QUESTION
Why was the STEPs program without evaluations and success indicators in the RFP, and why is attendance considered a valid metric?
1:11:35
·
141 sec
Council Member Althea Stevens expresses concern over the STEPs program's RFP lacking evaluations and success indicators, emphasizing the importance of even minimal metrics like attendance for engaging hard-to-reach youth.
- Council Member Stevens points out the unusual absence of evaluations and success indicators in the Steps program's RFP, questioning its effectiveness.
- Commissioner Juanita Holmes acknowledges the surprise at only finding attendance as a metric upon reviewing the program, supporting the need for evaluations.
- Stevens argues for the significance of attendance as a metric, especially for programs engaging youth in challenging environments, highlighting the effort required.
- She advocates for a nuanced approach to program evaluation, suggesting reevaluation and adaptation over elimination.
- The discussion underscores the challenge of engaging youth who are often disengaged from community and educational systems, and the necessity of tailored success metrics.
Althea Stevens
1:11:35
Jeez, even around the steps program, I know you said that there was, like, no evaluations and, like, the RFP.
1:11:40
That sounds strange to me because like I said, I was in program for years.
1:11:43
I've never seen an RFP.
1:11:45
Because that and, like, has had any indicators of success.
1:11:49
Like, there's no way that our fee was put out.
1:11:51
That's just not even how our fees work.
Juanita Holmes
1:11:54
I'm I'm gonna tell you something.
1:11:56
I said the same thing.
1:11:57
I've been a city government for 30 something years, doing programs myself.
1:12:00
Right?
1:12:01
You want successful outcomes.
1:12:03
I walked into this seat, and I'm telling you what I saw was metrics of attendance.
Althea Stevens
1:12:09
So when
Juanita Holmes
1:12:09
I have a program person, the the the my guidance over the contracts and are they're here.
1:12:15
We look everybody at this table.
1:12:17
We looked at the programs.
1:12:18
He did a deep dive in it.
1:12:20
I have no reason to tell you No.
Althea Stevens
1:12:21
I'm not saying that you're I'm not saying that, but even a metric of attendance is a metric.
1:12:25
Feel to say that there isn't any, that is a metrics, and especially for that program specifically, I think what happens in programming Right?
1:12:33
We often say, like, you have to have all these things, and we have to have all these things.
1:12:36
Sometimes you do need programs that have lower hanging fruits to engage these young people in so attendance.
1:12:41
They is the prime purpose.
1:12:43
Right?
1:12:43
And so that program was a mentorship program that was in developments that were engaging in people who typically aren't engaged.
1:12:50
And it was really hard.
1:12:51
And so getting them there was a challenge.
1:12:54
And so to get someone who is really hard that doesn't come to any other programs as probably not coming to the community center.
1:13:00
That's probably not coming to going to school and is and, you know, engaged in other illegal activities.
1:13:05
It's really hard to get them there.
1:13:07
So that is why that bar was so low because engaged them took so much work.
1:13:12
And so I think we have to also look the differences.
1:13:15
There's different programs for different things.
1:13:17
And saying that that attendance isn't enough for that program.
1:13:21
It made sense because it was so difficult to get those kids there.
1:13:25
So maybe you want it a little bit more, but maybe it's like we could have layered it and said, okay, 10, this is the first step.
1:13:30
Something is a second step and it stays instead of saying let's eliminate it, I think sometimes we don't take the time to say let's stop and evaluate a program and then address it and change it.
1:13:39
Because it doesn't make sense.
1:13:41
It was working in let's say even if it was only 200 kids in the program, we just lost those 200 kids because now we have to reengage Even if it's a new program, it's still reengaging them in a different way.
1:13:51
So I'll get off I'll I'll leave it there.
1:13:53
I mean, if there's a second round, they'll ask some of them.