248: Sharing Leadership with New Evaluators and Graduate Students at a University-Based Center: A Model for Evaluation Teams

Incorporating new evaluators and graduate assistants into evaluation teams offers a powerful opportunity for sharing leadership, fostering reciprocal learning, and strengthening evaluation practice—when approached with intentionality. At our university-based center, we integrate new evaluators and graduate students in all aspects of program evaluation activities—from planning to implementation and decision-making—to strengthen their development as evaluators and the evaluation work itself. Our session explores strategies for balancing skill development with authentic participation in decision-making, ensuring that new evaluators’ insights are valued and their development strengthened. Our presentation team itself reflects generations of shared leadership, comprising staff who began as graduate assistants and the current students they now mentor. By framing evaluator training as a leadership-sharing process, we offer practical insights for evaluation teams looking to leverage new team members with opportunities for co-learning and improving evaluation practices.

Kayla Pfau