Logic Model Workbook
The Innovation Network's Logic Model Workbook is a do-it-yourself guide to the concepts and use of a logic model. A logic model is a commonly-used tool to clarify and depict a program within an organization. You may have heard it described as a logical framework, theory of change, or program matrix—but the purpose is usually the same: to graphically depict your program, initiative, project or even the sum total of all of your organization’s work. It also serves as a foundation for program planning and evaluation. It describes the steps necessary for you to create logic models for your own programs. This process may take anywhere from an hour to several hours or even days, depending on the complexity of the program.
Transforming the Financing of Early Care and Education
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine released a report called Transforming the Financing of Early Care and Education. The 315 page document highlights the lack of access to high-quality early care and education for children in the United States, and proposes implementing a new financing structure to ensure that all children have the opportunity to access affordable education. The authors articulate their vision for a structure that will support the total cost of a high-quality ECE system. They hope the report will stimulate policy makers, practitioners, leaders, and all other ECE stakeholders to make the commitment to plan and implement the transformed and effective financing structure that we recommend here.
Healthy Development Summit II Report
This report provides a summary of Healthy Development Summit II: Changing frames and expanding partnerships to promote children’s mental health and social/emotional wellbeing. The Summit assembled a diverse group of stakeholders together to generate ideas for new ways to move forward to promote young children’s positive mental health. The second of two summits, this summit focused on the application of the research to practice and policy across sectors of society; that is using what we know to inform what we do. As with the first summit, this Summit focused on early childhood (birth to age eight) because the science is very solid in early childhood development. The Summit also built on momentum for change from the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act3 (2010), which has multiple components related to prevention and positive mental health that may provide new opportunities for promoting young children’s mental health. Finally, the Summit built on heightened public interest in mental health, particularly in young people, due to media and policymakers’ attention to school violence, bullying, and youth suicide.
Building a Common Outcome Framework to Measure Nonprofit Performance
The Urban Institute and its project partner, The Center for What Works, collaborated to identify a set of common outcomes and outcome indicators or “common framework” in the measurement of performance for nonprofits. The report, Building a Common Outcome Framework to Measure Nonprofit Performance identified a more standardized approach for nonprofits and organizations that choose to fund their efforts. The authors hope that this how-to guidance can help nonprofit organizations reduce their time and cost of implementing an outcome measurement process and improve its quality. With improved and more consistent reporting from grantees, funders, too, would be better able to assess and compare the results of their grants. This has been prepared so that the current results can be used as a resource for nonprofit organizations and their funders.
Common Results Catalog
The GuideStar Common Results Catalog allows organizations to measure progress and results. Since the metrics your organization shares are your choice, they should reflect what you already collect and use. To help you think about them, the Common Results Catalog was created. This catalog contains all of the metrics currently in our database—by subject area—developed in consultation with teams of experts. Browse the catalog to see what metrics make sense for your organization. If you don’t find a metric that fits, you can add a custom metric.