Evaluating Programs and Services

NASAA is always eager to meet the research needs of state arts agencies. One trend we’ve observed, both anecdotally and through surveys, is a heightened interest in evaluation methods. For both state arts agencies and their grantees, evaluation is key to assessing the effects of programs and services.

NASAA’s research team is working on several fronts to promote understanding of evaluative practices among state arts agencies and their grantees. One initiative is to continue conversations at NASAA Assemblies about state arts agency research and evaluation. Notes from the Research Affinity Group session at Assembly 2018 in Baltimore are available in our recently published conference proceedings.

Additionally, our new Evaluation and Performance Measurement web page offers updated resources and examples to assist state arts agencies and grantees in assessing programs delivered to participants. Here you can find a curated list of program evaluation resources to share with grantees. The page also includes examples of state arts agency evaluations of internal programs and grant portfolios.

NASAA provides data to support state arts agencies’ performance measurement needs, and the new page contains examples of customized metrics and benchmarking reports using comparative funding and grant-making data. Please contact Ryan Stubbs to learn more about custom reports NASAA can create for your agency to assist with benchmarking and performance measurement.