elementary school setting, and a…