Outreach Process Self-Assessment Guide
Click on Foundation to view the Self-Assessment Guide areas in sequence or click on any of the 5 areas to link to that area of the guide.
- Part 1: Foundation for Outreach
- Part 2: Development Activities
- Part 3: Awareness & Dissemination Activities
- Part 4: Continuation
- Part 5: Replication Activities
The Outreach Process Self-Assessment Guide is designed for early childhood projects to use to consider their progress and to determine areas needing further development in their outreach work. The Guide seeks to articulate those minimally necessary outreach activities that are relevant to most projects seeking to disseminate a model or components of a model.
The Guide does not provide "how-tos" for any given step. There are many ways to accomplish most steps in the outreach process. Instead, the Guide provides a discussion protocol that can help project staff target issues for further investigation, problem solving, and strategic planning. It guides staff in asking questions such as:
- "How well have we accomplished this step?"
- "What are our options?"
- "What strategies have others used?"
- "Which items suggest next steps or continuing efforts for our project?"
Self-Assessment Guide Pilot Effort
In 1999, a group of OSEP-funded early childhood projects piloted the Outreach Process Self-Assessment Guide during a NECTAS meeting in Madison, Wisconsin. This Outreach Strategies Meeting brought together 13 participants from eight projects that are field testing or replicating innovative models for serving young children with special needs and their families. These participants used the Guide to identify their projects' current issues and concerns, which in turn formed the protocol for discussion and problem solving during the meeting.Participants' feedback about the Guide was very positive. Project staff described the Guide as comprehensive and useful in assessing their progress along the outreach process.