research evaluation

The RiSE Center has collaborated with a variety of internal and external partners for program evaluation for STEM education-related projects. We provide a wealth of experience and knowledge across a variety of project types, including research-practice partnerships, external evaluation for undergraduate research experiences (e.g. NSF’s REU program), and community education evaluation. Our research expertise includes working with K-12 STEM educators, pre-service teacher programs, undergraduate education, and more.

Evaluation request Process

  • Email risecenter@maine.edu for all evaluation inquiries
  • Timeline:
    • At least 4-6 weeks prior to your budget deadline (but even earlier is better!): Contact us to set up a meeting to discuss your proposal and determine evaluation goals. 
    • We need a minimum of 3 weeks to create a draft budget and evaluation plan for your review. Please allow for at least 1 week prior to your narrative deadline for any edits that need to be made on our end for a final draft. 
  • Documents needed:
    • Project logic model (if applicable)
    • Proposal narrative
    • Rough budget allocation for evaluation

Our staff needs adequate time to understand the proposed work and develop an evaluation plan that we feel is best suited to our strengths and your program goals. Our deadlines reflect our commitment to quality evaluation for your project.

Evaluation cost

In general, to deliver an evaluation plan that we feel is representative of our rigor and quality of work, we typically request 15% of the budget for staff evaluation time. When possible, graduate student support can also provide support for more robust evaluation efforts, such as interviews with project participants. Please consider these direct and indirect support costs as you assess your budgetary and evaluation needs.