The Actionable Evidence Framework was developed with input from a network of more than 70 researchers, practitioners, funders, and policymakers committed to changing the way we generate and use evidence for stronger, more equitable outcomes for communities. The framework was designed as part of an initiative to improve educational outcomes for students who are Black, Latino/a/x, or experiencing poverty. But these principles are applicable more broadly, and can be adapted to build actionable evidence for other target populations in different fields, such as workforce development and child welfare.
The framework also builds on lessons and principles from a broader set of initiatives aimed at making the process of evidence building more inclusive and practitioner-driven, including Research Practice Partnerships, Equitable Evaluation Initiative, Community-Based Participatory Research, Chicago Beyond’s “Why Am I Always Being Researched,” and We All Count, among others.
What distinguishes the Actionable Evidence Framework is its focus on empowering practitioners — educators, leaders and administrators at schools, colleges, and nonprofits who shape the experiences of students and their families — to drive change through engaging them equitably in the design, production, and use of evidence. At the core of the framework’s theory of change is a belief that by prioritizing the learning and decision-making needs of practitioners, and by working collaboratively with practitioners to build evidence that is timely and credible to them, we will see more effective programs, policies, and practices with evidence of equitable outcomes for students and families.
Actionable Evidence Initiative
Project Evident's Actionable Evidence Initiative works to improve outcomes by promoting “actionable evidence” that is timely, credible and practical, and is equitably produced.
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