Impact Program Evaluation

• Introduction

An impact program is recommendable as part of the efforts to remedy the situation amongst racially traumatized persons in the US. Shreds of evidence point to the presence of racial discrimination and its effects on African Americans. It is especially so amongst people who grew up in neighborhoods where racial discrimination is commonplace.  The effects are manifest in their poor mental health that is characterized by stress disorder. An unhealthy lifestyle triggered by the stress also results in poor physical health amongst some people of African American descent.

The problem demands an effective intervention to ensure the assistance of a large number of affected persons. The proposed solution entails the introduction of a program that can address the societal problem with the utmost effectiveness. The program is oriented towards awareness creation amongst all Americans. Doing so is in line to ensure that all people are aware of the problems of African Americans in the country. The initiative seeks to ensure that people understand the real issues facing people of color. It is only from an informed perspective that they can understand the afflicted, change their attitudes towards them, and consequently lessen their troubles. Awareness creation is in line with the social work’s core value of inclusion. All people should be included in the fight against racial discrimination for it to be effective through individual contributions. The program also seeks to create an environment in which children can feel safe to express themselves regarding the trauma they face in their daily interactions.  The activity is within the social work’s goal of addressing the problem in its entirety to ensure that the problem does not persist in the future.

• Value

The program will be, in many ways, of significant value to different people in society. A tangible value of the activities will be the alleviation of racial trauma amongst the affected individuals. It is expected that the behavior of people of African American descent will improve significantly. The results are anticipated to be manifest in the change of behavior. The ability of children to share their experiences with racial trauma in a perceivably safe environment is anticipated to alleviate racial trauma amongst them. Results of the same are expected to be manifest in the healthy growth of the children, whereby they will be more inclined towards facing the problems related to racial discrimination as opposed to falling victim to the same.  Another tangible result of the program is the reduction in signs of racial trauma. Creating awareness amongst Blacks and offering them chances to express themselves with ease are expected to assist the healing process amongst people with stress disorder related to racial trauma. The expected changes include changes in reactions to situations depicting racial discrimination as well as lifestyle, such as eating patterns.

The intangible values will be manifest in how members of the public will change their behavior towards African Americans. A change of attitude towards a willingness to offer more equitable opportunities to African Americans, for example, will be an intangible result of the program in the short-run. However, it is expected to be tangible in the long-run, through the rise in the number of people of color who clinch favorable jobs in places and positions that are currently dominated by Whites. The change in attitudes towards minority races will be the result of awareness creation. An informed lot is expected to behave more positively towards people of color. The police are also expected to be gentler in their interactions with African Americans. The effects of creating awareness to them about the effects of their actions are expected to be seen in the change of their values as well as a reduction in the number of cases of brutality against people of color.

• Cost

Some aspects of the program will require expenditure. Among the activities that will demand some investment is training the groups of people who will be creating awareness in the community. Training is paramount, owing to the need to approach the sensitive matter with professionalism. After the training, more costs will be incurred in equipping the staff. The team will be required to expend their energies, hence the need to offer them tools for the job. They will also need some upkeep cash to cater for their expenses, such as transport and food. The amount needed to cater for the awareness creation team will be significantly high, owing to the considerably long period that they will take to make the required impact. However, a section of the program will bear minimal costs. Providing children with a favorable environment to express themselves will require minimal investment. Hiring a professional to guide them during the sessions will be the only significant cost.

• Evaluation

Evaluating the effectiveness of the program is possible using both numerical counts and level-of-functioning.  Numerical counts are favorable to the evaluation process, owing to the ability to provide comparisons. It will be possible to record the situation as it is and then compare the recordings with the situation as it will be after implementing the program. Also, the method is advantageous in that it fits the specificity of questions needed to provide the necessary information. The awareness creation team and the coordinator of the children therapy program will use specific questions to record the information needed from the persons of interest before embarking on the program.  They will then collect information in intervals. The aim of so doing is to ensure that each step of the process is effective enough on its own as a contributory part of the whole. They will progressively collect information, until after both aspects of the program are completed.

Double-checking the effectiveness of the program will require the use of level-of-functioning. The method is different in that it offers classifications as opposed to the progressive recording of data. However, it complements the method of numerical count in that it offers information about the effectiveness of the program.  It will be, for this reason, easy to evaluate the effectiveness of each aspect of the program using a definite scale. The scale will be developed for each stage of the process of implementing the program. The persons in charge of each dimension of the program will then take up the responsibility of filling out the level-of-functioning scale. Doing so will assist in ensuring that both the awareness creation and the children’s therapy aspects of the program are effective in their rights. The level-of-functioning scale will also assist in evaluating the effectiveness of the program as a whole, according to the results realized. Comparing the information gained from both methods of evaluation will guide the facilitators in determining the areas that need improvement.