By Alex Nordman-Becker and Steve Mumford University of New Orleans Intergenerational collaboration in evaluation creates space for young and emerging evaluators to help shape the evaluation field. While experienced evaluators bring years of knowledge and training to evaluations, young and emerging evaluators hold potential to challenge norms and find innovative approaches guided by their lived experiences. This blog explores the reflections of a New Orleans-based evaluation team navigating the benefits, challenges, and lessons learned as a multigenerational team. Learning through community partners Alex met Steve through her doctorate programme because of her interest in community-based evaluations. Steve became her advisor and engaged her as a graduate research assistant supporting his evaluation work. Together, we worked on a year-long evaluation for the New Orleans Youth Master Plan (YMP). The New Orleans YMP is a 10-year plan created through the New Orleans Children and Youth Planning Board (CYPB), a planning board made up of community members and staff who work to drive change that improves outcomes for children and youth in Orleans Parish from birth to 24 years old. Throughout this evaluation, we benefitted from the youth-centered values of the client and programme, which constantly reminded our team to listen to youth voices and respect their expertise. Our intergenerational evaluation experience Alex: Finding my voice as an emerging evaluator As a young and emerging evaluator working on my first evaluation project, I felt thrown into deep water and I had not yet learned to swim. I was fortunate to have in Steve a mentor who created space for me to discover my own rhythm. Mentorship is an important piece to intergenerational collaboration but must be intentional as it can reinforce unequal dynamics where mentors hold knowledge to impart to the mentee and the mentee is to learn and absorb the teaching. This model of mentorship dismisses the experiences and expertise that the mentee could bring to the relationship. In contrast, youth mentorship in evaluation is a shared journey where values transcend knowledge transferred and that focuses on the growth, support, and relationships built. Mentorship also has the potential to be transformative where the mentor and mentee learn and gain new experiences from each other. My experience with Steve and the YMP evaluation embodied what transformational mentorship can look like. Receiving a master’s in clinical mental health counseling focusing on children and youth, I found I had skills that applied to evaluation like building rapport and facilitating groups. Steve showed genuine respect and interest in my experiences in counseling and being a young person. I felt comfortable challenging Steve at times to consider the deeper incorporation of youth, driven by my counseling experiences. A challenge I experienced while working on our multigenerational team was feeling limited at times to only speak to the youth pieces of the evaluation. A challenge I experienced while working on our multigenerational team was feeling limited at times to only speak to the youth pieces of the evaluation. For example, I lead the youth focus group, but Steve took the lead for adult interviews. Although we were a multigenerational team, intergenerational collaboration was limited by primarily working with participants that reflected our age groups. This generational divide was also reflected in our evaluation findings, where both youth and adult YMP members noted that they also wished for more intentional intergenerational collaboration within the organization such as joint youth and adult board meetings. Steve: How I learned from Alex    I’ve been working in the evaluation field for more than 15 years and have conducted a wide variety of evaluations in different teams. However, prior to evaluating the YMP, I had never considered how to intentionally collaborate across generations within evaluation. As an educator, I believe strongly in nurturing and supporting emerging evaluators. But I also slip into my role as a professor and the power dynamics that carries with it, engaging young people in a more instructional manner as opposed to on equal footing. The YMP’s emphasis on honoring youth voices, and my experience working with Alex, changed all that. Throughout the YMP evaluation, I saw first-hand how Alex’s positionality as a young person and emerging evaluator benefitted our team. For instance, Alex was able to more quickly build rapport with the youth participants in our evaluation and encourage candor, as she did when conducting a focus group with youth leaders. Alex’s contributions extended beyond our team’s interactions with youth, though, and offered a fresh perspective on all aspects of the evaluation. The collaboration became a trusting two-way relationship that provided constructive feedback, benefitting both of us. At the same time, our team contended with a constant gravitational pull towards deference to age and experience, in part because of our location within a university. I was addressed as Dr. Mumford, even by Alex, while she was addressed by her first name. When we presented our findings, despite our careful efforts to divide sections between us, I found myself talking over her at times to reiterate points I thought needed emphasis. I had to reflect on these experiences and acknowledge where I had fallen short, and Alex helped me do that. The collaboration became a trusting two-way relationship that provided constructive feedback, benefitting both of us. At the final YMP evaluation presentation, Alex and Steve present their findings to youth and adult members of the Children and Youth Planning Board (CYPB). (Photo courtesy of New Orleans CYPB and Lavonte Lucas) A lesson in intentionality and balance Multigenerational teams face the challenge of not falling into the old patterns of adultism that shape our society. There needs to be a more equal and fair division of labour but also support and learning opportunities for the emerging evaluator. Intergenerational collaboration requires a careful balance that is easier said than done within all of the contextual constraints. To young and emerging evaluators, be confident in knowing you have experiences that add value to evaluations. Communicate your needs to mentors and team members, from leading interviews to adding your own knowledge based on lived experiences. To older evaluators, realize that your younger colleagues have important perspectives to offer if you step back and listen. Intergenerational collaboration allows for two-way mentoring, where the mentor can learn from the mentee in return. Evaluations face challenging constraints, such as pressures around time, resources, and client expectations. These pressures can have the side effect of privileging expertise and professional experience and deemphasizing opportunities for two-way mentorship and intergenerational collaboration. However, if we make space for younger colleagues to shine, supporting them along the way, we become a stronger team. Alex Nordman-Becker is a young and emerging evaluator from New Orleans, LA. Alex is currently pursuing her PhD in Justice Studies at the University of New Orleans with a focus on youth-focused evaluations and Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR). She also serves as the data manager/lead analyst for the New Orleans Children and Youth Planning Board. Connect with Alex on LinkedIn . Steve Mumford, PhD, is a tenured Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of New Orleans, where he directs the Master of Public Administration (MPA) program and served as founding Coordinator of the PhD in Justice Studies. He recently co-edited the Research Handbook on Program Evaluation with Kathryn Newcomer. Disclaimer: The content of the blog is the responsibility of the author(s) and does not necessarily reflect the views of Eval4Action co-leaders and partners.

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The Summit for the Future of Evaluation will be held on 29-30 May 2025 in Colombo, Sri Lanka as a featured event at the Evaluation Conclave 2025. 29-30 May 2025 | Colombo, Sri Lanka The Summit for the Future of Evaluation will be held on 29-30 May 2025 in Colombo, Sri Lanka as a featured event at the Evaluation Conclave 2025 . The Summit marks the fifth anniversary of the Eval4Action campaign and the tenth anniversary of the EvalYouth Global Network and the Global Parliamentarian Forum for Evaluation (GPFE). Inspired by the United Nations Summit of the Future and its resulting Pact for the Future , this Summit calls for global collaboration in the evaluation field to accelerate the delivery of the Sustainable Development Goals, focusing on meaningful youth engagement in evaluation and the ethical use of AI in evaluation. The Summit will feature the #EvalTorch relay signifying a collaborative journey towards the future of evaluation. The Summit will also host the 2025 Youth in Evaluation Champions Award Ceremony, honoring organizations committed to empowering young evaluators. Registrations open in February 2025 as part of Evaluation Conclave 2025. Youth in Evaluation champions in 2024 and 2025 will receive a special invitation to attend the awards ceremony at the Summit. Stay tuned for the Summit programme. Overview Evaluation Conclave 2025

#EvalTorch is both a symbol and a call to action, uniting the global evaluation community to build a future where evaluation contributes to a more just, inclusive, and equitable world. #EvalTorch is a symbol and a call to action, uniting the evaluation community to build a future where evaluation contributes to a more just and sustainable world. Starting its journey during the International Year of Evaluation in 2015, #EvalTorch carried the light of influential and transformative evaluation to over 70 countries and 92 events. Now reignited, #EvalTorch is travelling the world once again to celebrate the progress made and inspire action to make evaluation future-fit to address global challenges and opportunities. Aligned with the vision of the United Nations Pact for the Future , #EvalTorch also serves as a central and dynamic element of the upcoming Summit for the Future of Evaluation . FAQ Communications pack Brand guide #EvalTorch relay Explore the #EvalTorch relay schedule and join the conversation about the future of evaluation. Interested in featuring #EvalTorch at your evaluation event? Reach out to contact@eval4action.org to discuss opportunities. IDEAS conference 4-6 March 2025 Rome, Italy organized by IDEAS and NDB The 3rd Summer Evaluation Bootcamp for YEEs 9-14 June 2025 Gansu Province, China organized by MEA AfrEA@25 16-18 June 2025 Addis Ababa, Ethiopia organized by AfrEA 5th APEA Conference 11-14 November 2025 Tokyo, Japan organized by APEA More events coming soon How to respond to the call for papers webinar 8 March 2025 Virtual event organized by 2IEval Real-time evaluation for agile decision making webinar 25 March 2025 Virtual event organized by APEA Evaluation Conclave and Summit for the Future of Evaluation 27-30 May 2025 Colombo, Sri Lanka organized by CoE-SA FIFE 2025 10-12 June 2025 Ivory Coast organized by RFE

The Decade of Evaluation for Action, also known as the #Eval4Action campaign, to accelerate progress on the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. influential evaluation. better decisions. better results. better policies. get involved Get ready for the most exciting event in the evaluation space! Learn more A featured event at the Evaluation Conclave 2025 29-30 May 2025 | Colombo, Sri Lanka Your special delivery is here! Find resources to initiate and enhance meaningful youth engagement in evaluation Unbox your toolbox Standards for enhancing meaningful engagement of youth in evaluation 2024-2025 Tailored standards for academia, governments, international organizations, the private sector, VOPEs/EvalYouth chapters and youth organizations learn more latest 1000 signatories Sign the manifesto Self-report on the Youth in Evaluation standards #Eval4Action February Newsletter Subscribe Achieving balance within intergenerational programme evaluation By Alex Nordman-Becker and Steve Mumford #Eval4Action is a SDG Good Practice events tracker Datawrapper