Eval with Elizabeth

Musings about learning, evaluation, strategy, and data visualization.

Adopting Inclusive and Non-Violent Language: Part 2
Adopting Inclusive and Non-Violent Language: Part 2

As data lovers and evaluators, we know that implicit and explicit biases influence our work. Data is not objective. Data are numbers that represent people. People make the decisions about how that information is collected, who it is collected from, how it is analyzed,...

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Adopting Inclusive and Non-Violent Language: Part 1
Adopting Inclusive and Non-Violent Language: Part 1

In evaluation capacity building work, we talk about the importance of developing shared language around data and evaluation. While having an understanding of certain terms like "outcomes" is helpful, the importance of language goes beyond these fundamentals. Language...

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How Am I? I’m Sitting in the Suck
How Am I? I’m Sitting in the Suck

“How are you?” Ugh this question makes me cringe.  My answer to this is usually “fine.” And not because I am. I am most certainly not fine right now.  For one, it’s 2020. The world is literally on fire, our democracy is being threatened, and we are living...

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Pancreas Ponderings: What T1D Has Taught Me About Eval
Pancreas Ponderings: What T1D Has Taught Me About Eval

Long before we entered the pre-Covid/during-Covid realm, marked by daily monitoring of case counts, testing, hospitalizations, and death tolls, I had my own pre/during world. Twenty-two years ago the world as I knew it changed as I was rushed to the emergency room and...

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Unbecoming & reimagining: Leaning into values and fears
Unbecoming & reimagining: Leaning into values and fears

This blog post has been a long time coming. I have struggled with voicing my thoughts for a couple of years. I am embarrassed that it took a national crisis and more murders of people of color like Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd for me to lean into...

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Evaluator as Acrobat: The Art of Flexibility
Evaluator as Acrobat: The Art of Flexibility

Each day I spend on the trail, walking, running, or hiking teaches me something about myself and the universe. If you know me, you know that I am a Type-A planner. I like researching background details, creating agendas and itineraries, identifying what materials are...

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Wearing Many Hats: Where Does the Role of Evaluator End?
Wearing Many Hats: Where Does the Role of Evaluator End?

Four years ago I uprooted my life and moved halfway across the country to relocate to a state that had never been on my radar. In that time, I’ve established myself in the evaluation community, working both as an external evaluator and as a consultant building the...

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