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22 Longtime Evaluator's Perspective Dr. Mary Brolin, senior scientist at the Institute for Behavioral Health at Brandeis University, has supported four different Synegy Initiatve projects and now serves as an evaluation consultant to e Health Foundation. Using an empowerment evaluation approach, Dr. Brolin helps project teams understand how to design and implement a quality project. She educates them on how to collect data and measure outcomes and how to use those findings to iterate and improve the project. e practice of engaging an evaluator early on provides an opportunity for grantees to learn about the importance of evaluation and utilize it to strengthen the project throughout all stages. Making a Match Matching the right evaluator with the right grantee makes a difference to the outcome. e Health Foundation utilizes a unique approach to the matching process, hosting a "speed dating" event as it begins considering proposals for a new round of Synergy Initiative projects. Prospective evaluators and applicants meet briefly to discuss their respective back- grounds, interests, and approaches before switching tables to meet with others over the course of a few hours. At the end of the event, e Health Foundation requests feed- back from participants and then matches evaluators and project teams. "You observe and get a sense of the applicant's energy and commitment for the project," Dr. Brolin said. At the end of the evening, evaluators reveal the applicants with whom they would be willing to work, and the applicants do the same, and e Health Foundation deter- mines the optimal matches. Aer a match has been made, the real work begins. e evaluator and project team collaborate to prepare a planning grant application to submit to e Health Foundation. Given that no grants have been awarded at this early stage, e Health Foundation provides a stipend to evaluators to design the project to ensure that goals align. roughout the grant period, the evaluator provides valuable feedback. "We see gaps and how to fix them using data to make improvements along the way," said Dr. Brolin. "Feedback is a part of the process of improvement as you go." Unusual among funders, e Health Foundation also participates in important meetings with grantees to offer support. "ey want to know when changes need to happen and how they can work together to make change. In this learning community, we support each other," Dr. Brolin said. e Health Foundation brings flexibility and sustain- ability to a project. When a project needs to change course due to evaluation findings or changes in the broader environment, e Health Foundation readily shis direction. "ey are willing to be flexible and they continue supporting the project. ey have an eye toward success and sustain- ability. is is why they require an evalua- tor from the outset," Dr. Brolin said. e evaluator also plays a significant role during e Health Foundation's advocacy efforts in the latter stages of a project. Eval- uation findings and reports are shared in meetings with key stakeholders including policymakers, and evaluators oen partic- ipate in briefings, hearings, and events to advocate for policy or systems changes. Empowering Success e Health Foundation embraces a philosophy of partnership between the grantee, the evaluator, and the Founda- tion in a shared aim of achieving success. is approach is operationalized through a planning and evaluation system called Results-Oriented Grantmaking and Grant-Implementation (ROGG, © Dr. Janice B. Yost and Dr. Abraham H. Wandersman). ROGG applies an empowerment eval- uation approach to maximize a project's chances of success whereby grantees utilize 10 guiding accountability questions Grantee Foundation Evaluator ROGG Empowerment Evaluation Partnership Model Speed dating event Dr. Mary Brolin "I have seen more projects sustained under The Health Foundation than under any other funder. They work toward helping the program out in the field doing advocacy." Dr. Mary Brolin