On the Evidence

On the latest episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast, M-KOPA Chief Executive Officer Jesse Moore talks about increasing access to financial and digital services for unbanked workers in Africa by leasing out smartphones. He and Paul Decker, the president and chief executive officer of Mathematica, discuss the needs of everyday earners in Africa who work regular but informal jobs that make it difficult to build credit and open a bank account. They also discuss the role of data in informing an organization's business strategy as well as assessing its social impact on customers. Find a blog summarizing highlights from the conversation, plus the full transcript here: mathematica.org/blogs/how-a-fintech-company-helps-workers-in-africa-access-credit-and-savings-with-smartphones

This episode features audio from an in-person roundtable discussion at the 2024 Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management Fall Research Conference. The roundtable focused on the five-year anniversary of The Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act and a recent report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) on federal agencies' ability to assess their capacity to collect and use evidence. The panelists also discussed what needs to happen next to further strengthen the use of evidence in the federal government. The roundtable featured remarks from Erika Rissi, Nick Hart, Melinda Buntin, Rachel Snyderman, and Paul Decker. Rissi is the chief evaluation officer of the National Science Foundation, where she is also the Head of its Evaluation and Assessment Capability Section. Hart is the president and CEO of the Data Foundation. Buntin is a professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the Carey Business School. Snyderman is the managing director of the Bipartisan Policy Center's Economic Policy Program. Decker is the president and chief executive officer of Mathematica. You can also read a short blog by Decker summarizing key themes from the roundtable here: https://mathematica.org/blogs/advancing-and-enhancing-evidence-based-policymaking Listen to a past episode of On the Evidence featuring a discussion about the five-year anniversary of the Evidence Act with experts from government, think tanks, research organizations, and academia: https://mathematica.org/blogs/building-on-the-evidence-act-to-increase-the-positive-impact-of-federal-policymaking Listen to a past episode of On the Evidence featuring Robert Shea, an expert on performance improvement in government who served on the bipartisan U.S. Commission on Evidence-Based Policymaking, a group whose recommendations informed the Evidence Act: https://mathematica.org/blogs/robert-shea-on-the-federal-governments-progress-in-using-evidence-to-improve-programs-and-policies

In the same way a doctor uses data to diagnose and treat a patient, states' public health agencies use data to measure and address health in their communities. In the United States, states have the autonomy to decide their own data policies, which influences the amount, quality, and timeliness of public health data they produce. On the heels of the worst global pandemic in a century—and at a time when technology is significantly changing the way that information flows to public health agencies—a new report from the Pew Charitable Trusts offers a first-of-its-kind glimpse into the patchwork of state data policies and practices that together form our modern system for the nation's public health data. The latest episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast features a discussion about the report's implications with Lilly Kan of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Annie Fine of the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists, Mary Beth Kurilo of the American Immunization Registry Association, and Monica Huang of Mathematica. A full transcript of the episode is available at mathematica.org/blogs/modernizing-state-public-health-data-policies-and-practices Read a blog by The Pew Charitable Trusts' Margaret Arneson and Kathy Talkington about key takeaways from the report: https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/articles/2024/12/12/states-must-modernize-public-health-data-reporting-new-report-finds-promising-practices Read the full report from the Pew Charitable Trusts, which was supported with research by Mathematica: https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/reports/2024/12/state-public-health-data-reporting-policies-and-practices-vary-widely Read a LinkedIn article from Kathy Talkington of The Pew Charitable Trusts discussing key takeaways from the report: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/public-health-data-reporting-strengths-shortcomings-kathy-talkington-gcdne/?trackingId=qNW27JNuSXq2Uf67iWKD9g%3D%3D Take an online quiz to test how much you know about public health data reporting: https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/articles/2024/12/12/how-much-do-you-know-about-public-health-data-reporting

On the latest episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast, Lauren Supplee, the deputy assistant secretary for planning, research, and evaluation at the Administration for Children and Families, sat down for a wide-ranging conversation about the use of evidence in social policy. Supplee reflected on this year's White House blueprint on social and behavioral science in government, which included Head Start as an example of a government program for children and families that benefited from decades of social policy research overseen by the Administration for Children and Families. On the episode, Supplee also discussed the role of research in informing improvements to Head Start over time, how the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act is changing the use of evidence in the federal government, and insights from Supplee's blog series on boosting the use of research evidence. Find a full transcript of the conversation here: https://mathematica.org/blogs/opres-lauren-supplee-on-boosting-the-use-of-social-policy-research Read the White House Office of Science and Technology blog announcing its Blueprint for the Use of Social and Behavioral Science to Advance Evidence-Based Policymaking: https://www.whitehouse.gov/ostp/news-updates/2024/05/15/applying-social-and-behavioral-science-to-federal-policies-and-programs-to-deliver-better-outcomes/ Read Lauren Supplee's blog about measuring whether and how evidence is used: https://www.acf.hhs.gov/opre/blog/2024/01/how-do-we-measure-whether-and-how-evidence-used Read Supplee's blog about cultivating more “knowledge brokers” in social policy research who translate complex data into action-ready insights: https://www.acf.hhs.gov/opre/blog/2024/07/can-we-all-develop-superpowers-knowledge-brokers Read Supplee's blog about establishing systems to support the use of evidence: https://www.acf.hhs.gov/opre/blog/2024/04/evidence-action-how-do-we-establish-systems-support-evidence-use Read a blog by Colleen Rathgeb, the former director of policy at the Office of Head Start and current associate deputy assistant secretary for the Office of Early Childhood Development, about research showing the need for full-day, year-round Head Start programs: https://www.acf.hhs.gov/archive/blog/2015/02/presidents-fy-2016-budget-head-start Explore the ELOF 2 Go mobile app, the free online tool Supplee references that supports teachers who want to access and learn more about the Head Start Early Learning Outcomes Framework (ELOF): https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ohs.elof2go&hl=en_US&pli=1 Watch the video series referenced by Supplee that shares the perspectives and experiences of those who are involved in obtaining and using data from the American Indian and Alaska Native Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey: https://www.acf.hhs.gov/opre/training-technical-assistance/overview-aian-faces-video-series

The latest episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast features Jeffery Marino, the director of California's Office of Data and Innovation (ODI). For the podcast, Mathematica's President and Chief Executive Officer Paul Decker spoke with Marino about ODI's CalAcademy for training state employees in areas such as plain language and human-centered design, California Governor Gavin Newsom's executive order on generative artificial intelligence, facilitating interagency data sharing agreements, and data-driven storytelling about government's impact in people's lives. They also discussed Marino's career trajectory: he majored in English literature in college, became a data journalist, and now leads ODI, a department within California's Government Operations Agency encouraging collaboration across state agencies to improve digital services for all Californians. Find the full transcript of the interview: https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/embedding-data-and-innovation-across-california-state-government Learn more about ODI's CalAcademy: https://innovation.ca.gov/who-we-are/calacademy/ Read California Governor Newsom's executive order on generative AI: https://www.gov.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/AI-EO-No.12-_-GGN-Signed.pdf Listen to an On the Evidence interview with Jennifer Pahlka, author of Recoding America: Why Government is Failing in the Digital Age and How We Can Do Better, which is referenced in the discussion between Decker and Marino: https://mathematica.org/blogs/jennifer-pahlka-on-government-in-the-digital-age Explore a playlist of interviews between Mathematica's Paul Decker and fellow leaders of evidence-driven organizations: https://soundcloud.com/ontheevidence/sets/evidence-leadership?si=ea534d2c041c44e99c289a8d4dffa664&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing

The latest episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast features an interview with Katherine Michelmore, an associate professor of public policy at the University of Michigan's Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy and the 24th recipient of the David N. Kershaw Award and Prize. Michelmore's research has focused on temporary expansions of tax credits during the COVID-19 pandemic, which is part of a growing body of evidence informing state and federal policy proposals to make permanent some or all of those changes. On the episode, Michelmore talks about her experiences interacting with the media and policymakers about the subject of her research, using a novel source of data from a private mobile app to study the impacts of an expanded Child Tax Credit on households, and questions she would like to pursue in the future related to tax credits that support working parents and their children. Find the full transcript at mathematica.org/blogs/kershaw-award-winner-katherine-michelmore-on-how-expanded-tax-credits-benefited-family-well-being Check out the Spotify playlist with interviews with the 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023 winners of the Kershaw Award: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1Qz9HKUOxBhj33neIpPEUd?si=9oBu3VV2QJig8nUgKVVUKg&nd=1&dlsi=c61b4fd6357f426d Going to the 2024 APPAM Fall Research Conference? On the Evidence will be there, too. Find us at the Mathematica booth. Send us a message at jwogan@mathematica-mpr.com to let us know you're coming. Read a working paper co-authored by Michelmore on the effects of the temporary expansion of the CTC on the economic well-being of families, including a reduction in food insecurity: https://www.nber.org/papers/w30533 Read an article co-authored by Michelmore on the effects of the temporary expansion of the CTC on housing affordability and the living arrangements of families: https://read.dukeupress.edu/demography/article/61/4/1069/389197/The-Effects-of-the-2021-Child-Tax-Credit-on Read an article co-authored by Michelmore on the effects of the temporary expansion of the CTC on short- and long-term child development, including the likely improvement of children's health: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/00027162241264412 Read a working paper co-authored by Michelmore on the effects of the temporary expansion of the childless EITC: https://www.nber.org/papers/w32571

In honor of Employee Ownership Month in October, Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast features a special episode with Paul Decker, Mathematica's president and chief executive officer, and Jim Bonham, the president and chief executive officer of The ESOP Association. On the episode, Decker and Bonham discuss the Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) as an evidence-based tool that benefits employees, consumers, and communities across the nation. An ESOP is a retirement vehicle for employees that many companies use to increase employee engagement and retain talent over time. As Decker and Bonham discuss on the episode, an ESOP can be more than a nice perk companies offer their employees. Business leaders and policymakers across the political spectrum have applauded the potential of ESOPs to strengthen the middle class and keep jobs in local communities. Research even shows ESOPs help reduce gender and racial wealth gaps. On the episode, Decker and Bonham discuss the benefits of ESOPs and challenges facing ESOPs going forward. A full transcript of the episode is available at https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/supporting-workers-and-strengthening-communities-through-employee-ownership Read the study from Institute for the Study of Employee Ownership and Profit Sharing within the School of Management and Labor Relations at Rutgers University that found ESOPs help narrow gender and racial wealth gaps: https://smlr.rutgers.edu/sites/smlr/files/Documents/News/rutgerskelloggreport_april2019.pdf Read an article in The Star-Ledger about the benefits of employee stock ownership plans for reducing wealth inequality and ensuring the longevity of a business, which describes Mathematica's experience with becoming an ESOP and quotes Paul Decker: https://www.nj.com/opinion/2024/09/nj-business-owners-need-a-succession-plan-and-workers-need-savings-we-can-solve-both-problems-opinion.html Learn more about Mathematica's history as an employee-owned company: https://mathematica.org/blogs/employee-ownership-is-at-the-heart-of-mathematica

A new episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast explores recent research that experimented with a new approach to equitable data collection that also equips individuals and their organizations with new skills and resources. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation contracted with Mathematica and its partner UBUNTU Research and Evaluation to learn how grassroots organizations in the housing justice movement had used grant funds for community power building. Through a fellowship program established by Mathematica and UBUNTU, researchers provided training in evaluation to fellows selected from staff at grassroots organizations while learning from those staff about the impact of the foundation's investment. The research also provided early evidence that the foundation's investment helped local grassroots organizations become more effective in achieving their affordable housing goals. On the episode, researchers and program fellows discuss the impact of the foundation's investment and how the fellowship model helped strengthen organizations' internal capacity to learn from campaigns and make evidence-informed changes. Find a full transcript of the episode at mathematica.org/blogs/how-evaluation-can-support-housing-justice-and-community-change Learn more about the housing justice and community power building evaluation conducted by Mathematica and UBUNTU on behalf of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation: https://www.ubunturesearch.com/hjet Explore the interactive graphic that illustrates a new framework for community power building in the housing justice movement: https://mathematica.org/features/the-house-that-justice-built Learn more about the recent (open source) book Drew Koleros edited on updating theories of change for the field of evaluation, which includes sections that are relevant for evaluating community power building: https://www.routledge.com/Theories-of-Change-in-Reality-Strengths-Limitations-and-Future-Directions/Koleros-Adrien-Tyrrell/p/book/9781032669588?srsltid=AfmBOooKlrBZhZa5lb2HnU1K2Nw-IjWyQQ660RW0qfWxzw9P3FUTYpMU

The latest episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast focuses on the potential for health data interoperability to improve people's health and well-being. Improved data interoperability is part of a broader push in the public and private sectors to use digital technology to make greater volumes of data available faster, at lower cost, and in higher-quality formats. These advances would make data easier to access, especially when needed to prevent or address urgent problems. In health care, the digital transformation in data could keep people healthier by improving the speed and quality of care patients receive. The episode features a discussion that originally aired as a webinar hosted by Mathematica's Health Data Innovation Lab, which examined strategies and tools for achieving greater data interoperability. During the webinar, Mathematica's Steve Linthicum moderated a conversation between Dr. Abel Kho of the Institute for Artificial Intelligence in Medicine at Northwestern University, Steven Gruner of HealthWare Systems, and Nicholai Mitchko of InterSystems. A full transcript of the episode is available at mathematica.org/ontheevidence Learn more about Mathematica's Health Data Innovation Lab: https://www.mathematica.org/sites/health-data-innovation-lab Watch the previous webinar hosted by Mathematica's Health Data Innovation Lab on data governance: https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/event-takeaways-using-data-governance-to-improve-health-outcomes Watch the previous webinar hosted by Mathematica's Health Data Innovation Lab on artificial intelligence: https://www.mathematica.org/news/health-ai-event-recap-its-all-about-the-data

Cecilia Rouse is the former dean of the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs and the current president of the Brookings Institution. For the first two years of the Biden administration, she was the chair of the Council of Economic Advisers—the first Black American to chair the council in its 75-year history. In August, she joined Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast for a conversation with Mathematica's President and Chief Executive Officer Paul Decker about leadership, the use of evidence in public policy, and the role of research organizations in improving public well-being. During the interview, Rouse talks about what she learned from her government posts about the role of research in informing policy decisions, how she thinks about the role of academic institutions in conducting policy research and training future public servants, how economics and related professions are doing at diversifying their workforces, and what she has learned about leadership. A full transcript of the episode is available at https://mathematica.org/blogs/cecilia-rouse-on-the-use-of-evidence-in-public-policy Listen to Rouse's January 2024 interview with the Brookings Institution's podcast, The Current, which posted shortly after she became the Brookings president: https://www.brookings.edu/articles/meet-cecilia-rouse-new-brookings-president/ Listen to Paul Decker's previous interviews about leadership and evidence-based decision making: https://staginginter.mathematica.net/search#q=paul%20decker&sort=relevancy&f:BlogSeries=%5BOn%20The%20Evidence%2DPodcast%5D&f:BlogSeries:operator=and

Thirty years ago, President Bill Clinton signed bipartisan legislation creating what is now known as AmeriCorps, a federal agency for national service and volunteerism. Since then, the agency estimates that more than 1.3 million AmeriCorps members and hundreds of thousands more AmeriCorps Seniors volunteers have provided billions of hours of service across each of the 50 states and U.S. territories. To commemorate the 30th anniversary of AmeriCorps, On the Evidence hosted a discussion about the role of data and research in helping AmeriCorps and its grantees deliver on their respective missions. The episode features Dr. Mary Hyde of AmeriCorps, Scott Richman of Mathematica, and Stephanie Garippa and Diana Gioia of Maggie's Place, an AmeriCorps grantee. On the episode, they discuss the important but complex task of measuring the impact of AmeriCorps, given that it seeks to not only spur higher levels of civic engagement and national service, but to simultaneously help its service members, partnering organizations, the communities in which both operate, and society as a whole. They talk about the kinds of evidence that AmeriCorps and grantees like Maggie's Place collect, how that evidence is used to drive impact, and how the role of evidence in guiding AmeriCorps' work has evolved over time. Read the 2023 AmeriCorps State of the Evidence Report: https://www.mathematica.org/publications/americorps-2023-state-of-the-evidence-report Find the full transcript for the episode at https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/how-americorps-uses-data-to-support-communities-through-national-service-and-volunteerism

Twenty years ago, the U.S. Congress created a new federal agency that represented a bold experiment in international aid. That agency, the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), strove to reduce global poverty through grant-making to low- and lower-middle-income countries that demonstrated a commitment to good governance, economic freedom, and investing in their citizens. Part of what made MCC distinct in the international development space was its evidence-based approach, which focused on evaluating impacts and fostering a culture of learning and accountability to improve the effectiveness of aid. For this episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast, and in recognition of the agency's 20th anniversary, Alicia Phillips Mandaville of MCC joins Jeff Bernson of Mathematica to discuss the agency's past, present, and future. Among other topics, Phillips Mandaville and Bernson discuss how MCC approaches country ownership and locally led development, how the agency's evidence-based approach to learning has evolved over time, and what MCC has learned about how to reduce poverty in developing countries. A full transcript of the episode is available at mathematica.org/blogs/twenty-years-of-insights-from-the-millennium-challenge-corporation-on-reducing-poverty. Visit MCC's 20th anniversary page, which reflects further on the agency's impacts over two decades: https://www.mcc.gov/about/priority/20th-anniversary/

Our guest for this episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast is Dr. Aaron Carroll, a pediatrician, health researcher, and science communicator who recently assumed the post of president and chief executive officer at AcademyHealth, the leading national organization for convening and sharing information across health services researchers, policymakers, and health care practitioners. On the Evidence spoke with Carroll ahead of his organization's Health Datapalooza conference in mid-September. This year, the event is focused on data-driven solutions that address critical public health challenges. The conference's theme reflects a collaboration between AcademyHealth and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to facilitate greater coordination and learning across health care and public health data systems. Mathematica is a member organization of AcademyHealth and a sponsor of the 2024 Health Datapalooza. In the episode, Carroll discusses what he has learned about effective science communication from blogging for The Incidental Economist, hosting the Healthcare Triage podcast, authoring several books, publishing research in peer-review journals, and contributing regularly to The New York Times. The interview covers a range of other topics as well, including the implications of climate change and artificial intelligence on health care and health services research; the need for greater interoperability among health and social services data systems; and the value of solutions for addressing the social determinants of health. Visit our website for a transcript of this episode: https://mathematica.org/blogs/aaron-carroll-on-the-future-of-health-services-research Watch the Healthcare Triage series on health and climate change: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLkfBg8ML-gInVPCl7zVMWvRX3SVwTRhgc Read Carroll's guest essay in The New York Times about lessons from other countries that could improve health care in the U.S.: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/13/opinion/health-care-reform.html Learn more about Mathematica's interdisciplinary climate practice: https://www.mathematica.org/sp/climate-change/climate-action Read a blog series by Mathematica staff about improving the quality and usability of social determinants of health data: https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/to-address-the-social-determinants-of-health-start-with-the-data Listen to a podcast about a federally-funded initiative to improve the collection of information from patients about their health-related social needs: https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/lessons-from-a-national-health-initiative-that-helps-address-social-needs Learn more about Mathematica's public health data modernization work, including recent projects for the Pew Charitable Trusts on public health data policies and practices in states, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation on transforming public health data systems to advance equity, and operation of a Public Health Data Modernization Implementation Center for the CDC and Public Health Infrastructure Grant National Partners: https://www.mathematica.org/sp/public-health Learn more about Mathematica's Health Data Innovation Lab, which connects health care industry professionals with data scientists, social scientists, and technologists to address complex challenges within a health care organization or tackle broader issues related to fragmented care, social determinants of health, and health care inequality: https://staginginter.mathematica.net/sites/health-data-innovation-lab

In the United States, conversations about solutions to climate change often revolve around reducing fossil fuel emissions from human activities. But many believe regenerative agricultural practices and other nature-based solutions—which use soil and plants and try to either prevent or capture emissions—should complement policies and programs to reduce emissions from vehicles and power plants. As the nature-based climate solutions mature, public and private organizations that invest in them will need ways to measure their impact. In an interview with Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast, Dr. Jenny Soong, a soil biogeochemist within Mathematica's interdisciplinary climate practice, explains how better measurement, better data collection, and better web-based decision support tools could ensure the effective implementation of regenerative agriculture and other nature-based climate solutions. Find a full transcript of the episode at mathematica.org/ontheevidence. Learn more about Mathematica's interdisciplinary climate practice: https://www.mathematica.org/sp/climate-change/climate-action

The latest episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast coincides with June 19, which is celebrated by many around the United States as Juneteenth, a federal holiday commemorating the end of slavery in this country. Recently, one way staff at Mathematica have honored this important moment in U.S. history is by joining together in person and virtually on June 18th to read aloud and discuss a speech by Frederick Douglass titled “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?” Douglass gave the speech in front of a predominately white abolitionist audience about 11 years before President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, declaring more than three million enslaved people living in the Confederate states to be free. The speech focuses on the contradiction of celebrating liberty at a time when millions remained in slavery. It both celebrates the ideals of the country's founding and laments how the country has fallen short of those ideals. This episode of On the Evidence features an interview with Sheldon Bond, the deputy director of Mathematica's labor and employment area, who also acts as a co-lead for the company's Black Employee Resource Group. Mathematica's Black and Disability employee resource groups work with the Princeton Public Library to organize the readings of Frederick Douglass's speech. The episode also features clips from last year's Juneteenth event, with passages read by Mathematica's Rachel Miller, Sarah Lieff, Gloria Jackson, Stacie Feldman, Rachael Jackson, A'lantra Wright, Kirsten Miller, Boyd Gilman, and Dawnavan Davis. A full transcript from the episode is available here: mathematica.org/blogs/on-juneteenth-reflecting-on-our-collective-equity-journey Read Sheldon Bond's My Mathematica blog about how, as a natural introvert, he has learned to communicate, connect, and build relationships in the context of a growing company with an increasingly hybrid work culture: https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/my-mathematica-sheldon-bond

Within the past few years, organizations that help improve public well-being by providing data-driven insights have witnessed significant changes. From a digital transformation hastened by big data and artificial intelligence (AI) to the globalization of evidence-based solutions for problems that transcend borders, changes in technology, society, and culture are challenging leaders to rethink how their organizations operate. On the latest episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast, NORC at the University of Chicago President and Chief Executive Officer Dan Gaylin joined Mathematica President and Chief Executive Officer Paul Decker for a wide-ranging discussion about leadership, AI, globalization, the COVID-19 pandemic, and advocating for the use of high-quality evidence without straying into activism. Find a full transcript at mathematica.org/blogs/norc-and-mathematica-ceos-on-the-future-of-data-and-evidence Read an article by Dan Gaylin on LinkedIn where he explains his philosophy around the importance of sharing research findings: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/from-silence-significance-case-sharing-your-research-dan-gaylin-d1cve/?trackingId=Mm6Fa4kN4WbH29J%2FQArQrg%3D%3D Learn more about NORC's AmeriSpeak Panel: https://amerispeak.norc.org/ Learn more about NORC's 2020 Election Research Project for Facebook: https://www.norc.org/research/projects/2020-election-research-project.html Learn more about NORC's Advanced Data Solutions Center: https://www.norc.org/about/departments/advanced-data-solutions-center.html Watch Decker's interview with Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics, which includes a discussion about the declining response rates in federal surveys and what they might mean for informing policy decisions: https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/mark-zandi-chief-economist-of-moodys-analytics-on-data-driven-decisions-in-public-policy Watch Decker's interview with Max Stier, the president and CEO of the Partnership for Public Service: https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/the-partnership-for-public-services-max-stier-on-using-data-to-improve-the-government

This episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast features a discussion about how various parties within the health care ecosystem can responsibly use artificial intelligence (AI) to improve patient health. The conversation comes amid increasing interest in the applications of AI in daily life and one month after Mathematica announced the launch of its Health Data Innovation Lab, a digital operational hub for government agencies, foundations, medical centers, and other health organizations to collaborate with data scientists and health policy experts. The episode draws from a recent webinar moderated by Noland Joiner, the chief technology officer of health care at Mathematica, with Ngan MacDonald and Ellie Graeden as guests. MacDonald is the director of health data innovations at Mathematica and Graeden is a partner and chief data scientist at Luminos.Law. She is also an adjunct research professor at Georgetown University. A transcript of the episode is available here: https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/improving-health-through-responsible-ai Learn more about Mathematica's Health Data Innovation Lab: https://www.mathematica.org/sites/health-data-innovation-lab

The latest episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast features Max Stier, the president and chief executive officer of the Partnership for Public Service. Stier discusses the central role that data and research play in supporting his organization's mission to make the federal government more effective. The episode comes during Public Service Recognition Week (May 5–11), which is also when the partnership announces finalists for its Service to America Medals. These annual awards celebrate extraordinary leadership by career federal employees. For the episode, Stier sits down with Mathematica President and Chief Executive Officer Paul Decker to talk about using data to improve government, enhancing data literacy among federal workers, measuring and rebuilding trust in government, the power of employee recognition, and more. A full transcript of the episode is available at mathematica.org/blogs/the-partnership-for-public-services-max-stier-on-using-data-to-improve-the-government See the list of 2024 finalists for the Samuel J. Heyman Service to America Medals: https://servicetoamericamedals.org/honorees/?_year=2024 Learn more about the Partnership's Service to America Medals program: https://ourpublicservice.org/our-solutions/recognition/service-to-america-medals/ Learn more about the Partnership's Best Places to Work in the Federal Government rankings: https://ourpublicservice.org/performance-measures/best-places-to-work-in-the-federal-government/ Explore data from the Partnership on Americans' level of trust in the federal government: https://ourpublicservice.org/our-solutions/rebuilding-trust-in-government/dashboard/

In March, when the Biden administration released its budget request for fiscal year 2025, it not only offered a blueprint for the president's policymaking agenda—it also provided the latest indication of how the White House and federal agencies are going beyond evidence generation to use evidence as a guide in making program investments that can improve Americans' lives. For this episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast, Nichole Dunn, the vice president of federal policy at Results for America, joins the show to discuss evidence-based policy in the president's budget as well as larger trends in federal and state funding of evidence-based initiatives and programs. On the episode, Dunn speaks with Mike Burns, senior director of communications and public affairs at Mathematica, about American Rescue Plan spending, the growth of evidence clearinghouses, the increasing level of federal investment in program evaluation, the implications of the presidential election for federal investment in evidence-based policy, the implementation of the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act, the recent formation of the bipartisan Congressional What Works Caucus, the Congressional Evidence-Based Policymaking Resolution, and the potential for evidence-based policy to bypass partisan gridlock in Washington. A full transcript of the conversation is available at mathematica.org/blogs/evidence-based-policy-in-president-bidens-2025-budget Read an op-ed by Michele Jolin, the chief executive officer and co-founder of Results for America, about how bipartisan elected leaders and career civil servants across the country who have been quietly transforming how governments invest taxpayer dollars to achieve better results: https://www.minnpost.com/community-voices/2024/03/from-minnesota-to-washington-d-c-a-better-way-to-deliver-results/ Read the research brief by Mathematica for Results for America, which shows how city governments with a history of prioritizing data-driven practices were more likely to use federal relief funds from the American Rescue Plan (ARP) to deepen their commitment to results-driven governance—with the goal of improving outcomes for residents through effective programs: https://mathematica.org/publications/unlocking-the-power-of-city-data Watch a recording from the January 2024 virtual event hosted by Results for America to discuss the federal government's progress in using evidence and data to get better results, which featured the release of a new report by Harvard University Professor Christina Ciocca Eller on federal evidence-based policymaking efforts: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMYwG6P-1zI Read the 2023 Invest in What Works State Standard of Excellence from Results for America, which showcases 194 efforts across 46 states to build and use evidence and data to improve residents' lives: https://results4america.org/tools/2023-invest-in-what-works-state-standard-of-excellence/ Explore the ARP Data and Evidence Dashboard from Mathematica and Results for America, which highlights how state and local government leaders are investing one-time federal pandemic relief and economic recovery funds and using data and evidence to get better results: https://results4america.org/tools/arp-dashboard/

The latest episode of On the Evidence features Mark Zandi, the chief economist at Moody's Analytics. On the episode, Zandi speaks with Paul Decker, Mathematica's president and chief executive officer, about comprehensive immigration reform, artificial intelligence, labor shortages, remote work, the merits of pursuing a nonacademic career in economic research, and how Zandi seeks to influence politically charged policy debates with data and credibility. Zandi is the author of two books related to the Great Recession and hosts the Inside Economics podcast. A video version of the episode as well as a full transcript is available at https://mathematica.org/blogs/mark-zandi-chief-economist-of-moodys-analytics-on-data-driven-decisions-in-public-policy Listen to the Inside Economics podcast that Zandi hosts along with Cris deRitis and Marisa DiNatale for Moody's Analytics: https://www.moodys.com/web/en/us/about/insights/podcasts/moodys-talks-inside-economics.html Read Paul Decker's blog about how Mathematica used evidence to guide the company's approach to reopening in-person offices after the COVID-19 pandemic: https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/letting-evidence-guide-decisions-about-reopening-offices Read an op-ed co-authored by Paul Decker for the website RealClearPolicy, which proposes comprehensive immigration reform and other solutions to address current labor shortages: https://www.realclearpolicy.com/articles/2023/04/25/without_immigration_reform_americas_labor_shortage_is_here_to_stay_895672.html

The latest episode of On the Evidence features an interview with Mathematica's Ngan MacDonald about the applications of artificial intelligence (AI) for improving health care through data analytics. MacDonald recently joined Mathematica as the company's director of health data innovations, where she leads a team of data scientists that help public and private health organizations use their data to deliver meaningful and effective insights. In addition to her role at Mathematica, MacDonald is also the chief of data operations for the Institute for Artificial Intelligence in Medicine at Northwestern University. On the episode, MacDonald discusses the potential benefits of AI in health care, the equity implications of training AI on incomplete health care data, and what AI could mean for Mathematica's work in data analytics. A full transcript of the interview is available at https://mathematica.org/blogs/improving-health-equity-through-ai-and-data-innovation

A new episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast explores the idea that a more comprehensive approach to evaluation, including study of a program's design and implementation, maximizes a program's chances of success. The episode draws from a convening in January at Mathematica's D.C. office at which experts from the federal government, philanthropy, academia, and research organizations discussed insights from the Oxford Handbook on Program Design and Implementation Evaluation, edited by Mathematica's Anu Rangarajan. The episode features Rangarajan as well as seven other speakers who expand upon the idea that a more comprehensive approach to evaluation could provide more useful information about whether a program is working, and if not, how it could be tweaked to work. The following speakers also appear in the episode: - Michael Woolcock, lead social scientist, Development Research Group, World Bank - Paul Decker, president and chief executive officer, Mathematica - Emilie Bagby, director, international education, Mathematica - Alix Zwane, chief executive officer, Global Innovation Fund - Melissa Chiappetta, senior education advisor, Latin America and the Caribbean, U.S. Agency for International Development - Douglas J. Besharov, professor, University of Maryland School of Public Policy - Michelle Sager, managing director for strategic issues, U.S. Government Accountability Office A transcript of the episode is available at https://mathematica.org/blogs/improving-the-impact-of-social-programs-through-better-evaluation Learn more about Mathematica Global, the new name and identity of Mathematica's international unit: https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/mathematica-global-brings-hindsight-insight-and-foresight Watch the full video recording from the January convening about improving the impact of social programs through a comprehensive approach to design and evaluation: https://www.mathematica.org/events/improving-the-impact-of-social-programs-through-a-comprehensive-approach-to-design-and-evaluation Listen to a previous episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast that features two of the speakers from the January event, Emilie Bagby and Melissa Chiappetta, discussing how the U.S. Agency for International Development and the International Rescue Committee are building on an evidence review from Mathematica to help local education leaders implement effective programs and policies in northern Central America that will reduce local violence and crime: https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/developing-education-programs-to-prevent-violence-and-crime-in-latin-america-and-the-caribbean

The COVID-19 pandemic is no longer a public health emergency, but its harmful effects on the U.S. education system still linger. Nationwide standardized test scores show that average student achievement in core subjects, such as math and reading, remains below pre-pandemic levels. Over the past four years, a growing number of schools have used temporary federal pandemic relief funds to implement high-dosage tutoring, an evidence-based strategy shown to increase student learning. Education agencies have less than a year to use their remaining funds, underscoring the need for other effective tutoring approaches that can serve more students at a lower cost. The latest episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast explores promising evidence from evaluations Mathematica conducted for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation of eight tutoring programs that piloted a variety of tutoring approaches, such as virtual and group tutoring. These programs enrolled diverse groups of students in grades 4 through 10 during the 2021–2022 school year. Our guests for this episode are Brandi Garza of the Corpus Christi Independent School District, Hasan Ali of Air Tutors, and Gregory Chojnacki of Mathematica. A full transcript of the episode is available at mathematica.org/blogs/how-virtual-and-group-tutoring-could-address-learning-loss

On the five-year anniversary of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast, we're proud to feature an interview with Robert Santos, the director of the U.S. Census Bureau. Santos, the first Latino and the second person of color to lead the agency, joined Mathematica in January for a wide-ranging conversation that covered the following topics: • changing Latinx/Hispanic population trends in the United States • how people of Latinx/Hispanic heritage can advance in the field of public policy research • how the Census Bureau strives to establish trust with survey respondents through culturally relevant and community-based participatory research methods • how the Census Bureau uses artificial intelligence in its work A full transcript of the episode is available at https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/census-bureau-director-robert-santos-culturally-relevant-methods-in-public-policy-research

This episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast explores lessons from Maryland, with glimpses from Vermont and Pennsylvania, that could help other states decide whether and how to adopt hospital global budgeting. The guests for this episode are Dr. Joshua Sharfstein, who was the secretary of the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene when the state adopted hospital global budgeting; Thomas Mullen, who led a Baltimore-area hospital system when Maryland adopted the new payment model; and Dr. Sule Gerovich, a senior fellow at Mathematica who supported Vermont, Pennsylvania, and Maryland in developing hospital global budgets. Full transcript of the episode is available here: https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/what-states-can-learn-from-marylands-experience-with-hospital-global-budgeting Subscribe for future episodes on your podcast player of choice here: mathematica.org/ontheevidence

Every year, early-career scholars join Mathematica for a summer to work on independent research related to improving public well-being. As prospective applicants prepare to apply by the Feb. 29 deadline for the 2024 Summer Fellowship program, Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast spoke with last year's fellows (Laurin Bixby, Carla Wellborn, and Luis Carlos Carvajal-Osorio) about what is at stake in the questions they're investigating, why they're interested in applied research, and what they found difficult and rewarding about applied public policy research. A full transcript is available at https://mathematica.org/blogs/using-schools-to-improve-child-health-why-black-families-choose-to-homeschool-their-kids-and-what

For the final episode of 2023, Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast asked friends of the show to send short voice notes about important developments in evidence and well-being this year that will continue to matter in 2024. More than a dozen listeners and former guests responded to our call, highlighting significant milestones in health care, early childhood education, economic opportunity, climate change, disability policy, gender equality, and government agencies' growing capacity to generate evidence that can improve programs' effectiveness in the United States and abroad. On the episode, host J.B. Wogan discusses the year-in-review submissions with the show's producer, Rick Stoddard. Thank you to the following contributors: • Selena Caldera, the AARP Public Policy Institute • Christina Ciocca Eller, Harvard University • Nichole Dunn, Results for America • Jill Constantine, Mathematica • Laurin Bixby, University of Pennsylvania • Jonathan Morse, Mathematica • Alex Olgin, Tradeoffs • Shana Christrup, Bipartisan Policy Center • Erin Taylor, Mathematica • Jeff Bernson, Mathematica • Berta Heybey, Millennium Challenge Corporation • Nancy Murray, Mathematica • Jane Fortson, Mathematica • Shannon Monahan, Mathematica • Bill Nichols, Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity • Jeanne Bellotti, Mathematica • Elinor Higgins, National Academy for State Health Policy A full transcript of the episode, as well as links to all of the research and other resources mentioned on the episode, are available at mathematica.org/ontheevidence.

Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, inconsistent data collection and reporting made it difficult for U.S. public health agencies to respond to the disease's inequitable impacts. Demographic and socioeconomic factors, such as age, race, ethnicity, gender, income, and disability status, were particularly challenging to capture. The same data issues would later impede agencies' ability to prioritize vaccinations for the people most impacted by the pandemic. Even though COVID-19 is no longer a global public health emergency, the underlying data problems remain. “What's at stake is saving lives,” says Alonzo Plough, chief science officer and vice president of research, evaluation, and learning at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), who joins us for this episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast. Plough explains, “bad data, lack of timely data, [and] lack of connected data” result in “missing opportunities for early intervention that can save lives.” In this two-part episode, Plough joins George Hobor, Javier Robles, and Anita Chandra, as they discuss the deficits of the U.S. public health data infrastructure, how these deficits affect health equity, and how public health agencies can improve their responses to public health crises by transforming their data systems. - Hobor is a senior program officer at RWJF. - Robles is director of the Center for Disability Sports, Health, and Wellness at Rutgers University and was a member of RWJF's National Commission to Transform Public Health Data Systems. - Chandra is vice president and director of RAND Social and Economic Well-Being at the RAND Corporation. In part 1, Mathematica's Deric Joyner speaks with Plough about the motivation behind the Transforming Public Health Data Systems initiative. In part 2, Mathematica's Dave Roberts moderates a conversation between Hobor, Robles, and Chandra, about insights from the initiative and what changes need to happen next to improve the nation's public health data infrastructure. Part 1 is available here: https://on.soundcloud.com/iQcZ4 Transcripts for parts 1 and 2 are available here: https://mathematica.org/blogs/improving-health-equity-by-transforming-public-health-data-systems

Early in the COVID-19 pandemic, inconsistent data collection and reporting made it difficult for U.S. public health agencies to respond to the disease's inequitable impacts. Demographic and socioeconomic factors, such as age, race, ethnicity, gender, income, and disability status, were particularly challenging to capture. The same data issues would later impede agencies' ability to prioritize vaccinations for the people most impacted by the pandemic. Even though COVID-19 is no longer a global public health emergency, the underlying data problems remain. “What's at stake is saving lives,” says Alonzo Plough, chief science officer and vice president of research, evaluation, and learning at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), who joins us for this episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast. Plough explains, “bad data, lack of timely data, [and] lack of connected data” result in “missing opportunities for early intervention that can save lives.” In this two-part episode, Plough joins George Hobor, Javier Robles, and Anita Chandra, as they discuss the deficits of the U.S. public health data infrastructure, how these deficits affect health equity, and how public health agencies can improve their responses to public health crises by transforming their data systems. - Hobor is a senior program officer at RWJF. - Robles is director of the Center for Disability Sports, Health, and Wellness at Rutgers University and was a member of RWJF's National Commission to Transform Public Health Data Systems. - Chandra is vice president and director of RAND Social and Economic Well-Being at the RAND Corporation. In part 1, Mathematica's Deric Joyner speaks with Plough about the motivation behind the Transforming Public Health Data Systems initiative. In part 2, Mathematica's Dave Roberts moderates a conversation between Hobor, Robles, and Chandra, about insights from the initiative and what changes need to happen next to improve the nation's public health data infrastructure. Part 2 is available here: https://on.soundcloud.com/ZoipS Transcripts for parts 1 and 2 are available here: https://mathematica.org/blogs/improving-health-equity-by-transforming-public-health-data-systems

In September 2023, Mathematica and Congressman Don Beyer's office hosted an event on Capitol Hill to discuss artificial intelligence (AI) and its implications for health equity. This episode of On the Evidence features audio from the September event, anchored by Victoria Knight, a health care policy reporter for Axios, who interviewed Congressman Beyer and moderated a subsequent panel with Ellie Graeden, Jen Roberts, Ngan MacDonald, and Deliya Wesley. • Beyer represents the 8th Congressional District of Virginia and is a vice chair of both the bipartisan Congressional AI Caucus and an AI working group recently formed by the New Democrat Coalition. • Graeden is a professor at the Georgetown University Center for Global Health Science and Security. • Roberts is a director of resilient systems at the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health, also known as ARPA-H. • MacDonald is the chief of data operations for the Institute for AI in Medicine at Northwestern University. • Wesley is a senior director of health equity at Mathematica. Learn more about how Mathematica's experts harness vast data, advanced analytics, and deep health care policy experience to help organizations make sense of real-world data in a way that enables exploration and innovation: https://mathematica.org/sp/data-analytics/real-world-data Find a transcript of the episode at mathematica.org/blogs/how-artificial-intelligence-can-advance-health-equity

The latest episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast features Elizabeth Linos, the 23rd recipient of the David N. Kershaw Award and Prize. Linos is a public management scholar and behavioral scientist who studies, designs, and tests innovations in how government works. On the episode, Linos talks about what public sector workers and public policy researchers can learn from each other, how she selects research topics that have salience in the policy community, and what she is learning about scaling up and sustaining successful pilot projects in government. A full transcript of the episode is available at mathematica.org/blogs/elizabeth-linos-on-using-evidence-to-bolster-the-public-sector-workforce-and-improve-government

Jennifer Pahlka served as the U.S. deputy chief technology officer under President Barack Obama and founded Code for America, a nonprofit that works to improve government digital services. In her new book, "Recoding America: Why Government is Failing in the Digital Age and How We Can Do Better," Pahlka takes us beyond the basics to explore why policy implementation goes wrong and what we can do to improve delivery of government services and create better outcomes for the American public. On this episode of On the Evidence, Pahlka and Mathematica's Mike Burns discuss "Recoding America," the nexus of evidence-based policy and delivery-driven policy, and how we can close the gap between policy intentions and real-world outcomes. A full transcript of this episode is available here: https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/jennifer-pahlka-on-government-in-the-digital-age Learn more about Pahlka's book, "Recoding America: Why Government is Failing in the Digital Age and How We Can Do Better": https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250266774/recodingamerica Read Pahlka's June 2023 op-ed in The Washington Post, “Better government tech starts with people. New Jersey shows how.”: https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/06/13/new-jersey-digital-unemployment-insurance/ Read Pahlka's bio: https://www.recodingamerica.us/

Teacher recruitment and retention challenges have increased since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. But even before that, students of diverse backgrounds have historically not seen themselves reflected in the adults in their classrooms and schools. Why does this matter? Students of color do better in school when they have teachers who share similar identities. For example, Black students with at least one Black teacher in grades K-3 are 13 percent more likely to graduate high school and 19 percent more likely to enroll in college than their same-race same-school peers. And all students benefit from diversity of the teacher workforce: teachers of color are positive role models for all students in breaking down negative stereotypes and preparing students to live and work in a multiracial society. This episode focuses on efforts to diversify the teacher workforce and provide supports to teachers from diverse backgrounds in schools. The guests for this episode are Colorado State Representative Jennifer Bacon; Janet Damon, a teacher at Delta High School, in Denver, Colorado; and Steven Malick, a senior researcher at Mathematica. Colorado State Representative Jennifer Bacon is Assistant Majority Leader and represents House District 7, which includes the Denver International Airport and Denver's far northeast neighborhoods. Representative Bacon serves as Vice Chair of the House Judiciary Committee and a member of the House Education Committee. Representative Bacon is also the Chair of the Black Democratic Legislative Caucus of Colorado. Janet Rene Damon, Ed.S has spent 24 years as a high school teacher, digital librarian, and literacy engagement activist. She is co-founder of Afros and Books, a citywide literacy and nature engagement that offers culturally sustaining programming and book clubs for families in Denver. Janet was awarded the Inaugural Making our Futures Brighter Award from the Black Family Advisory Council in 2022, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Humanitarian Award in 2022, and the Library Journal Mover and Shaker Award in 2020. Steven Malick of Mathematica focuses on bridging the gap between research and practice in the K–12 education system. He specializes in working with districts, states, and other organizations to understand and apply evidence in service of improving educator effectiveness and student achievement. His work has helped clients increase the diversity of the teacher workforce, develop social-emotional competencies in children, and accelerate implementation of research-based strategies. A full transcript of this episode is available here: https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/how-colorado-committed-to-supporting-teacher-diversity-and-why-it-matters-to-students Watch a webinar from REL Central at Mathematica on research and promising practices to support a diverse teacher workforce: https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/rel/Products/Region/central/Resource/107037

For anyone looking to understand Earth's climate history and the unfolding climate crisis, Michael Mann has got you covered. Mann is the Presidential Distinguished Professor in the Department of Earth and Environmental Science at the University of Pennsylvania and director of the Penn Center for Science, Sustainability, and the Media. He has authored numerous books, including The New Climate War and The Hockey Stick and the Climate Wars. He was selected by Scientific American as one of the fifty leading visionaries in science and technology in 2002 and was elected to the U.S. National Academy of Sciences in 2020. “Climate doomism” – the idea that it's too late to act on the climate crisis – is a common refrain that promotes inaction. But in his new book, Our Fragile Moment: How Lessons from Earth's Past Can Help Us Survive the Climate Crisis, Mann argues that we can avoid catastrophe if we take meaningful action to address the crisis. On this episode, Mike Burns, Mathematica senior director of communications and public affairs, speaks with Mann about his new book and preserving “our fragile moment.” Topics addressed include: • Lessons that can–and cannot–be drawn from Earth's climate history • Why seemingly insignificant temperature changes aren't so insignificant • The concepts of urgency and agency, and obstacles to climate action • “Shifting baseline syndrome” – the gradual change in expected norms for environmental conditions • Weighing the paleoclimate record with other sources of information about the climate system • Effective communication and messaging strategies around climate science and climate change A full transcript of this episode is available here: https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/climate-scientist-michael-mann-on-preserving-our-fragile-moment Learn more about Mann's new book, Our Fragile Moment: How Lessons from Earth's Past Can Help Us Survive the Climate Crisis: https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/michael-e-mann/our-fragile-moment/9781541702899/?lens=publicaffairs Read Mann's full bio: https://michaelmann.net/content/about

From helping lead implementation of the Evidence Act to providing technical assistance on activities and initiatives, the Evidence Team at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is on the frontlines of evidence building and use across the federal government. Led by Diana Epstein (Team Lead), Erica Zielewski (Senior Evidence Analyst), Danielle Berman (Senior Evidence Analyst), and Erika Liliedahl (Senior Evidence Analyst), the OMB Evidence Team spends their days doing “anything and everything to help make sure that government uses the best possible evidence to make decisions.” On this episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast—I speak with Diana, Erica, and Danielle to better understand Evidence Act implementation and federal evaluation, and the role the Evidence Team plays in efforts to improve government-wide effectiveness. Among several topics, the episode covers: • Successes and challenges of the Evidence Act • Evidence Act Title I and OMB's Evidence Act implementing guidance • The Evidence Team's role in interagency collaboration • The ongoing culture change around evidence-based decision-making • The Evaluation Officer Council A full transcript of this episode is available here: https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/the-omb-evidence-team-on-evidence-based-policymaking-and-federal-evaluation Learn more about the OMB Evidence Team: https://www.evaluation.gov/about/ Read a fact sheet from the Bipartisan Policy Center on the Evidence Act: https://bipartisanpolicy.org/blog/fact-sheet-foundations-for-evidence-based-policymaking-act/ Read OMB's Evidence Act implementing guidance: https://www.evaluation.gov/2021-09-27-OMB-M-21-27-guidance/ Learn more about the Evaluation Office Council: https://www.evaluation.gov/about-evaluation-officers/

Gayle Smith, CEO of the ONE Campaign, served in many leadership roles in the federal government as a staunch advocate for evidence-based decision making. As Coordinator for Global COVID Response and Health Security at the U.S. Department of State in 2021, Smith led the U.S. effort to end the global pandemic, helping the Biden-Harris Administration map out a response, identify spikes, and target vulnerabilities through monitoring, testing, diagnostics, and other tools. As Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) during the Obama Administration, Smith prioritized a culture of evaluation and learning, emphasizing the importance of focusing on outcomes rather than inputs and using data and evidence to make midcourse corrections on projects and programs. And, as a White House official who played a leading role in the U.S. response to Ebola, Smith saw firsthand the importance of leveraging data to track outbreaks, target treatments, invest resources, and move in real time to maximize impact. On this episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast—one in our occasional Evidence in Government series—Mike Burns, Mathematica senior director of communications and public affairs, spoke with Smith about a range of topics including evaluation at USAID, the U.S. response to Ebola, the intersection of development finance and climate change, the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), bilateral and global agencies, and the COVID-19 global health crisis, including its economic impact on women. A full transcript of this episode is available here: https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/gayle-smith-on-the-federal-role-in-global-response-to-health-and-climate-crises Read Smith's remarks from the 2016 Brookings Institution event on the state of evaluation at USAID: https://www.brookings.edu/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/20160330_usaid_evaluation_transcript.pdf Read the ONE Campaign's statement on the appointment of Ajay Banga as president of the World Bank: https://www.one.org/us/press/banga-world-bank/ Read ONE's statement on the 20th anniversary of the PEPFAR announcement: https://www.one.org/us/press/one-statement-on-20th-anniversary-of-pepfar-announcement/ Read Smith's POLITICO interview with Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield: https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2022/11/01/linda-thomas-greenfield-gayle-smith-interview-00014844

The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated pre-existing inequities that changed how individuals engage with pre-K programs, schools, colleges, employers, and the world at large. Early evidence suggests the pandemic took a toll on student learning, educational attainment, employment, and physical and mental well-being, especially in communities of color and communities experiencing poverty. In recognition of the fact that better data infrastructure will be needed to shift the systems that currently produce inequitable outcomes, a growing number of states are working to modernize statewide longitudinal data systems to understand the experiences and outcomes of individuals seamlessly across pre-K, K–12, postsecondary, and workforce systems. This episode of On the Evidence focuses on efforts to advance equitable outcomes from cradle to career by making data more available and useful to state decision makers. The guests for this episode are Keith White of the Public Education Foundation Chattanooga, Naihobe Gonzalez of Mathematica, Sara Kerr of Results for America, and Ross Tilchin of Results for America. White is the director of research and effectiveness at the PEF Chattanooga, a non-profit that provides training, research, and resources to teachers, principals, and schools in Hamilton County, Tennessee. Gonzalez, a senior researcher at Mathematica, co-authored a recent report funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation on the Education-to-Workforce Indicator Framework, which establishes a common set of metrics and data equity principles for assessing and addressing disparities along the pre-K-to-workforce continuum. Kerr is the vice president of education policy implementation for Results for America, where she leads EdResearch for Action, an initiative that fosters a more nuanced and effective application of evidence-based strategies by improving the quality, availability, and use of evidence in education. Tilchin is on the solutions team at Results for America, where he directs the Economic Mobility Catalog, an online resource that helps local government leaders identify and implement evidence-based strategies, from early childhood education to workforce development, that can advance economic mobility in their communities. A full transcript of this episode is available here: https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/advancing-equitable-outcomes-from-pre-k-through-the-workforce-by-aligning-state-local-data-systems Explore the Education-to-Workforce Indicator Framework: https://www.educationtoworkforce.org/ Learn more about the Economic Mobility Catalog from Results for America: https://catalog.results4america.org/ Learn more about EdResearch for Action from Results for America and the Annenberg Institute at Brown University: https://edresearchforaction.org/ Watch a webinar with Mathematica, Mirror Group, and the Data Quality Campaign about increasing collaboration and alignment across local, state, and national data systems to help address disparities along the pre-K-to-workforce continuum: https://www.mathematica.org/events/opportunity-for-all

In this special feature, On the Evidence host J.B. Wogan reflects on the first 100 episodes of the Mathematica podcast, and retraces some of the steps taken in the almost five years since the series launched in early 2019. Learn more, listen, and subscribe: https://mathematica.org/ontheevidence

In May 2023, Mathematica hosted a convening on Capitol Hill about embedding evidence in federal decision making, with a focus on the legacy of the nearly five-year-old Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act, also known as the Evidence Act. One of the attendees that day was Robert Shea, an expert on performance improvement in government who served on the bipartisan U.S. Commission on Evidence-Based Policymaking, a group whose recommendations informed the Evidence Act. Shea is the chief executive officer for GovNavigators, a government management consulting firm, where he hosts a podcast called The GovNavigators Show. His career has also included posts at the White House Office of Management and Budget, the Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs, and the House Committee on Government Reform and Oversight. On this episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast, Shea discusses the improvements he has witnessed since the mid-1990s in the use of data and evidence in federal decision making. “We have seen a sea change in the ability of agencies to understand that they need to articulate what they're trying to accomplish in terms of outcomes, report that transparently,” Shea says on the episode. “A lot of what we're talking about today is sort of dig deeper—find out whether it's what we're doing that's contributing to the ultimate outcome rather than some other factor.” This episode is part of an occasional series on the show called Evidence in Government, which explores new developments in the halls of government and the role that evidence can play in decisions that could improve people's lives. Mike Burns, Mathematica's senior director of communications and public affairs at Mathematica, conducts the Evidence in Government interviews. SHOW NOTES Listen to The GovNavigators Show, a podcast Shea hosts with Adam Hughes about government management: https://www.govnavigators.com/podcast Watch a recording of the event Mathematica hosted in May 2023 on the Evidence Act: https://www.mathematica.org/events/evidence-at-work-for-the-american-people Learn more about the U.S. Commission on Evidence-Based Policymaking, which made recommendations ahead of the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018: https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/omb/management/commission_evidence Read a fact sheet from the Bipartisan Policy Center on the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act: https://bipartisanpolicy.org/blog/fact-sheet-foundations-for-evidence-based-policymaking-act/ Read a press release about the resolution to establish a new commission on evidence-based policymaking: https://kilmer.house.gov/media/press-releases/kilmer-spearheads-legislative-change-with-introduction-of-evidence-based-policymaking-resolution Read the bipartisan resolution to establish a new commission on evidence-based policymaking to further embed the use of data and evidence in federal decision making: https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-concurrent-resolution/49/text?s=1&r=1&q=%7B%22search%22%3A%5B%22Evidence+commission%22%5D%7D

Leading up to the COVID-19 pandemic, only about one in every seven students served by the National School Lunch Program also participated in free summer meals programs provided by the federal Food and Nutrition Service. The low ratio of students accessing meals in the summer compared to the school year has been dubbed the “summer food gap.” Policymakers and anti-hunger advocates have long worried that millions of children from households with low incomes aren't getting enough to eat when school is out of session, posing risks to children's health, learning, and overall well-being. This episode of On the Evidence examines what happened during the COVID-19 pandemic when the federal government temporarily waived some of its program rules, giving meal providers much more flexibility in how they fed students during the school year and in the summer months. With the waivers in place, program operators could prioritize convenience for families and avoid the spread of infection. For example, parents or guardians could pick up meals for their children at the curb or a drive-through; they could grab more than one meal at a time; and they could pick up the meals outside of traditional service hours, such as in the early mornings or evenings. The waivers also cleared the way for more summer meals sites to open, which helped establish new sites closer to where some families lived. Recent research from the Food and Nutrition Service and Mathematica shows that in 2020, with temporary program waivers in place because of the pandemic, these federal summer meals programs reached many more children and served many more meals than usual. The podcast examines why access to meals improved in the summer of 2020 and what it could mean for summer meal access now that COVID-19 is no longer a public health emergency, and those temporary waivers have ended. The episode features three guests: Shana Christrup, Lindsay Aguilar, and Veronica Severn. Christrup is the public health director for the Bipartisan Policy Center, which released a report in January 2022 that recommended changes to federal child nutrition programs, including changes that would expand access to meals in the summer. Aguilar is the food services director for the Tucson Unified School District. Severn is a survey researcher at Mathematica who coauthored the recent report on the pandemic-era waivers for child nutrition programs in the spring and summer of 2020. Read the report from the Food and Nutrition Service and Mathematica on child nutrition program operations from March through September 2020: https://smo-study.mathematica.org/ Read the report from the Bipartisan Policy Center on strengthening child nutrition programs: https://bipartisanpolicy.org/report/child-nutrition-programs/ Read Route Fifty's story on lessons from the pandemic about feeding more children during the summer: https://www.route-fifty.com/health-human-services/2023/06/federal-covid-changes-helped-feed-twice-many-kids-during-summer/387158/

This episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast focuses on how research informs funding strategies to tackle an urgent social challenge. A couple of years ago, Mathematica reviewed evidence from across the world on whether education programs can prevent or mitigate violence and crime. USAID commissioned the report to help develop effective strategies for leveraging the education sector to address violence and crime in Latin America and the Caribbean. Although Mathematica's researchers identified almost two dozen promising programs in the review, they also noted the need for further research. For example, few of the studies show causal impacts or provide evidence from an effective program in Latin America or the Caribbean. To build on findings from Mathematica's evidence review, USAID and the International Rescue Committee(IRC) partnered to launch an initiative called USAID Research in Education for Transformative Opportunities (RETO), which provides tailored evidence to decision makers in governmental and non-governmental institutions, such as local ministries of education. The initiative seeks to help those education leaders implement effective programs and policies in Northern Central America that will reduce local violence and crime. The guests for this episode are Juan Carlos Rodríguez, Katie Appel, Melissa Chiappetta, and Emilie Bagby. Rodríguez and Appel are the director and deputy director, respectively, for USAID's RETO activity implemented by the IRC and its 12 national partners. Chiappetta is a senior education advisor with the Office of Regional Sustainable Development within USAID's Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean. Bagby is a director at Mathematica, where she oversees our international education research. Find the full transcript here: mathematica.org/blogs/developing-education-programs-to-prevent-violence-and-crime-in-latin-america-and-the-caribbean Read the evidence review by Mathematica for USAID on the effect of education programs on violence, crime, and related outcomes: https://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/PA00XGXT.pdf Learn more about RETO: https://www.youthpower.org/usaid-research-education-transformative-opportunities-reto Learn more about IRC's Airbel Impact Lab: https://airbel.rescue.org/?_ga=2.189623531.1744177215.1687884026-800337516.1664199528 Learn more about Mathematica's evaluations for USAID's Latin America and the Caribbean Reads (LAC Reads) initiative, which included the evidence review on education programs to prevent or mitigate violence and crime: https://staginginter.mathematica.net/projects/latin-america-and-the-caribbean-reading-evaluation

In late May 2023, Mathematica coordinated with Congressman Derek Kilmer's office to host a discussion on Capitol Hill about the impact of the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act (Evidence Act) and how to further embed the use of data and evidence in federal decision making. This episode of On the Evidence features edited audio from the event with remarks from Kilmer and his House colleague, Rep. William Timmons, in addition to a panel discussion with experts from government, think tanks, research organizations, and academia. Kilmer represents Washington State's Sixth District and was one of the Evidence Act's original co-sponsors. He is also the sponsor of a new bipartisan resolution to establish a new commission on evidence-based policymaking that would advise Congress on how to make greater strides in embedding the use of data and evidence in federal agencies but also in Congress itself. Timmons represents South Carolina's Fourth District and is a co-sponsor of the resolution to establish a new evidence commission. The other speakers included Robert Groves, Nick Hart, Ruth Neild, and Susan Jenkins. Groves is a provost of Georgetown University and served as a member of the previous U.S. Commission on Evidence-Based Policymaking, whose recommendations informed the Evidence Act. Hart is the president and CEO of Data Foundation and served as policy and research director for the U.S. Commission on Evidence-Based Policymaking. Neild is an executive director of education and employment research at Mathematica and previously served as delegated director of the Institute of Education Sciences within the U.S. Department of Education. Jenkins directs the Division of Evidence, Evaluation and Data Policy at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, where she also serves as an evaluation officer. A full transcript of the episode is available at mathematica.org/blogs/building-on-the-evidence-act-to-increase-the-positive-impact-of-federal-policymaking Learn more about the U.S. Commission on Evidence-Based Policymaking, which made recommendations ahead of the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act of 2018: https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/omb/management/commission_evidence Read a fact sheet from the Bipartisan Policy Center on the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act: https://bipartisanpolicy.org/blog/fact-sheet-foundations-for-evidence-based-policymaking-act/ Read a press release about the resolution to establish a new commission on evidence-based policymaking: https://kilmer.house.gov/media/press-releases/kilmer-spearheads-legislative-change-with-introduction-of-evidence-based-policymaking-resolution Read the bipartisan resolution to establish a new commission on evidence-based policymaking to further embed the use of data and evidence in federal decision making: https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-concurrent-resolution/49/text?s=1&r=1&q=%7B%22search%22%3A%5B%22Evidence+commission%22%5D%7D

The fragmentation of outpatient health care drives up the cost of care and worsens the quality of care that patients receive, posing a risk to patients' health. On this episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast, guests James Lee of the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation, Knitasha Washington of ATW Health Solutions, Bob Phillips of the Center for Professionalism and Value in Health Care, and Lori Timmins of Mathematica discuss recent research on the nature of the problem and federal initiatives that have sought to address it. A full transcript of the episode is available at https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/understanding-and-addressing-fragmented-outpatient-health-care Read a press release synthesizing key takeaways from a series of peer-reviewed journal articles on fragmented outpatient care based on studies conducted by Mathematica with support from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services: https://www.mathematica.org/news/new-studies-reveal-that-fragmented-care-persists-despite-efforts-to-improve-primary-care-and-care Learn more about how the Innovation Center and Mathematica are advancing understanding of primary care through an evaluation of the Comprehensive Primary Care Plus model: https://www.mathematica.org/projects/evaluating-the-nations-largest-primary-care-delivery-initiative Learn more about an ongoing evaluation by Mathematica for the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation to determine whether medical practices' participation in the Primary Care First alternative payment model improves quality and reduces costs for Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries: https://www.mathematica.org/projects/evaluation-of-the-primary-care-first-model Read the 2021 report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine on implementing high quality primary care: https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/25983/implementing-high-quality-primary-care-rebuilding-the-foundation-of-health

The 95th episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast features author Tina Rosenberg discussing the role of data and other evidence in supporting solutions journalism. In 2013, Rosenberg co-founded the Solutions Journalism Network, which challenges journalists to show whether a solution they are covering is effective using available data or qualitative results. The episode explores the nature of solutions journalism and how researchers who evaluate policies and programs can contribute to evidence-based reporting about solutions. A video recording and related transcript from the LinkedIn Live event on May 2, 2023 is available at mathematica.org/blogs/tina-rosenberg-on-the-role-of-evidence-in-solutions-journalism Read the last installment of the Fixes column that Rosenberg and David Bornstein co-wrote for 11 years at The New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/11/opinion/fixes-solutions-journalism-lessons.html Learn how to implement the principles of solutions journalism in your work by taking free online courses offered by the Solutions Journalism Network's Learning Lab: https://learninglab.solutionsjournalism.org/ Explore the Solutions Journalism Network's Story Tracker, a curated database of rigorous reporting on responses to social problems: https://www.solutionsjournalism.org/storytracker Read about the impact of solutions stories through the Solutions Journalism Network's Impact Tracker: https://www.solutionsjournalism.org/impact Read a solutions story by Rosenberg about how to triple voter turnout: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/19/opinion/voter-turnout-2020-election.html Read a solutions story by Michael Kimmelman about housing people who were living on the streets of Houston: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/14/headway/houston-homeless-people.html

Episode 94 of On the Evidence is the second installment in a new occasional series on the show called Evidence in Government, where guests talk about new developments in the halls of government and the role that evidence can or should play in decisions that could improve people's lives. On this episode, Christina Ciocca Eller talks about a recent push at the White House to accelerate the comingling of research and public policy to improve the lives of the American people. Ciocca Eller is an assistant professor of sociology and social studies at Harvard University who previously served as the assistant director for evidence and policy in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy under the Biden-Harris Administration. In that role, she co-led the White House's Year of Evidence for Action initiative. Following the one-year anniversary of the Year of Evidence for Action, Ciocca Eller and Mathematica's Mike Burns discuss what motivated the White House's intensified focus on data, evidence, and science in the federal government; what the effort achieved; and what's next in the movement to embed evidence in decision making. A full transcript of the episode is available at mathematica.org/blogs/former-biden-harris-administration-official-christina-ciocca-eller-on-turning-evidence-into-action

On this episode, we discuss the Family First Prevention Services Act in the context of one state's efforts to build evidence for a parent education program thought to prevent child abuse and neglect. Katherine Guffey, Meg Dygert, and Allon Kalisher discuss a parent education program in Arizona that Mathematica evaluated, the Family First law, and the long-term implications of the law's provisions around prevention services and evidence of effectiveness. Guffey is the executive consultant to the director of the Arizona Department of Child Safety. Dygert is the senior policy associate for child and family well-being at the American Public Human Services Association. Kalisher is a senior researcher at Mathematica. Find a full transcript of the episode at https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/inside-arizonas-efforts-to-invest-in-evidence-based-foster-care-prevention-services. Read Mathematica's evaluation of Arizona's the Nurturing Skills for Families program: https://mathematica.org/publications/impact-evaluation-of-the-nurturing-parenting-program-nurturing-skills-for-families Read a policy brief from the American Public Human Services Association on unlocking the “prevention services” in the Family First Prevention Services Act: https://files.constantcontact.com/391325ca001/09019575-0805-4650-b3c5-4a6c58769a38.pdf Learn more about our live podcast with Tina Rosenberg about the role of evidence in solutions journalism on May 2, 2023 at 2 p.m. ET: https://www.linkedin.com/video/event/urn:li:ugcPost:7049466439790956544/ To submit comments or questions in advance of the LinkedIn Live event, email info@mathematica-mpr.com or call Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast to leave a voicemail at (609) 945-6600.

In the president's proposed budget for the 2024 fiscal year, the Biden White House outlines a spending plan that would expand health care insurance coverage for more Americans, extend free school meals to more children, and provide financial assistance for child care to more families. The budget includes more than a dozen references to evidence and calls for taking evidence-based or evidence-informed approaches to criminal justice, foster care prevention services, and registered apprenticeship programs. To understand what the president's budget might mean for the future of evidence-based policymaking, Mathematica's Mike Burns spoke with Caitlin Emma and Nichole Dunn for the latest episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast. This episode is part of a new occasional series for the On the Evidence that explores new developments in the halls of government and the role that evidence could play in informing decisions that affect people's well-being. Find a full transcript of the episode at mathematica.org/ontheevidence. Learn more about our live podcast with Tina Rosenberg about the role of evidence in solutions journalism on May 2, 2023 at 2 p.m. ET: https://www.linkedin.com/events/7049466437156962304/comments/ Submit questions for Rosenberg in advance of the event by emailing info@mathematica-mpr.com. Read Emma's coverage of President Biden's budget as a re-election campaign document (https://www.politico.com/news/2023/03/09/biden-budget-reelection-campaign-00086452) and a challenge to House Republicans who have called for spending cuts (https://www.politico.com/news/2023/03/09/biden-budget-medicare-house-republicans-00086124). Read a summary of key provisions in the president's budget that support the use of evaluation, data, and evidence to make government more effective: https://www.evaluation.gov/assets/resources/2024 Evidence Chapter in Brief.pdf Explore the American Rescue Plan Data and Evidence Dashboard, developed by Results for America and Mathematica. It shows how state, local, and tribal governments are spending $350 billion in fiscal recovery funds from the American Rescue Plan Act: https://results4america.org/tools/arp-dashboard/ Explore the Results for America's Economic Mobility Catalog, which helps local leaders identify and implement evidence-based strategies to improve economic mobility for their residents: https://results4america.org/page/economic-mobility-catalog/ Learn more about the What Works Nonprofit Fellowship program and the Local Government Fellowship program offered by Results for America: https://results4america.org/our-work/

Every year, Mathematica publishes dozens of new papers and reports, some of which surface fresh insights about how public agencies and private organizations can be more effective at improving public well-being. For the 91st episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast, we're launching an occasional series focused on examples of solutions that recent research suggests are effective. All three solutions in this episode involve financial incentives that seek to reduce health care costs while improving the quality of care patients receive. One seeks to reduce the incidence of heart attacks, strokes, or other events related to cardiovascular disease. Another is focused on bringing down the cost of health care and improving patient health by providing primary care services at home. And the last one, again, seeks to keep costs down while improving patient health, but this time by using a unique payment model that provides incentives to hospitals to change the way they do business. Email jwogan@mathematica-mpr.com to provide feedback about our approach to covering solutions on the podcast. A full transcript of this episode is available here: https://mathematica-mpr.com/blogs/solutions-for-preventing-heart-attacks-improving-patient-health-and-reducing-health-spending Read the fourth annual report from Mathematica for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services on the evaluation of the Million Hearts Cardiovascular Disease Risk Reduction Model: https://www.mathematica.org/publications/evaluation-of-the-million-hearts-cardiovascular-disease-risk-reduction-model-fourth-annual-report Learn more about the ongoing evaluation of the Million Hearts Cardiovascular Disease Risk Reduction Model: https://www.mathematica.org/projects/million-hearts-cardiovascular-disease-risk-reduction-model Read the seventh annual report from Mathematica for Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation on the evaluation of the Independence at Home Demonstration: https://www.mathematica.org/publications/evaluation-of-the-independence-at-home-demonstration-an-examination-of-year-7-the-first-year Learn more about the ongoing evaluation of the Independence at Home Demonstration: https://www.mathematica.org/projects/evaluation-of-the-independence-at-home-demonstration Read the report from Mathematica for the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation on impacts from the first three years of the Maryland Total Cost of Care Model: https://www.mathematica.org/publications/evaluation-of-the-maryland-total-cost-of-care-model-quantitative-only-report-for-the-models-first Learn more about Mathematica's ongoing evaluation of the Maryland Total Cost of Care Model for the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation: https://www.mathematica.org/projects/evaluating-accountability-for-statewide-health-cost-and-quality-outcomes-cpc

On this episode, guests Tosin Shenbanjo, Julie Sanon, and Allison Holmes discuss a cross-sector partnership in Memphis, Tennessee, that infused equity into a local nonprofit's two-generation strategy for alleviating poverty and supporting families. Sanon is the chief operating officer at Agape Child & Family Services in Memphis. Holmes is a senior research associate at the Annie E. Casey Foundation. Shenbanjo is a researcher at Mathematica. They share lessons from a collaboration between Agape, Casey, and Mathematica to implement equity-infused rapid-cycle learning at Agape, with the goal of improving the effectiveness of the nonprofit's programs that serve children and families. A full transcript of the episode is available here: https://mathematica.org/blogs/supporting-families-through-equity-infused-program-change Read the guide developed by Mathematica and the Annie E. Casey Foundation to help human services providers continuously improve their programs through equitable, collaborative, and innovative approaches: https://www.mathematica.org/publications/championing-change-a-practitioner-guide-for-leading-inclusive-and-equity-infused-rapid-cycle Learn more about the partnership between Agape Child & Family Services, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, and Mathematica to implement and refine Agape's place-based, two-generation programs that support children and their families: https://mathematica.org/projects/support-for-agape-child-and-family-services-2gen-model Read a report from Agape Child & Family Services, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, and Mathematica about Agape's experience with adapting two of its 2Gen programs in the face of pandemic-related service disruptions: https://www.mathematica.org/publications/learning-to-adapt-helping-agape-child-and-family-services-use-rapid-cycle-learning-to-drive

On the latest episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast, we look at a potential solution to two concerns in K–12 education during the pandemic: student learning loss and teacher burnout. The conversation builds on a national study from Mathematica and the Institute of Education Sciences on a form of individualized, video-based teacher coaching, which improved student achievement. Our guests for this episode include a teacher (Nicole Minor), a teacher coach (Michelle Schmidt), and a Mathematica researcher who studied the impacts of teacher coaching (Jeffrey Max). Find the full transcript here: https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/video-based-coaching-offers-potential-solution-to-student-learning-loss-and-teacher-burnout Read a press release summarizing findings from Mathematica's study for the Institute of Education Sciences about the impacts of teacher coaching on student achievement: https://mathematica.org/news/new-report-finds-student-test-scores-improved-after-teachers-received-individualized-video-based Read the full report from Mathematica and the Institute of Education Sciences on the impacts of teacher coaching on student achievement: https://mathematica.org/publications/study-of-teacher-coaching-based-on-classroom-videos-impacts-on-student-achievement-and-teachers

The latest episode of Mathematica's On the Evidence podcast looks at proven ways to help job seekers with low incomes during economic recessions and recoveries. Guests Tyreese Nicolas, Kimberly Clum, and Alex Stanczyk share insights from the Pathways to Work Evidence Clearinghouse, a publicly available website about interventions designed to help job seekers with low incomes. They also discuss what the evidence says about the effectiveness of these interventions. Nicolas served as an assistant director of employment services at the Massachusetts Department of Transitional Assistance for four years and recently became the Deputy Commissioner of Family Access and Engagement in the Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care. Clum is a senior social science research analyst with the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation. Stanczyk is a researcher at Mathematica, where she focuses on public policies and programs that serve individuals and families that face social or economic disadvantage. A full transcript of the episode is available here: https://www.mathematica.org/blogs/helping-job-seekers-with-low-incomes-during-economic-recessions-and-recoveries Explore the Pathways to Work Evidence Clearinghouse: https://pathwaystowork.acf.hhs.gov/ Read the evidence review from Mathematica and OPRE on what works during economic recessions and recoveries to help workers with low incomes: https://www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/documents/opre/remediated-pathways_recession_brief_revised-jh.pdf