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2021 New Professional Scholarship

Sponsored by Washington Evaluators and The EnCompass Learning Center

This page includes information about the two ways to engage in this opportunity:

  • Information for prospective applications to the New Professional Scholarship and,
  • Information for individuals interested in volunteering as a Scholarship Application Reviewer                                                                            (scroll to the Volunteers Needed section below).

Purpose

The Washington Evaluators is devoted to strengthening and sustaining the evaluation community in the Washington DC area by recruiting and helping to educate the next generation of evaluators. The “New Professional Scholarship" is intended to support new professionals in integrating state-of-the-art knowledge and information sharing into their evaluation practices and approaches within their respective organizations and/or future practice.  The Scholarship provides emerging evaluators with increased access to high-quality professional training, meaningful mentorship, and a supportive community of fellow evaluators. In this way, the Scholarship helps facilitate continued diversity and inclusion in the profession. 

The Scholarship is open to new professionals, current students, postdocs and new graduates. In 2021, WE and EnCompass Learning Center (ELC) will offer multiple New Professional Scholarships throughout the year. The information below pertains to the first scholarship that will be offered this year. 

Deadline for Submission

 Friday, February 19, 2021 by 11:59 p.m. EST

Criteria for Award Selection

    1. Works and/or resides in the DC metropolitan area;/ 1
    2. Is a new professional, current student, postdoc, or recent graduate with less than five years of experience in evaluation.  Students can be pursuing evaluation related graduate degrees/certificates or be pursuing their studies in a related field;/ 2

    3. Financial need to support professional development

    4. Exhibited interest in the field of evaluation or willingness to learn more about evaluation:

    • Shows interest in evaluation including analyses of disparities for critical subgroups of the population, including when stratified by age, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, or other characteristics. 
    • Expresses interest in integrating WE’s antiracism principles into future evaluation practice.
        1 / Defined to include the following by the Office of Management and Budget:  DC, MD (Calvert, Charles, Frederick, Montgomery, and Prince George's counties), VA (Alexandria, Arlington, Clarke, Culpepper, Fairfax, Falls Church, Fauquier, Loudon, Manassas, Manassas Park, Prince William, Rappahannock, Spotsylvania, Stafford, Fredericksburg, and Warren cities and counties), and WV (Jefferson County).

          2 / Related fields include social science (e.g. psychology, sociology, anthropology, social work, geography), education communications, economics, public health, nursing, medicine, data science, statistics, mathematical modeling

          Application Materials

          The following are required for a complete application.  Please note that incomplete applications will not be considered.


          1. Updated Resume/CV (limit to two pages and be sure to include current email address and phone number);
          2. One professional or academic letter of reference;
          3. Statement of Interest that includes the following: (maximum length: 600-800 words) 
          • Description of how attending ELC’s professional training, Setting the Stage for Successful Evaluations,  will enhance your career and support your organization's goals (if applicable);
          • Description of how better integration in the evaluation community could benefit your organization or future practice;
          • Description of your interest and any demonstrated work in the field of evaluation or plans to do so in the future; and, 
          • Reflection on the importance of integrating WE’s antiracism principles into future work and how it could inform analyzing disparities for critical subgroups of the population.
                  4.  Statement of Financial Need to support professional development, including for those              working in non-profit organizations or new professionals working in government                        agencies.
                  5.  Indicate availability to attend Setting the Stage for Successful Evaluations on March 15th                  and 17th.

            *Please note that incomplete applications will not be considered.

            Benefits to the Scholarship Recipient

            Individuals who receive the scholarship award will have the opportunity to become increasingly active in the local and national evaluation communities, including professional development events and networking opportunities. Specifically, funds will be awarded to support the recipients' participation in the March 2021 training opportunity offered by EnCompass Learning Center (ELC), in Washington, DC. In addition, Washington Evaluators will provide a one-year complimentary membership, with participation in the Washington Evaluators Mentor Minutes program. 

            Selection Criteria

            Applications will be reviewed by the Scholarship Task Force on a 100-point scale, allocated as follows:

            • Letter of Reference - 25 points
            • Statement of Interest - 55 points
            • Statement of Financial Need - 20 points
            • Resume/CV - 0 (minimum requirement)

            Commitment of the selected New Professional Scholars

              • Attend a two-day online training at EnCompass Learning Center (ELC) on March 15th and 17th. 
              • Make a presentation to the Washington Evaluators Board and/or membership within four months of the ELC training to describe how (1) knowledge gained through the training, and (2) Washington Evaluators membership benefited the individual scholarship recipient and their organization where appropriate.
              • Participate in the Washington Evaluators Mentor Minutes program

              How to Apply

              Please submit completed application materials in PDF format (see Application Materials) by 11:59 p.m. EST by Friday February 19, 2021 via email: scholarship@washingtonevaluators.org with the subject line: “Application for 2021 New Professional Scholarship.” You may address the email to the Scholarship Committee. Your letter of reference should also be submitted to this email address; you can either directly submit it with your other application materials, or your letter writer can submit it to us in an email on your behalf with the subject line: "2021 New Professional Scholarship Reference Letter for APPLICANT LAST NAME." We encourage emerging evaluators from groups underrepresented in the evaluation profession to apply. 


              Should you have any questions about the 2021 New Professional scholarship, please do not hesitate to email us at scholarship@washingtonevaluators.org.

              Scholarship Recipients will be notified via email by Friday, March 5, 2021. Confirmation to Washington Evaluators will be required from the Scholarship Recipient by Tuesday, March 9, 2021. One scholarship recipient will be selected from applicant submissions. 


                Volunteers Needed: Scholarship Application Reviewers

                Overview

                Washington Evaluators is seeking volunteers to serve as Scholarship Application Reviewers. Volunteers may be any evaluation professionals with five or more years of work experience./1  This volunteer opportunity is virtual and open to both Washington Evaluators members and non-members.

                The purpose of this role is to help ensure the fair selection of 2021 New Professional Scholarship recipients through the objective review of scholarship applications. Scholarship Application Reviewers will serve as part of a 2021 Application Review Committee that will select four awardees between February-July 2021. Please read below for more information on what this volunteer opportunity entails. 

                1 / Evaluation professionals of diverse backgrounds and specialties are encouraged to volunteer as Scholarship Application Reviewers including independent consultants, evaluation educators, managers, or sponsors, and professionals who work with evaluators in non-profits, foundations, educational, government, or other organizations. 

                What am I expected to do in my role?

                You are expected to thoughtfully read and score scholarship applications using a pre-established rubric. After scoring the applications, you are expected to work with your fellow reviewers (i.e, the Application Review Committee) to decide who is the scholarship winner. In 2021, there will be four winners selected for three different scholarship offerings. While the duration of your service can be flexible, we are hoping to find volunteers who can commit to judging all three rounds of scholarship applications, as described below.  

                What is the scholarship review timeline?

                1st round of review: The first round of scholarship applications will be expected to be reviewed from February 22-March 3, 2021. One winner will need to be selected for this opportunity. 

                2nd round of review: The second round of scholarship applications will be expected to be reviewed from April 20th-April 30th, 2021. One winner will need to be selected for this opportunity. 

                3rd round of review: The third round of scholarship applications will be expected to be reviewed sometime in June or July 2021. Exact dates to be determined and communicated within the coming months. Two winners will need to be selected for this opportunity.  

                How much time will it take to review applications for each scholarship offering?

                This will depend on how many applications we receive for each scholarship opportunity. Given that the scholarship program is relatively new and varies in its offerings from year-to-year, the number of applicants vary as well so it is difficult to know how many applicants we will receive. Last year, we received 8 applications and reviewers spent about 15-20 minutes scoring each application. The review committee met one time for about an hour to make their decision about two scholarship winners. Should we receive an unusually high volume of applications this year, the Scholarship Committee will explore ways of dividing up the labor so that no volunteer is overburdened by their tasks.

                Any other questions?

                Please email scholarship@washingtonevaluators.org.

                Interested in Serving?

                Please send a digital copy of your CV/resume and include in the body of the email a brief statement (1 paragraph) explaining your interest in this position and confirm the number of scholarship application rounds you would be able to judge. Emails should be directed to scholarship@washingtonevaluators.org with the subject line "2021 Scholarship Application Reviewer."









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