Responsive Evaluation Design (RED): A Framework for Evaluating NSF S-STEM Projects

Fixed benchmarks can show whether an outcome changed. They rarely show how, for whom, or under what conditions. This 60-minute webinar introduces Responsive Evaluation Design (RED), the framework presented in the new AAAS S-STEM REC white paper developed by MN Associates, Inc. (MNA). Building on Robert Stake’s responsive evaluation, RED centers stakeholder concerns, treats context as central rather than as noise, and lets early findings shape the evaluation as a project unfolds. The session will walk through RED’s seven core principles, show how RED works alongside logic models, the CDC Framework for Program Evaluation, the Kirkpatrick Model, and Utilization-Focused Evaluation, and share mock examples from S-STEM projects across biology, computer science, physics, and multidisciplinary settings. Resources will be provided, and time will be allotted for live Q&A.