Data Support, Systems Administration and Evaluation

The Free Minds Book Club & Writing Workshop (Free Minds) engaged Choice Research Associates in 2019 to provide evaluation planning services and data system development assistance focused on the Free Minds Reentry Program. This project involved reviewing the existing Efforts to Outcomes (ETO) legacy system; developing new data collection tools (e.g., a common intake survey that can be used across the Free Minds programs); assisting in the configuring the new Free Minds ETO system after it was migrated to ETO Touch Points, and developing custom reports.

The House of Ruth has provided critical services to residents of the District of Columbia for over 40 years -- housing the homeless, providing domestic violence counseling and childcare. Beginning in 2017, Choice Research Associates (CRA) was asked to assist House of Ruth by conducting an assessment of their siloed data systems and providing a report including recommendations for streamlining and integrating data collection into routine operational processes. As a result, CRA is working with House of Ruth to implement the Penelope Case Management system, agency wide. Once implemented, CRA will serve as an external Systems Administrator configuring the system, providing training, and developing custom reports. This project also involves a review of the House of Ruth strategic plan to map the plan to long term goals, short term outcomes, and common intervention process measures (e.g., case management assessment, referrals and contacts) captured in the Penelope system.

Choice Research Associates works with the Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement (ONSE) Pathways Program as an Efforts to Outcomes (ETO) systems administrator. Tasks include initial and ongoing configuration of the system, user training, helpdesk support, and development of custom ETO management and data validation reports.

Community Family Life Services (CFLS) is a community-based organization in the District of Columbia established in 1969, working with justice involved women returning from prison and jail. CFLS engaged CRA in 2021 to conduct a review of their existing data system (Apricot) and program operating procedures and provide recommendations for data collection process revisions. The project also provides for ongoing technical assistance to help CFLS to refine and/or develop short-term and long-term goals, with an emphasis on creating metrics to examine participant process and outcomes throughout the continuum of services provided by CFLS.

The ETO Support project for Choice Research Associates (CRA) is a continuation of prior work starting in 2013 with the Principal Investigator, Shawn Flower, and ETO Administrator Laura Gerhard in their former capacity with the Justice Research and Statistics Association (JRSA). The prior project “Building Capacity for Performance Measurement and Evaluation” (BCPME) responded to the needs of OVSJG to help grantees become better prepared to respond to the Federal, State, and local demands for data-driven decision making.

The current project includes working with the OVSJG funded District of Columbia Reentry Coalition (DCRC) grantees to improve the capacity of the grantees to collect high-quality performance measure data. The other portion of the project is development and configuration of the ETO system for three end users -- DCRC grantees, the Supportive Housing/Housing First program (2021 to present) and the District of Columbia Show Up, Stand Out Truancy Reduction Project (2012 to present).  For these projects, we provide training and technical assistance for integration of data from all community-based organizations involved in the project; monitor data and oversee creation of ad-hoc and standard reports for ongoing evaluation efforts.