The evaluation will be an ongoing process focused on the attainment of the project’s goals and objectives. It will contribute to align the project with the evaluation of the partner institutions’ comprehensive goals to promote future sustainability and growth. The plan involves the systematic collection of information for determining the extent to which the project’s objectives have been met and on using that information to make effective decisions to continuously strengthen and improve the project. Evaluation will be both formative and summative and will require the acquisition of both quantitative and qualitative data as evidence of accomplishment. The Project Director will have the primary responsibility for all evaluation activities. He will coordinate the evaluation process with the Co-director.

Formative Evaluation
The ongoing formative evaluation will ensure the timely modification of strategies, schedules, reallocation of resources, and/or revision of managerial decisions as needed to guarantee the attainment of the project’s objectives. The measurable objectives for each activity support the use of quantifiable and/or qualitative data to substantiate progress of activities and their impact on institutional problems as stated in the CDP. They will serve as the standards for the objective-based evaluation. A baseline databank will be compiled from existing campus resources during the first year. This data will be used in making statistical comparisons to assess project achievement and impact. Definite timelines have been established for the completion of evaluation milestones and are presented in the activity timetables. Using these timelines along with the objectives and performance indicators, the Project Director and Co-director will be able to determine the attainment of the degree to which the milestones for the activity have been met. They will be responsible for continual monitoring and monthly documentation of progress of each partner institution in relation to the activity’s timelines.

Summative Evaluation
A summative evaluation will be conducted at the end of each grant year to determine if the Project has attained its intended outcomes for that year. The Project Director and Co-director, together with the External Evaluator, will review the data relative to project performance. The External Evaluator will prepare a cumulative evaluation report that will be used to inform the Annual Performance Report prepared for the Department of Education. The Chancellors of both institutions will review these reports. The effectiveness of the implementation strategy in meeting activity objectives will be analyzed, accomplishments will be highlighted, and necessary adjustments to resolve any problems will be implemented. This outcomes-based evaluation plan will provide a clear structure for monitoring the impact of the project as a whole.

The External Evaluator will also perform a final summative evaluation at the end of the project to assess the effect of the project’s accomplishments in achieving the institutional goals and promoting institutional self-sufficiency. It will also address specific outcomes and will consider the overall impact of the project on solving the problems established in the partner institutions’ comprehensive development plan. Although an external evaluator is not required, an objective evaluation by an outside agent will contribute to enhance overall implementation and success of the project. In addition to the abovementioned responsibilities, the external evaluator will review with the Project Director, all evaluation procedures and assist with the development of instruments for use in the evaluation, as well as maintain responsibility for the overall evaluation design, participation in data collection, the review of data, and the analysis and reporting of findings. He/she will be a well-qualified outside person that will provide expertise in the project’s assessment on a regular basis from its start and culminating in its final year.