Child Trends identified evaluated after-school programs in Philadelphia that: were 501 c3 organizations; served over 50 children; served children and adolescents between the ages of 8 and 16; had an operating budget of $340,000 and higher; and were evaluated. Programs were excluded if they were large institutions such as schools, juvenile detention centers, residential group homes, religious organizations and hospitals.

To compile a list of programs that might meet these criteria, a standardized process was used:

GuideStar Scan: *GuideStar, (the national database of non-profit organizations filing 990s) was used to identify relevant programs based on the criteria specified by Atlantic Philanthropies. A standard set of search terms were used to allow for consistent searching. The search terms used were: children, youth program(s), and child programs. *GuideStar was also searched under the category of “youth development.” Once the relevant program information was identified, it was included in the description of the program.

After-School Program Scan: If information in Guide Star indicated that the program had been evaluated, then the program web-site was scanned for relevant evaluation information.

Phone interviews with Community Foundations and Experts: Where individual program web-sites did not yield detailed evaluation information, phone interviews with program sites managers were conducted. In the case of Philadelphia, Program Directors at Steppingstone Scholars Program, EducationWorks, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southeastern Pennsylvania, Congreso, Need in Deed, and Across Ages were interviewed. 

Web-Based Searches: Internet web-based searches of government and city and state level web-sites were also conducted. In the case of Philadelphia, important supplemental evaluation information was obtained from sites such as City of Philadelphia (www.phila.gov), Philadelphia Youth Network (www.pyninc.org), Building Pathways to Success for Out-of-School Youth in Philadelphia (www.osyphila.org), and Philly S.O.S (famcent.phila.gov/sos).

National Umbrella Organizations: To obtain additional evaluation information, a series of searches of national umbrella organizations were conducted. These Internet, web-based searches of national umbrella associations included Boys and Girls Clubs, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Girls, Incorporated, Junior Achievement, and YouthBuild. These searches yielded important evaluation studies, often multi-site studies, which may or may not have had Philadelphia as a site.

Evaluation Research Databases:  Evaluation information was also obtained from evaluation research databases. These research databases included but were not limited to the Harvard Research Family Project, Public/Private Ventures, and the Child Trends Lifecourse Model.  Evaluations included in these databases yielded important information for Philadelphia.

Peer-Reviewed Journals: We also used several databases containing evaluation research articles to complete an evaluation literature search. The data bases used include PsycINFO, Sociofile, EBSCO, and Web of Science. This literature search allowed us to identify several well-known journals that contained articles on after-school program evaluation. Some of the journals used in this search include Adolescent and Family Health, Prevention Science, Journal of Early Adolescence, and Journal of Vocational Behavior. The evaluation reports used in these articles were identified, sourced, and incorporated into the program evaluation summaries.