The Method to Our Madness

Dr. Stacey Merola and Bill Pate sit down with Dr. Toks Fashola, research professor at American University, to unpack what it really means to do culturally responsive program evaluation. Dr. Fashola breaks down how spurious variables can quietly become confounding ones by using everyday examples like parking tickets in Baltimore and medication adherence in diabetes care and explains why understandi...

What if the most tedious parts of your research workflow could shrink from months to minutes? In this episode, hosts Stacey Merola and William Pate sit down with Ron Wilson, Assistant Graduate Program Director for the GIS program at the University of Maryland Baltimore County, to explore how AI is reshaping the way researchers and educators work. Ron shares how AI went from helping him stress-test...

What does it mean to be “DOGEd”? In this powerful episode of The Method to Our Madness Podcast, hosts Stacey and Bill sit down with sociologist Tara Fannon, Ph. D. to unpack the human impact behind the 2025 federal funding cuts—and the often-overlooked fallout for government contractors. Drawing from her GovCon Stories Project, Tara shares insights from a mixed-methods study of 92 surveyed contrac...

In Episode 13 of The Method to Our Madness Podcast, we sit down with evaluation management expert Kirk Knestis to unpack the real-world challenges of managing evaluation firms and projects—and how to handle them like a pro. From avoiding scope creep to setting up airtight quality assurance processes, Kirk shares practical strategies that can make or break an evaluation project. He dives into why s...

What does it take to prepare the next generation of evaluators to meet the challenges of a changing world? This episode dives into the shifting demands on the field, from federal funding uncertainty to the growing influence of AI tools, and the skills future evaluators will need to rise to the challenges. Our guests from the University of Minnesota discuss how future evaluators should be trained t...

  Logic models don’t have to be complicated or static. In this conversation with guest Deborah Levy , Stacey and Bill discuss why simplicity matters, how logic models should evolve over time, and what happens when programs face unexpected challenges like shifting audiences or external disruptions. The episode also offers practical tips for engaging stakeholders, collecting data, and using logic mo...

Fidelity of implementation is often talked about but rarely understood. In Episode 10 of The Method to Our Madness, Allan Porowski, Principal Associate at Abt Global, brings clarity to this critical concept in program evaluation. Drawing on years of experience and large‑scale evaluation work, Allan explains why fidelity metrics must be tailored to each program, how planned‑offered‑received framewo...

In this episode of The Method to Our Madness, Stacey and Bill unpack the different types of statistics commonly used in program evaluation—and why “simple” doesn’t mean unsophisticated. They explore how evaluators balance accessibility with rigor, discussing when descriptive statistics, t-tests, and ANOVA are the right tools, and when more advanced methods like hierarchical linear modeling or prop...

What’s the difference between formative, process, outcome, and impact evaluation? When should you actually use each one? In this episode, Stacey and Bill break down the why and when of evaluation, drawing on real-world examples from education, training programs, and policy work. They talk implementation fidelity, stakeholder engagement, logic models, and why not every evaluation is about proving c...

In this episode of The Method to Our Madness Podcast, we sit down with Rebecca Pitkow , a business development consultant with over 20 years of experience, to break down what actually works in proposal writing and procurement strategy.  We dive into how to identify the right opportunities early, avoid aspirational bidding, and use “gates” as decision points to save time, money, and energy. Rebecca...

Ever gone to a conference for the free swag and accidentally left with a career‑changing conversation? From data‑themed outfits to awkwardly empty presentation rooms, Stacey and Bill swap stories about how to get the most out of your conference experience. Drawing on years of attending, presenting at, and navigating professional and academic conferences across evaluation, psychology, sociology, an...

Episode 05:  Mixed methods with special guest John Hitchcock Have you ever wanted to know about using mixed methods in your research? Check out our latest podcast on mixed methods and the paradigm wars in program evaluation for a discussion about what mixed methods is and is not with special guest John Hitchcock, Marilyn Sime Professor for Educational Excellence at the University of Minnesota.  Jo...

In this podcast episode we discuss the principles that guide the protection of human subjects in medical and behavioral research by reviewing one of the seminal pieces on the subject, The Belmont Report. We also explore human subjects' protections in the context of current technological innovations. Notes related to the episode can be found here . Music written and produced by Stacey Merola. Podca...

In this episode, we go to Guatemala to chat with UX expert Anna Sandoval, Ph. D. about UX and qualitative research. UX research is the process of understanding user perceptions, needs, and behaviors, in order to design products that are accessible and usable. Gaining this understanding involves collecting data through qualitative methods like interviews and observations. After listening to the epi...

  Join us as we explore the roots of evaluation and the Evidence Act in this episode. Notes and sources are available here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pLF4kYfyg25Ew3nQ4yD6tP6-AVnRPY3G/view?usp=drive_link .   Music written and produced by Stacey Merola. Artwork by Zoe Targino.

In this episode, our hosts, Stacey Merola, Ph. D. and William Pate introduce themselves to the audience and discuss their vision for the podcast. Music by Stacey Merola. Podcast artwork by Zoe Targino.