AEA 2006 Conference Highlights 

by Ehren D. Reed

In November 2006, Innovation Network staff attended the American Evaluation Association’s annual conference in Portland, Oregon.  AEA’s annual conference is the evaluation sector’s largest convening with over 2,500 evaluators attending each year.  Over the four-day conference, Innovation Network’s booth in the exhibition hall received a large number of visitors who stopped by to say hello, check out our “advocacy bullseye” and to learn more about us.

Evaluating advocacy proved to be a hot topic at this year’s conference.  Innovation Network staff members, Jennifer Bagnell Stuart and Ehren D. Reed, facilitated a session entitled, “Evaluating Advocacy: A Model for Public Policy Initiatives” for a standing-room only crowd representing foundations, advocates, and fellow evaluators.  Innovation Network also participated in critical gatherings of advocacy evaluators and funders to discuss the future for the field. 

Innovation Network was not the only organization presenting new findings relating to evaluating advocacy.  Innovation Network staff members attended a number of very interesting sessions, including:

• Measuring Advocacy and Policy Work – facilitated by representatives from Organizational Research Services, the Battelle Centers for Public Health Research and Evaluation, and the Annie E. Casey Foundation;
• Evaluation Frameworks for Advocacy Organizations – facilitated by representatives from the Harvard School of Public Health and Evaluation Focused Consulting;
• Consequences of Evaluation in Community Change – facilitated by representatives from the Annie E. Casey Foundation, Missouri State University, UC – San Francisco, Michigan State University, and The California Endowment; and
• Evaluating Foundation Efforts at Policy Change and Advocacy – facilitated by representatives from The California Endowment, Blueprint Research and Design, Policy and Advocacy Consulting, Community Clinics Initiative, Alliance for Justice, UC – San Francisco, Group Health Community Foundation, University of Southern California, Towson University, and TCC Group.