Assessing Your Impact

Range of Evaluation Activities

The chart below lays out some possible evaluation activities and the type of information they could provide about a community foundation's grantmaking, donor engagement, community leadership, and internal governance.

Download this table as a printable handout (PDF)

Community Foundation Role	Type of Evaluation	Sample Evaluation Activities
Grantmaking	Accountability or goal oriented	Ask grantees to provide detailed financial reports on how grant funds were spent Ask grantees to provide detailed counts of number of people served, length of participation, etc. Ask grantees to compare their participants numbers to their stated goals
	Developmental oriented	Ask grantees to reflect on what went well, what didn't and what they learned Ask grantees to choose and tell a narrative that captures the most significant change their work has produced
	Outcome oriented	Convene grantees to discuss project outcomes and share lessons learned. Ask grantees to conduct a survey or interviews of participants to get their feedback on impact of funded programs
Donor Engagement and Development	Accountability or goal oriented	Collect information about the interests of new donors Track inquiries by donors into poverty-related granting opportunities
	Developmental oriented	Survey existing donors about their knowledge of local poverty issues, relevant charities and the role of the foundation Track donor meetings and site visits with local charities involved in poverty reduction work
	Outcome oriented	Note new donors who identify role of foundation in poverty-reduction work as reason for setting up fund. Track percentage of donor-advised grants going to charities combating poverty Survey donors on whether they view foundation as source of knowledge about poverty-reduction and relevant granting opportunities
Community Leadership	Accountability or goal oriented	Track mentions of foundation in local media stories related to poverty reduction efforts Track relevant meetings attended, speeches, interviews, etc.
	Developmental oriented	Survey local poverty-reduction stakeholders periodically to get their feedback on the role of the foundation Targeted survey of key stakeholders such as local newspaper editor, to gage positioning of foundation vis a vis poverty
	Outcome oriented	Track other financial investments that are leveraged by the foundation's initial investment Track new local initiatives, policy changes, etc. in which foundation played a catalytic role
Community Foundation Governance and Administration	Accountability or goal oriented	Determine the diversity of your staff and volunteers and specify the measures you have in place to improve this, if needed Track number of grant applications and the range of organizations applying Determine impact of foundation's investment strategies and choices
	Developmental oriented	Analyze the role of low-income people as volunteers and advisors in your poverty-reduction efforts Analyze your use of diverse vendors and consultants.
	Outcome oriented	Survey staff and volunteers on their level of knowledge and comfort with poverty-related issues Ask grant applicants, and non-applicants for feedback on grant application procedures