The Harvard Family Research Project separated from the Harvard Graduate School of Education to become the Global Family Research Project as of January 1, 2017. It is no longer affiliated with Harvard University.
Volume I, Number 2, Spring 1995
Issue Topic: Evaluating School-Linked Services
Evaluations to Watch
New Jersey's School-Based Youth Services Program (SBYSP)
The Academy for Education Development (AED) will conduct a multi-phase evaluation of SBYSP, supported by a three-year grant from the Annie E. Casey Foundation. Established in 1987, the SBYSP provides a range of services to children and adolescents at 29 secondary schools and 16 primary schools. Core services include mental health counseling, primary and preventive health care, employment preparation, substance abuse counseling, recreation, crisis intervention, referrals to health and social services, and summer programs. Managing agencies for the sites include school districts, hospitals, mental health agencies, and nonprofit agencies.
The evaluation will be conducted in two phases. The first will analyze the SBYSP's policy context as well as conduct a cross-site implementation study to examine the organization, staffing, and human and fiscal management of the 29 individual projects, the array of services offered, the service delivery strategies, and the relationship of the projects to their school sites and lead agencies. The second study will be an outcomes evaluation of six to nine sites, covering two school years and intervening summer sessions. Its design will be developed during the initial study based on the data collected.
Throughout the evaluation, AED staff will work closely with state and local SBYSP personnel. During the first phase, key staff at all 29 sites will be surveyed—using interviews, focus groups, and surveys—to identify the short- and long-term outcomes that will form the basis of the intensive evaluation phase. This outcome list will be refined further in a feedback meeting with project directors. In addition to helping sites clarify their goals and outcomes, AED will help projects put in place self-evaluation tools that can be used after the project ends.
For further information, contact:
Sandy Weinbaum
Academy for Educational Development
212-243-1110