Who are you and who are the members of your team?
Kate Stephenson is the Project Director, and Michelle Graef is the PI. Current team members include: Toby Burnham, Stephanie Weddington, and Patrick Williams.
How long has your project been around?
The waiver project started in October 2013. We will continue to collect data through June of 2019. Then, we will have until the end of December 2019 to complete our final analyses and submit the final report.
What are you currently working on?
The waiver evaluation include an examination of two departmental programs: Alternative Response and Provider Performance Improvement (formerly Results Based Accountability). With Alternative Response (AR), we are, for the most part, in cruise control with most of our data collection efforts. However, we have recently completed focus groups with front-line AR staff. We are also working to complete case file reviews. With Provider Performance Improvement (PPI), we are working with DCFS to complete a process evaluation and examine current practice under this new program. We have just recently determined the evaluation questions and are currently working to outline a data collect plan.
What are you hoping to accomplish during the next year?
Data collection will continue to run through next summer, with final data being pulled at the end of June 2019. So, the next year will be spent prepping for final analyses and collecting additional data to wrap up the project.