Evaluation Is So White: Systemic Wrongs Reinforced by Common Practices and How to Start Righting Them

What will it take for evaluators of color to flourish in the evaluation ecosystem? Our Action Team set out to answer this question, reviewing research and exchanging perspectives across our members, which included evaluators of color and white evaluators, representing foundations, evaluation firms, and pathway programs.The recent civil uprisings and the disparate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on communities of color have thrown into stark relief the need for more equitable systems throughout American society. As philanthropy strives to address that need, it is imperative to make evaluation a tool "for and of equity" as called for by the Equitable Evaluation Initiative. Funders, evaluation firms, and pathway programs each have an important role to play in cultivating an ecosystem that is more inclusive of diverse perspectives and lived expertise.While our work is situated in a broader landscape and perspective, this document focuses on systemic challenges evaluators of color face in their educational and career pathways. We draw attention to common practices in the field of philanthropy that have negative consequences for evaluators of color and provide early-stage ideas on mitigating strategies and processes. The ideas are organized around three key stakeholders:FundersFoundation staff in evaluation and learning roles as well as program staff who work directly with evaluators.Evaluation FirmsSmall to mid-size evaluation firms are the focus here, although ideas may also apply to larger academic institutions and research centers.Pathway ProgramsProfessional development programs which support evaluators of color through mentorship, internship, job placement, contracting, and networking.We recognize and state plainly that the challenges and barriers evaluators of color face are systemic and deeply rooted in our culture and society. They are products of a longstanding history of discriminatory practices, policies, and narratives. We share ideas and recommendations that may begin to mitigate these challenges, while honoring the fact that creating a truly equitable field goes well beyond the solutions we offer here. We seek to identify immediate and actionable steps that can be taken now while recognizing there is broader work to be done, and conversations to be had, to dismantle white-dominant culture and practices within philanthropy and evaluation

Righting Systemic Wrongs: A Self-Reflection Tool

This tool was developed by the authors of Evaluation is So White: Systemic Wrongs Reinforced by Common Practices and How to Start Righting Them for the 2021 GEO Learning Conference. It supports reflection and action relating to the strategies offered in the brief, which is intended as a starting point, as there is still much to learn and understand about the barriers evaluators of color face. Similarly, this tool is not comprehensive of all that is needed to ensure evaluators of color flourish. The overarching purpose is to spark conversation, engage in reflection, identify areas for learning, and ultimately to change behavior and practice.

Building the Capacity of California’s Safety Net: Lessons From the Strengthening Community Dental Practices Demonstration

· Community dental practices provide “safety net” services to populations who would otherwise have limited access to care. The financial crisis of recent years has made it increasingly difficult for safetynet dental practices to serve people most in need while still balancing their books. · The California HealthCare Foundation (CHCF) and the California Pipeline Program (CPP) funded a demonstration project to test the effectiveness of practice-management consulting as a strategy for helping California’s community clinics survive and thrive. This model emphasizes customized technical assistance to enhance the business infrastructure behind the delivery of care. · The evaluation of this demonstration revealed that most clinics made measurable improvements in increasing net revenue, reducing expenses, enhancing payer mix, and increasing patient visits. · The experiences of participating clinics pointed to several factors that create an environment for success, including buy-in at the executive and clinic levels, a clear project champion, a culture that supports change, clear and compelling project goals, and the availability of internal resources. CHCF is now implementing a second phase of the project that builds on lessons learned from the demonstration

Equity for All: Building the Infrastructure for Change Through Community-First Funder Collaboratives

Foundations increasingly recognize that improving conditions in many communities requires addressing inequities in access to rights and resources. Yet there are challenges to effective investment in underresourced regions, especially when foundations have limited familiarity with the region and may assume limited local capacity to leverage philanthropic investments. This article discusses how Sierra Health Foundation partnered with other California and national foundations to establish the San Joaquin Valley Health Fund, a collaborative whose grants focus on strengthening the capacity of communities and organizations in the Valley to advance policy and systems changes that promote health and racial equity. This article highlights the groundwork that facilitated the fund’s success, examines the strategies that ensured a community-first orientation, and reflects on how foundations can utilize this approach elsewhere to build the infrastructure needed to advance equity for all

Stepping Up for Community Amidst COVID-19, Xenophobia, and Violence: A Survey of Nonprofits Serving Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders

The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed stark inequities in many aspects of American society including economic opportunity, access to healthcare, access to childcare, ability  to navigate public systems, and more. Asian American (AA) and Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (NHPI) communities were adversely affected by the pandemic in distinct ways because of the rising xenophobia and ongoing invisibilization of their people, resulting in rising anti-Asian hate as well as COVIDrelated deaths and struggles that were not seen or not counted in the public's eye. Amidst all that happened during the pandemic, the first responders for many AANHPI communities were the nonprofits that held close relationships with their community members.AAPI Data partnered with Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy (AAPIP) to conduct a first-of-its-kind survey to capture the experiences of nonprofits serving AA and NHPI communities – who they are, the challenges and barriers they experienced, and how they met the moment during the COVID-19 pandemic.Â