Making Federal Agencies Evidence-Based: The Key Role of Learning Agendas

The Office of Management and Budget is requiring agencies to develop their learning agendas now, in conjunction with updates to their quadrennial agency strategy plan, and make them available to Congress in early 2022.

Dr. Kathryn E. Newcomer

Kathryn Newcomer is a professor in the Trachtenberg School of Public Policy and Public Administration at the George Washington University where she teaches graduate level courses on public and nonprofit program evaluation, and research design. She served as the Trachtenberg School director for over 12 years, until July 2019. She is a fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration, and currently serves on the Comptroller General’s Educators’ Advisory Panel.

Framing a Public Management Research Agenda

The IBM Center for The Business of Government hosted a forum in November 2009 to examine the Obama Administration's themes for a high-performing government and to frame a public management research agenda.

Participants included nearly 50 of the nation's top public management researchers, scholars, and distinguished practitioners. The forum was an effort to help bridge the gap between research and practice, and to collectively develop a research agenda that would help government executives move things forward.

Using Evaluation to Support Performance Management: A Guide for Federal Executives

his report documents the ways in which program evaluation is currently being used to support performance management. The authors draw from current practices to derive recommendations for improving the links between program evaluation and performance measurement, and management in the federal government. Managing for Performance and Results

 
Professor, Trachtenberg School of Public Policy and Public Administration
George Washington University
Washington, DC 20052
United States
(202) 994-2959

Kathryn Newcomer is a professor in the Trachtenberg School of Public Policy and Public Administration at the George Washington University where she teaches graduate level courses on public and nonprofit program evaluation, and research design. She served as the Trachtenberg School director for over 12 years, until July 2019. She is a fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration, and currently serves on the Comptroller General’s Educators’ Advisory Panel. She served as an elected member of the board of directors of the American Evaluation Association (AEA) (2013-2015 and 2016-2018), and as AEA president for 2017. She served as president of the Network of the Association of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs and Administration (NASPAA) for 2006-2007.

Dr. Newcomer has published seven books, including U.S. Inspectors General: Truth Tellers in Turbulent Times (2020 by Brookings), The Handbook of Practical Program Evaluation (4th edition 2015), and over 70 articles in journals including the Public Administration Review and the American Journal of Evaluation.

Dr. Newcomer earned a B.S. in secondary education and an M.A. in political science from the University of Kansas, and her PhD in political science from the University of Iowa.