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AEA's page is a place for all interested in evaluation - learn about what we do and engage with evaluation minded people like you.

10/09/2026

Wondering how to lead evaluation teams with intention, foster culture, and prevent burnout? Our latest AEA365 blog series dives into two-way mentorship, culture design, shared power, and more:

🤝 JoAnna Hillman | Who Cares (About Evaluation Managers and Supervisors)?

🌱 Maureen Bailey | Who’s Mentoring Whom? Lessons Learned About Two-Way Mentorship

⚖️ Joelle Greene | Lessons Learned: Three Ways to Share Power on Evaluation Teams

🎨 Olivia Jones & Sally Honeycutt | Culture Design Canvas: A Free, Easy Tool to Help Develop Your Workplace Culture

👥 Linda Kawentel, Nardeen Shafik, and Rachael Kenney | Who’s Doing What? Clarifying Roles on Evaluation Teams

🎯 Julianne Lee | Managing Evaluations toward Evaluation Use

🔗 Read the full Evaluation Managers and Supervisors TIG Week series on AEA365: https://aea365.org/blog/

10/08/2026

How is AEA advocating for evaluator independence and evidence standards amidst federal policy shifts?

In the latest edition of AEA’s Policy Watch, the Evaluation Policy Task Force breaks down key policy developments impacting our field, including:

➡️ Department of Education Grantmaking Overhaul: AEA’s public comments on proposed EDGAR updates—advocating for evaluator independence, broader evidence standards, and methodological training for reviewers.
➡️ Congress Punts Funding Decisions: The temporary resolution keeping federal programs running through December and pausing pending Uniform Guidance grant changes until after the midterms.
➡️ HUD Revises Evaluation Policy: What HUD’s alignment with Executive Order 14303 and new AI-disclosure rules signal for future agency-wide standards.
➡️ 2030 Census & Engagement Opportunities: Proposed changes to apportionment counts, short-form questions, and public comment opportunities for evaluators.

Stay informed on the policy shifts affecting evaluation practice, funding, and independence.

Read the full October Policy Watch: https://www.eval.org/Publications/Newsletters/Newsletter-Archive/Article/policy-watch-october-2026

10/07/2026

Every evaluator has a story. What’s yours? Help us inspire the AEA community by sharing why you belong to AEA, what drives your work, or the advice you’d give to those just starting out.

Record a short video answering 2–3 prompts and send it our way to be featured in the newsletter and on our social channels.

Start here: https://smithbucklinvoices.gv-one.com/requests.html?gId=3897&rId=17780

10/06/2026

Heading to Evaluation 2026? 💡 Stream 1: Foundations and Core Practice centers on the essential knowledge, ethics, and day-to-day realities that ground our profession. It’s designed to support professional learning and build a shared understanding of what it means to practice evaluation well across contexts.

Stream 1 explores the core competencies and day-to-day realities of practice, featuring sessions like:
🔹 Bridging Evaluation and Data Engineering: Practical Tools for Cross-Boundary Collaboration
🔹 Life After Getting DOGE’d: A reflection on where an evaluation can go after losing funding.
🔹 Beyond Methods: Project Management Skills Every Evaluator Needs to Succeed
🔹 To What Extent Can AI Evaluate?: An Analysis of LLM Evaluative Reasoning Failures

🔗 Explore all 60+ Stream 1 sessions and build your conference plan here: https://www.evaluationconference.org/Programs/Full-Schedule/Full-Schedule-Browse-by-Stream

🔗 Learn more about all 5 streams: https://www.evaluationconference.org/Overview/Stream-Descriptions

💬 Which sessions are you adding to your calendar first?

10/03/2026

🚨 Last chance to make your mark on AEA's 40-year story. 🚨

As part of the Opening Plenary at Evaluation 2026, AEA is creating 40 for 40: The Countdown to What's Next — a celebration of the people, ideas, methods, moments, and movements that have shaped evaluation over the past four decades.

We're looking for nominations in four areas:
✨ Evolution of AEA
💡 Innovations in the Field
🌎 The World We Were Evaluating
📈 Impact & Implications

What milestones, influential ideas, groundbreaking methods, or real-world impacts belong in the countdown?

Nominations close Monday, October 5, at 11:59 PM CT.

Submit your nominations: https://feedback.surveylab.com/pageTag/SurveyCampaign/cId/DroFDb62rrBTEhHY/

Help us celebrate 40 years of evaluation and shape the conversation about what's next.

10/02/2026

Wondering what happens when evaluation meets the arts? Our latest AEA365 blog series dives into creative evaluation, context, participation, health, and more. Thank you to the Arts, Culture, and Museums Topical Interest Group (TIG) and this week's contributors.

🔗 Read the full series on AEA365: https://aea365.org/blog/

09/30/2026

Planning your schedule? 🗓️

The Presidential Strand features forward-looking sessions on equity, AI, language access, and Indigenous evaluation.

Explore the full lineup: https://www.evaluationconference.org/Programs/Full-Schedule/Presidential-Strand

Not registered? Join 1,400+ evaluation professionals in Charlotte this November 16-20: https://www.evaluationconference.org/Registration/Registration-2026

09/25/2026

It’s Latina/o Responsive Evaluation Discourse (LaRED) TIG Week on AEA365! 📚

All week, members of AEA’s LaRED Topical Interest Group shared perspectives, approaches, and reflections designed to expand conversations around culturally responsive evaluation and practice.

Explore posts covering topics including restorative leadership, popular education facilitation, elevating youth voices through creative methods, evaluation with purpose, qualitative evaluation, CREE, and more.

Whether you’re looking for a new approach to bring into your own work or an opportunity to engage with perspectives from across the evaluation community, there’s plenty to discover.

➡️ Visit the AEA365 blog and follow along with LaRED TIG Week:
https://aea365.org/blog/

09/24/2026

40 years of evaluation. 40 moments that helped shape what comes next. 🎉

As part of the Opening Plenary at Evaluation 2026, AEA is creating “40 for 40: The Countdown to What’s Next” — a live countdown celebrating the people, ideas, methods, moments, and movements that have influenced AEA and the evaluation field over the past four decades.

And we need your help building the list.

What deserves a spot in the top 40? Think about:

✨ Milestones in AEA’s evolution
💡 Innovations that changed how evaluation is practiced
🌎 Defining moments in the world surrounding our field
📈 Examples of evaluation creating meaningful impact

Multiple nominations are welcome! Share the people, ideas, methodologies, moments, and movements you believe should be part of the conversation.

🗓️ Submit your nominations by October 5 at 11:59 PM CT: https://feedback.surveylab.com/pageTag/SurveyCampaign/cId/DroFDb62rrBTEhHY/

Then join us in Charlotte to see what makes the countdown during Evaluation 2026!

09/18/2026

How do you balance rigor, context, and tight timelines in real-world evaluation practice? Section Editor Kyle Cox breaks down methodological utility in a recent article for the American Journal of Evaluation.

🔗 Read it now on SAGE: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/10982140261484611

AEA members can login to access the journal here: https://www.eval.org/Publications/Publications/American-Journal-of-Evaluation

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