Children, Youth & Families Some recent examples of Children, Youth, and Families projects can be found below. Evaluation of the Partnerships for College Access and Success, The Lumina Foundation for Education. OMG is conducting a multi-year evaluation of this national college access and success program in 9 cities across the US. Using multiple methods, the evaluation began with cross-site and local theory of change work, and is evaluating grantee progress and their outcomes in systems change through partnership development, and in student college access and success. The evaluation is also assessing the effectiveness of the Academy for Educational Development, the national intermediary. Evaluation of the McCabe Fund, The Lumina Foundation for Education. OMG is conducting a two-year evaluation of the McCabe Fund, a program supporting organizations that help students--particularly first-generation college goers, low-income students, and students of color--gain access to postsecondary education. In addition to evaluating the impact of the initiative, OMG will also offer evaluation coaching to the McCabe grantees to help build their data-collection capacity as well as their ability to conduct self-evaluation. Study of the Boston Parent Organizing Network for the Barr Foundation. OMG is conducting a study of the networks of education policy influencials of five grassroots parent groups working to improve the quality of Boston public schools. The study uses a network anylisis methdology to map the personal networks of individual parents and of the group as a whole. Findings from the analysis will be shared with the parent groups to help them identify and address gaps in the networks for advocacy purposes. Assessment of the Child Abuse Prevention Program, Doris Duke Charitable Child Abuse Prevention Program. OMG conducted a cluster assessment of Doris Duke's Child Abuse Prevention program to determine whether grantees are spurring the development of new approaches to child abuse prevention, engaging new constituents, and/or strengthening existing prevention programs. OMG reviewed program documentation and conducted interviews with each of the eleven grantees. Through content analysis of these documents and others provided by the foundation, OMG developed profiles for each grantee and extracted common themes across the group. In addition, OMG developed a program-wide Theory of Change for the Child Abuse Prevention Program. Evaluation of Mentoring Program, Congreso de Latinos Unidos' Pasos Hacia El Futuro (PHEF). OMG is conducting a three-year summative and formative evaluation of Congreso's Pasos Hacia el Futuro community-based mentoring program. The program will serve a group of 70 to 100 students in grades 4-8 at the Julia de Burgos School in Philadelphia with the goal of improving the students' academic performance and school attendance. OMG's evaluation combines quantitative and qualitative methods, gathering data from students, mentors, and program staff to provide a complete picture of program impact, and of the progress of implementation to assist program management. Evaluation of the New Haven Grantmaking Initiative, Annie E. Casey Foundation. OMG has worked with the funder to clarify the theory of change and identify the program's pathways to change. Program interventions include a direct services small grant program, strategic investments to promote neighborhood development and family strengthening, and convening of key stakeholders to develop partnerships and strategic alliances. Evaluation of the Achieving Independence Center in Philadelphia, Department of Human Services, City of Philadelphia. This process evaluation focused on documenting and extracting lessons learned from the planning and first year of implementation of a program created to support youth transitioning out of the foster care system so they could be develop necessary life skills, access jobs, career opportunities and secure housing to be successful independent adults. Marguerite Casey Foundation Learning Clusters, Marguerite Casey Foundation. Facilitated a the development of a learning community of 8 MCF grantees for the purpose of helping them learn from each other, connecting their constituents, and learning new ways of strengthening the voices of the families they work with. Evaluation of Equipo - An Approach for Supporting Families and Building Social Capital, Annie E. Casey Foundation. EQUIPO, or Team, was conceived as an innovative way of delivering services and supports to families in East Little Havana, a largely Hispanic neighborhood in Miami. EQUIPO relies on a network of “natural helpers” called Madrinas and Padrinos to bridge the difficulties that these residents experience in accessing services for their families. OMG's evaluation focused on three main areas of impact: 1) outcomes for families receiving services through EQUIPO; 2) community building through the expansion of networks and development of new linkages in and outside the community; and 3) the impact of EQUIPO participation on team members. Evaluation of a Pilot Program, The JA Academy Program, The Junior Achievement Foundation, operating at seven sites in the metropolitan Boston area. High school students participating in the course create and run a company, and the pilot is located at a university setting and includes a tour of the campus and visit(s) to a business. The research design uses pre- and post-tests to measure changes in students' knowledge (of business and economics); their planning, organization, and teamwork skills; and their attitudes toward school and the future. Surveys to gauge students' and instructors' satisfaction with the course will also be included in the assessment.