SEL Measurement in DCYF Youth Programs

In Summer 2023, the DCYF engaged Policy Studies Associates (PSA) to serve as evaluation partner in the pilot implementation of SELweb, a social-emotional learning (SEL) competency measurement tool. The report is intended to inform DCYF’s consideration of how to incorporate an SEL measurement tool into future youth programs. The report is organized around feedback on the use of the SELweb tool during Summer Together programming in six sites as well as analyses of growth on the SEL competency domains measured by SELweb. It concludes with recommendations and considerations for future use and scaling efforts.


Dori Caminong
Final Report: YWD High School Partnerships Implementation

In the 2022-23 fiscal year, the American Institutes for Research (AIR) partnered with DCYF to conduct an implementation study of DCYF’s High School Partnerships (HSPART) strategy. The study focused on understanding the structure and design of HSPART, patterns in program participation and student graduation, and student experiences with the range of services HSPART programs provide to support them with preparation for post-secondary opportunities, including work and higher education. AIR conducted semi-structured interviews with school staff, service provider staff, and employer partners as well as focus groups with HSPART students. AIR also reviewed program documents and analyzed administrative data to better understand HSPART and identify areas of strength and growth.

Emily Davis
Final Report: Beacon Community School Evaluation

In the summer of 2019, Social Policy Research Associates (SPR) was hired by the Department of Children Youth and Families (DCYF) in San Francisco to conduct an implementation and outcomes evaluation of the expansion of the Beacon Community School model. The evaluation was significantly altered by the COVID-19 pandemic, which closed San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) schools from March 16, 2020, until April 10, 2021, and restricted SPR’s inperson access to schools and programs for the entirety of the study period. In consultation with DCYF staff, the evaluation design evolved to become developmental and responsive, rather than outcomes oriented.

This Final Report draws on qualitative and quantitative data over a five-year period (2018- 2023), including surveys, over 200 in-depth interviews, and data on program enrollment, attendance, and participant characteristics.

Dori Caminong
Evaluation of Summer Together - Report on Summer 2022

DCYF engaged Policy Studies Associates (PSA) to conduct an evaluation of the implementation and outcomes of Summer Together 2022. This report summarizes the key evaluation findings, based on surveys and focus groups with DCYF-funded providers and private camps; surveys of parents and caregivers, and of Summer Together participants; and analysis of enrollment and participation data tracked by DCYF and its partners.

Emily Davis
Evaluation of Summer Together

In Spring 2021, Policy Studies Associates (PSA) was engaged to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of the implementation of Summer Together. The evaluation was designed to explore a central question: How does Summer Together contribute to an equitable system that supports the growth, well-being, and success of young people in San Francisco?
Through interviews, focus groups, and surveys with Summer Together system leaders, program providers, families, and youth participants, the PSA team explored:

  • The impact of Summer Together funding on the landscape of summer programs

  • Program implementation highlights and challenges

  • Benefits for participants and their families

  • Lessons learned about system coordination, planning, and infrastructure

San Francisco Community Hubs Initiative Final Report

Social Policy Research Associates (SPR) was engaged by DCYF in the summer of 2020 to conduct an evaluation of the CHI, documenting the evolution of the initiative and providing evaluation data to inform program improvement. This final evaluation report documents CHI implementation, outcomes, and lessons learned. It is informed by observations of CHI planning meetings, interviews with staff from DCYF and CHI city partners, surveys of anchor agency staff, two parent surveys, a youth participant survey, CHI attendance data, and data from San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD).

DCYF Technical Assistance and Capacity Building (TA/CB) Cumulative Workshop Report 2020 — 2021

DCYF is committed to improving program quality to drive positive outcomes for the City’s youth, families and the staff who serve them. DCYF understands that investment in the professional development of youth service providers strengthens the broader ecosystem of programs and resources intended to benefit youth. Toward this end, DCYF encourages front-line staff, program managers and non-profit executives to utilize their suite of Technical Assistance/Capacity Building (TA/CB) offerings by participating in workshops, conferences, and extended learning cohorts.

Starting in 2019, DCYF partnered with the Claremont Evaluation Center (CEC) at Claremont Graduate University (CGU) to engage in a comprehensive multi-year evaluation to explore participation patterns in TA/CB workshops and the contribution of DCFY’s TA/CB on continuous learning for agency staff, and eventually quality improvement in the agencies where they are employed. Read the REport.

Dori Caminong
San Francisco Community Hubs Initiative Mid-Year Synthesis

Social Policy Research Associates (SPR) was engaged by DCYF to conduct a developmental evaluation of the Community Hub Initiative (CHI), documenting the evolution of the initiative and providing evaluation data to inform program improvement. This Mid-Year Evaluation Report documents the story of the CHI’s development, emerging outcomes, and lessons learned through the end of 2020.It is informed by observations of CHI program planning meetings, interviews with staff from DCYF and CHI city partners, a survey of anchor agency staff completed about one month after opening their Hub, a parent survey that was administered in December 2020, and attendance data from San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD). Read the report here.

Emily Davis
Spring 2021 TA/CB Quarterly Workshop Report

This report summarizes DCYF’s Technical Assistance and Capacity Building (TA/CB) workshop attendance data and TA/CB Workshop survey responses (completed by workshop participants from grantee agencies) to understand trends in workshop participation and perceptions of workshop relevance, facilitation quality, and plans for use. Read the full report here.

Colin Kimzey
FY2019-2020 TA/CB Cumulative Report
DCYF Cumulative Report 2019-2020 FINAL_Page_01.jpg

Starting in 2019, DCYF partnered with the Claremont Evaluation Center (CEC) at Claremont Graduate University (CGU) to engage in a comprehensive multi-year evaluation to explore participation patterns in TA/CB workshops and the contribution of DCFY’s TA/CB on continuous learning for agency staff, and eventually quality improvement in the agencies where they are employed. Read the full report here.