Evidence Capacity

The Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018 (“the Evidence Act”) requires federal agencies to develop evidence to support policymaking. In its guidance for implementation of the Evidence Act, the Office of Management and Budget defines evidence broadly  (PDF), to include “foundational fact finding, performance management, policy analysis, and program evaluation.”  

“Evidence capacity” refers to the knowledge, skills, behaviors, and resources that enable an organization to build and use evidence in its work. OPRE’s Evidence Capacity Framework outlines five key dimensions of capacity, drawn from the literature on effective organizations. Organizations of any size can build evidence capacity, from local service providers and states to federal programs and agencies.

Examples of evidence capacity-building activities include learning agenda development, performance measurement design or improvement, and providing training and technical assistance on evidence-related topics such as rapid cycle evaluation and continuous quality improvement. Many OPRE projects support the development of evidence capacity within ACF and among its grant recipients.

Division of Data and Improvement Evidence Capacity Team

OPRE’s Division of Data and Improvement (DDI) supports ACF programs in responsibly managing and using data to improve the effectiveness, and efficiency, of human services programs. Within DDI, the Evidence Capacity team offers consultation with ACF programs that would like to develop and analyze data to improve management, performance, and information sharing. 
 

The team works collaboratively with ACF programs to identify and define their information needs, assess the suitability of current data to address those needs, and design data analyses and data collections that contribute evidence to program operations and administration.  The team also connects program partners to other evidence-building resources within OPRE, ACF, and the government more broadly. The ACF Evidence Capacity Support project is a resource available to support partnerships between OPRE and ACF programs in this work.
 

For more information about working with DDI’s Evidence Capacity team and the resources the team can offer, please contact Nicole Deterding (Nicole.Deterding@acf.hhs.gov), Team Lead for Evidence Capacity, OPRE Division of Data and Improvement.