Improving Parent Center Outcomes and Showing Our Impact Gregory Knollman, OSEP Courtney Salzer, WI FACETS Carmen Sánchez, OSEP Debi Tucker, GA P2P

Scaffold Your Knowledge EXAMPLE: Facilitation KNOW THINK I KNOW WANT TO KNOW It is hard work Paraphrasing is important What some of the essential facilitations skills are? There is a skill set needed Some people are more natural at it How do I better develop these skills? You have to know when to talk and when to listen Groups won’t function without effective facilitation How can I evaluate my effectiveness as a facilitator?

Scaffold Your Knowledge 2 TOPIC: Measuring Parent Center Outcomes KNOW THINK I KNOW WANT TO KNOW

Session Outcomes Participants will learn about OSEP expectations about outcomes How parent centers can realistically show outcomes Tips and strategies to measure outcomes

Truth or Myth? OSEP has always expected proof that services led to outcomes.

Outcome Defined According to Merriam Webster… An outcome is something that happens as a result of an activity or process.

Truth or Myth? 2 You need to prove “causation” between your services and outcomes.

Proxy Data and Outcomes Can you tie one thing to another? Example 1: Service – Providing self advocacy training for transition age youth with disabilities. Desired Outcome – Improved postsecondary outcomes for students.

Proxy Data and Outcomes 2 Consider what things can you measure that are a reasonable proxy for your outcome? Example 2: Desired Outcome – Parents are more confident participants in the IEP process? What factors increase confidence?

Truth or Myth? 3 Outputs and activities don’t matter much anymore.

Logic Models and Outcomes What would a logic model for one service only look like? For each “category” of services, what is the reason you do those services OR what is the result you are hoping for?

Logic Model Outline

Truth or Myth? 4 Evaluation is a one-time event done for reporting purposes.

Truth or Myth? 5 Meaningful evaluation methods are expensive and elaborate.

Resources Center to Improve Project Performance www.cippsite.org All parent centers should have a password to access resources

Let’s Traffic Light the Session Red Light: I’m going to STOP doing… Yellow Light: I’m going to CONTINUE doing… Green Light: I’m going to START doing…

Thank You!