Evaluation Grant Review Panel Dave Anderson President, EBP Consulting LLC Dave Anderson is the President of EBP Consulting LLC where he advises government officials, philanthropies, and nonprofits on rigorous evaluation design, interpreting research findings, evaluation strategy, and advancing evidence-based policy reforms. Prior to starting his consulting practice, he was Director and then Vice President of Arnold Ventures’ Evidence-Based Policy team, which from 2015 through 2021 committed more than $140 million in funding to develop and advance the use of rigorous evidence across a wide range of policy areas including education, workforce development, violence/substance use prevention, early childhood, and child welfare. This included funding more than 100 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) across these various policy areas. He joined Arnold Ventures after serving for six years as Vice President of the Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that worked with federal policy officials to advance important evidence-based reforms, many of which were enacted into law and policy. In this role, he oversaw staff-level evidence reviews conducted for the Coalition’s Top Tier Evidence initiative — a widely cited resource used by policymakers, philanthropic officials, and practitioners to identify social programs shown in rigorous evaluations to produce sizable, sustained benefits to participants. In addition, he played a leading role in developing and carrying out the Coalition’s high-profile, national research competition to demonstrate the value and feasibility of low-cost RCTs. Julie Edmunds, PhD Program Director, SERVE Center at UNC Greensboro Dr. Julie Edmunds, Program Director for Secondary School Reform at SERVE Center at UNCG, conducts evaluation and research on a range of issues related to school improvement. She has received over $20 million in research and evaluation funding for 25 different projects. Dr. Edmunds is currently Principal Investigator of a $5 million grant examining the impact of North Carolina’s dual enrollment program. She is also Principal Investigator of a 17-year longitudinal experimental study of the impact of early colleges. She conducts evaluations using methods ranging from experimental and quasi-experimental impact studies to developmental evaluations focused on program improvement. In addition to dual enrollment and early college, she has evaluated programs on the transition to college, online learning, and STEM new teacher preparation, as well as professional development programs in science, technology, history, and principal leadership. Dr. Edmunds has also been involved in policy development at the U.S. Department of Education and has been an elementary school teacher. She is a standing proposal reviewer for the Institute of Education Sciences. Natalie Garret Program Analyst, North Carolina Pandemic Recovery Office Natalie joined NCPRO as a Program Analyst in December of 2021. Prior to joining NCPRO, she served as a Program Evaluator for two years at the NC Program Evaluation Division. Before shifting to state government work, she acted as Vice President and Grant Coordinator for a small nonprofit targeting child food-insecurity in Wake County, and worked with local officials to make regional hunger alleviation programs more impactful. Natalie earned her Masters of Public Policy from Duke University in 2017, and holds a B.A. in Economics and B.S. in Environmental Policy and Management from UNCA. Steve Lize, PhD Officer, Results First initiative at the Pew Charitable Trusts Steve Lize, PhD, is an officer with the Results First initiative at the Pew Charitable Trusts. He advises state governments on using program evaluation and cost-benefit analysis in budget development and planning. He has partnered with OSBM to give technical assistance to build and use the Results First benefit-cost model. Sara Nienow Research Economist, RTI International Sara Nienow is an applied economist at the Center for Applied Economics and Strategy within RTI International. She works with clients to identify and measure economic impacts associated with industries. Other work focuses on assessing initiatives to fund and promote scientific innovation. Before working for RTI International, Sara was a principal program evaluator for the North Carolina General Assembly for eight years. In this role, she led teams to examine the efficiency and effectiveness of state programs. Ms. Nienow performed cost benefit analysis and input-output modeling for the North Carolina Department of Commerce and Department of Environment and Natural Resources prior to working for the General Assembly.
Evaluation Grant Review Panel Dave Anderson President, EBP Consulting LLC Dave Anderson is the President of EBP Consulting LLC where he advises government officials, philanthropies, and nonprofits on rigorous evaluation design, interpreting research findings, evaluation strategy, and advancing evidence-based policy reforms. Prior to starting his consulting practice, he was Director and then Vice President of Arnold Ventures’ Evidence-Based Policy team, which from 2015 through 2021 committed more than $140 million in funding to develop and advance the use of rigorous evidence across a wide range of policy areas including education, workforce development, violence/substance use prevention, early childhood, and child welfare. This included funding more than 100 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) across these various policy areas. He joined Arnold Ventures after serving for six years as Vice President of the Coalition for Evidence-Based Policy, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that worked with federal policy officials to advance important evidence-based reforms, many of which were enacted into law and policy. In this role, he oversaw staff-level evidence reviews conducted for the Coalition’s Top Tier Evidence initiative — a widely cited resource used by policymakers, philanthropic officials, and practitioners to identify social programs shown in rigorous evaluations to produce sizable, sustained benefits to participants. In addition, he played a leading role in developing and carrying out the Coalition’s high-profile, national research competition to demonstrate the value and feasibility of low-cost RCTs. Julie Edmunds, PhD Program Director, SERVE Center at UNC Greensboro Dr. Julie Edmunds, Program Director for Secondary School Reform at SERVE Center at UNCG, conducts evaluation and research on a range of issues related to school improvement. She has received over $20 million in research and evaluation funding for 25 different projects. Dr. Edmunds is currently Principal Investigator of a $5 million grant examining the impact of North Carolina’s dual enrollment program. She is also Principal Investigator of a 17-year longitudinal experimental study of the impact of early colleges. She conducts evaluations using methods ranging from experimental and quasi-experimental impact studies to developmental evaluations focused on program improvement. In addition to dual enrollment and early college, she has evaluated programs on the transition to college, online learning, and STEM new teacher preparation, as well as professional development programs in science, technology, history, and principal leadership. Dr. Edmunds has also been involved in policy development at the U.S. Department of Education and has been an elementary school teacher. She is a standing proposal reviewer for the Institute of Education Sciences. Natalie Garret Program Analyst, North Carolina Pandemic Recovery Office Natalie joined NCPRO as a Program Analyst in December of 2021. Prior to joining NCPRO, she served as a Program Evaluator for two years at the NC Program Evaluation Division. Before shifting to state government work, she acted as Vice President and Grant Coordinator for a small nonprofit targeting child food-insecurity in Wake County, and worked with local officials to make regional hunger alleviation programs more impactful. Natalie earned her Masters of Public Policy from Duke University in 2017, and holds a B.A. in Economics and B.S. in Environmental Policy and Management from UNCA. Steve Lize, PhD Officer, Results First initiative at the Pew Charitable Trusts Steve Lize, PhD, is an officer with the Results First initiative at the Pew Charitable Trusts. He advises state governments on using program evaluation and cost-benefit analysis in budget development and planning. He has partnered with OSBM to give technical assistance to build and use the Results First benefit-cost model. Sara Nienow Research Economist, RTI International Sara Nienow is an applied economist at the Center for Applied Economics and Strategy within RTI International. She works with clients to identify and measure economic impacts associated with industries. Other work focuses on assessing initiatives to fund and promote scientific innovation. Before working for RTI International, Sara was a principal program evaluator for the North Carolina General Assembly for eight years. In this role, she led teams to examine the efficiency and effectiveness of state programs. Ms. Nienow performed cost benefit analysis and input-output modeling for the North Carolina Department of Commerce and Department of Environment and Natural Resources prior to working for the General Assembly.
