CC Evaluation Email Templates
Education email to CC Directors to Request Participation in the National Evaluation
To: [CC Director]
From: Danielle Smith <Danielle.Smith2@ed.gov>
CC: Allan Porowski <Allan_Porowski@abtassoc.com>; <compcenterseval@abtassoc.com>
Attach: letter on ED letterhead [OMB package 11a]
Subject: Congressionally mandated study of the Comprehensive Centers program
Dear [CC Director],
I am writing to request your assistance with a Congressionally mandated implementation study we are conducting on the Comprehensive Centers program. In partnership with Abt Associates, we are conducting interviews of Comprehensive Center grantees and surveying their stakeholders to understand the implementation of the program from 2019-present. For more information about this study, please see the study profile on IES’s website here: https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/projects/evaluation/other_compcenters19.asp.
In the coming days, you will receive an email from Abt Associates asking you to participate in the study. The purpose of the study is to provide the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) of the U.S. Department of Education with information about assistance and services your Center offers, challenges and successes in implementing your program, technical assistance recipients you serve, and your partnership with the Regional Educational Laboratory in your region. Findings will help IES improve the program.
We are asking CC Directors to participate in the following ways:
Provide contact information for the primary contacts of Year 2 Projects.
Participate in a 60-minute interview.
Abt Associates will contact you with information about both activities.
Thank you for your cooperation with this effort. If you have any questions about the study, please contact Allan Porowski, study director, at Allan_Porowski@abtassoc.com or (301) 634-1765.
Sincerely,
[Insert Danielle’s electronic signature and title here]
U.S. Department of Education
2. Abt email to CC Directors to Request Contact Information for Survey Sample
To: [CC Director]
CC: Danielle Smith <Danielle.Smith2@ed.gov>; <compcenterseval@abtassoc.com>
Attach: Excel template for contacts, letter from Danielle Smith
Subject: Identifying Respondents for the Comprehensive Center TA Recipient Survey
Dear [CC Director],
I hope this email finds you well. I am writing to you on behalf of Abt Associates, a policy research firm. Abt Associates is currently working with the U.S. Department of Education to conduct the Congressionally-mandated National Evaluation of the 2019 Comprehensive Center Program Grantees. Title II, Sec. 203 of the Educational Technical Assistance Act (ETAA) mandates that results of the national evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers (CCs) be reported to Congress. You should have previously received an email from Danielle Smith about this effort.
For this evaluation, Abt Associates will be conducting a Comprehensive Center Technical Assistance (TA) Recipient Survey. The survey will help the Department of Education learn about the problems that the CCs are addressing, the services that they are providing to address these problems, and successes and challenges related to the program structure in the current cycle.
We are reaching out to request your help in collecting contact information for the Comprehensive Center TA Recipient Survey. The survey will focus on CC projects that were active in Year 2 of the cycle, which overlaps with the 2020-21 school year. The survey will be sent to the primary contact at the relevant State Education Agency or Local Education Agency (school district) for each project. To minimize conflicts with any data collection efforts your CC may be planning, we plan to field our survey in May 2022.
We ask that you please share contact information (phone and e-mail) for the primary contact for each of your CC’s active Year 2 projects. We have attached a template email that you can use when responding to this request and an Excel template for collecting this information. If any project information that is pre-filled in this template is incorrect or missing, we appreciate any corrections.
Please use the attached Excel file to compile contact information from your project’s primary contacts. Please send the completed Excel file back to me at compcenterseval@abtassoc.com by DATE [31 DAYS FROM TODAY].
Please don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions!
Thank you for your help with this data collection effort. We recognize it may be a busy time of year for you and greatly appreciate your assistance. We will be in touch in a few weeks to schedule a 60-minute interview with you.
Best, Allan Porowski
2a. Abt email Template to Share with CC Directors
Subject: Nomination to participate in a survey for the National Evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers
Dear [Potential Survey Respondent],
I nominated you to participate in a survey for the National Evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers. This Congressionally-mandated evaluation is designed to help the U.S. Department of Education to better understand the educational problems that Comprehensive Centers aim to address, what services they provide, and to what extent they are improving agency capacity.
Research firms Abt Associates and AnLar are conducting the evaluation and administering the survey. The project study team will send you the survey in [May]. The results of this survey will be reported to Congress with other findings from the evaluation and can help inform future improvements to Comprehensive Centers.
We would like to confirm your contact information:
Preferred e-mail address: [e-mail on file]
Phone: [phone number on file]
If this is incorrect, please let us know so we can ensure the survey gets to you. Please don’t hesitate to reach out if you have questions.
Thank you for your consideration,
[CC Director]
2b. Abt follow up Email to CC Directors to Request Contact Information for Survey Sample
Note: Send after deadline if no response is received. Reply all to initial email and attach original Excel file
Dear [CC Director],
I’m writing to follow up about the email I sent to confirm participant contact information for an upcoming survey for the National Evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers. As a reminder, the study team is requesting contact information for the primary contact for each active project your Comprehensive Center had in Year 2, which overlaps with school year 2020-21.
Can you please send me the completed Excel file containing contact information for the primary contact of each Year 2 project as soon as possible?
Thanks in advance for your time, and please let me know if you have any questions about this request.
Best,
Your Name
Abt email to Survey Recipients
To: [Survey Recipient]
Subject: Please Complete the Comprehensive Centers TA Recipient Survey!
Dear [Survey Recipient],
As you may already know, research firms Abt Associates and AnLar are conducting a National Evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers for the U.S. Department of Education. The results of this Congressionally-mandated evaluation will inform program improvement for the next cohort of Comprehensive Center grantees in 2024.
As part of the National Evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers, we are asking all primary contacts at state and local education agencies for Year 2 projects to complete this brief survey. [insert CC Director Name] nominated you to take the survey for [insert project name]. We recognize that you may have received a survey in April from your Regional Center Director. This is a separate survey intended to collect national information on the Comprehensive Center program. Also, all data collected for this study will be kept confidential per The Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002, excerpted on the first page of the survey link, except as required by law. A report will be published with results aggregated across all respondents. Your responses are protected from disclosure by federal statute (20 U.S.C., §9573). As described on the first page of the link, all responses that relate to or describe identifiable characteristics of individuals may be used only for statistical purposes, and may not be disclosed, or used, in identifiable form for any other purpose.
We recognize this may be a busy time of year for you and that your time is valuable. To minimize burden on you, this will be the only survey we will ask you to complete for this evaluation.
The survey should take 20 minutes per project to complete. We ask that you complete the survey no later than DATE. You can access the survey on your cell phone, computer, laptop, or tablet.
Please follow this link to access the survey:
[insert survey link]
We appreciate your willingness to help us with this important effort. This survey is being conducted for research purposes only. The reports prepared for the study will summarize findings across the sample. Your responses will not be associated with you as an individual. Your data will be stored securely and will only be accessible to the study team.
If you have any questions about the survey, please contact Allan Porowski, the Study Director, at allan_porowski@abtassoc.com or (301) 634-1765.
Thank you very much for your participation!
The National Evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers Team at Abt Associates
1a. Reminder email to survey non-respondents (after 1 week)
To: [Survey Non-Respondent]
Subject: Reminder: Please Complete the Comprehensive Centers TA Recipient Survey!
Dear [Survey Non-Respondent],
We’re writing to follow-up on an email we sent last week. As part of the National Evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers, we are asking all primary contacts for Year 2 projects to complete a brief survey. [insert CC Director Name] nominated you to take the survey for [insert project name].
The survey should take 20 minutes per project to complete. We ask that you complete the survey no later than DATE. You can access the survey on your cell phone, computer, laptop, or tablet.
Please follow this link to access the survey:
[insert survey link]
We appreciate your willingness to help us with this important effort. Your responses will be combined with other responses in study reports. Your responses will not be associated with you as an individual.
If you have any questions about the survey, please contact Allan Porowski, the Study Director, at allan_porowski@abtassoc.com or (301) 634-1765.
Thanks in advance for your participation!
The National Evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers Team at Abt Associates
1b. Reminder email to survey non-respondents (after 2 weeks)
To: [Survey Non-Respondent]
Subject: Comprehensive Centers TA Recipient Survey—Please Respond!
Dear [Survey Non-Respondent],
As you may already know, the U.S. Department of Education is asking all primary contacts for Year 2 projects to complete a brief survey as part of the National Evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers. The results of this survey will be reported to Congress with other findings from the evaluation.
[insert CC Director Name] nominated you to take the survey for [insert project name] because you are the primary contact for this project. The survey should take 20 minutes per project to complete, and can be accessed on your cell phone, computer, laptop, or tablet.
Please follow this link to access the survey:
[insert survey link]
We appreciate your willingness to help us with this important effort. If you have any questions about the survey, please contact Allan Porowski, the Study Director, at allan_porowski@abtassoc.com or (301) 634-1765.
We ask that you complete the survey no later than DATE.
Thank you in advance for your participation!
Best,
The National Evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers Team at Abt Associates
1c. Reminder email to survey non-respondents (after 3 weeks)
To: [Survey Non-Respondent]
Subject: The Deadline is Approaching—Please Complete the Comprehensive Centers TA Recipient Survey
Dear [Survey Non-Respondent],
Please take 20 minutes per project to respond to the Comprehensive Centers TA Recipient Survey by DATE. As a primary contact for [insert project name], we would appreciate your response! You can access the survey on your cell phone, computer, laptop, or tablet.
Please follow this link to access the survey:
[insert survey link]
We appreciate your willingness to help us with this important effort. If you have any questions about the survey, please contact Allan Porowski, the Study Director, at allan_porowski@abtassoc.com or (301) 634-1765.
Thank you in advance for your participation.
Sincerely,
The National Evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers Team at Abt Associates
Initial Interview Scheduling Email
To: [CC Director]
CC: Danielle Smith <Danielle.Smith2@ed.gov>; <compcenterseval@abtassoc.com>
Subject: Interview for the National Evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers
Dear [CC Director],
I hope this email finds you well. My name is [enter your first and last name], and I am working on the National Evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers, conducted by research firm Abt Associates for the U.S. Department of Education. As you may know, the purpose of this Congressionally-mandated evaluation is to examine the delivery and effectiveness of the Comprehensive Centers’ (CCs) technical assistance, and to explore the effect of changes that took effect with the 20 new grants awarded in in 2019. This critical study will help the Department of Education learn about the problems that the CCs are addressing, the services that they are providing to address these problems, and successes and challenges related to the new program structure. Title II, Sec. 203 of the Educational Technical Assistance Act (ETAA) mandates that results of the national evaluation of the CCs be reported to Congress.
As part of the evaluation, we are scheduling a 60-minute virtual interviews with all CC Directors to develop a better understanding of the successes and challenges you experienced in the current cycle. Your responses can help inform future improvements to the CC program.
Please use the link below to select an interview day and time that is convenient for you:
[Calendly link]
If you are not available during these times, please provide a few dates and times when you are available between [interview window start and end dates]. Please feel free to invite other leaders of your CC if you believe they are in a better position to address some of the topics listed above.
Your participation will also include completing a brief survey before the interview. Your answers to this survey will help us to tailor our interview questions to your Comprehensive Center and ensure they make the best use of our time.
This interview is being conducted for research purposes only. All data will be stored securely and will only be accessible to the study team. In study reports, your responses will not be associated with you as an individual. Any study reports will combine your responses with those from other CC Directors.
Thanks in advance for your time and consideration, and please let me know if you have any questions about this request.
Best, [Interviewer Name]
Reminder Interview Scheduling Email (if necessary)
Note: Send one week after initial email if no response is received. Reply all to initial scheduling email.
Dear [CC Director],
I’m writing to follow-up about the email I sent last week about scheduling a 60-minute virtual interview for the National Evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers.
Please use the link below to select an interview day and time that is convenient for you:
[Calendly link]
If you are not available during these times, please provide a few dates and times when you are available between [interview window start and end dates].
Thanks in advance for your time and consideration, and please let me know if you have any questions about this request.
Best,
Interviewer Name
Interview Confirmation Email
Note: Reply all to scheduling email chain
Dear [CC Director],
Thank you for your response. I have scheduled your interview for DATE at TIME through Webex, a video conferencing platform. You will receive a calendar invitation shortly. My colleague, NOTETAKER NAME, will join us on the call as a notetaker.
During the interview, we will cover the following topics:
Collaboration Successes and Challenges
Changes due to COVID-19
Educational Topics and Services Provided
Before the interview, we ask that you complete a brief survey, with input from other Center staff as needed. Your answers to this survey will help us to tailor our interview questions to your Comprehensive Center. Please complete the survey by DATE 7 DAYS BEFORE INTERVIEW. The survey is available here: [insert pre-interview template link].
Thanks again, and we are looking forward to speaking with you. Please don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions.
Best,
Interviewer Name
Webex Invitation
To: [CC Director]
CC: Notetaker
Subject: National Evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers Interview
Note: Send directly after sending the interview confirmation email. Don’t forget the Webex Link!
Dear [CC Director],
Thank you for agreeing to participate in an interview for the National Evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers. We are looking forward to speaking with you on DATE at TIME.
To join the call, please click the link below. Please don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions, and please let us know if we should add any additional CC staff to this invite.
[Webex Link]
Best,
Interviewer Name
Interview reminder
To: [CC Director]
CC: [Notetaker]
Subject: Reminder: National Evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers Interview DATE at TIME
Note: Send 2 business days before interview
Dear [CC Director],
I hope all is well. This is a friendly reminder that we have an interview scheduled for the National Evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers on DATE at TIME via Webex. You should have received the Webex link through a calendar invite.
[If the pre-interview template has not been completed]: Additionally, we ask that you complete a brief survey before the interview. Please complete the survey by DATE. The survey is available here: [insert pre-interview template link].
At the beginning of the interview, we will ask if you’re able to spend 15 extra minutes on the call. If you aren’t able to add time to the meeting, we will ensure that we conclude at the end of the hour. We just want to make sure you’re aware that we expect the interview to take the full hour, and we wanted to ensure that our call doesn’t make you late to your next meeting. Please let me know if you have any questions.
Thank you and we are looking forward to speaking with you soon!
Best,
Interviewer Name
Interview Thank you
To: [CC Director], [Additional CC Participants (if applicable)]
CC: [Notetaker]; <compcenterseval@abtassoc.com>
Subject: Thank you!
Note: Send no later than 1 business day after the interview.
Dear [CC Director],
Thank you so much for speaking with us about collaboration successes and challenges, changes due to COVID-19, educational topics addressed and services provided, and the dimensions of capacity that Center projects are intended to address. We know you are busy and appreciate your time! Your insights will be a helpful contribution to the Department of Education in learning about the problems that the Comprehensive Centers are addressing, the services that they are providing to address these problems, and successes and challenges related to the new program structure.
Please feel free to contact us if you have anything additional to add, and thank you again for your participation in this study.
Best,
Interviewer Name
1. Email to REL Directors to Request Participation in the National Evaluation
To: [REL Director]
From: Chris Boccanfuso <Chris.Boccanfuso@ed.gov>
CC: Allan Porowski <Allan_Porowski@abtassoc.com>; <compcenterseval@abtassoc.com>
Subject: Congressionally mandated study of the Comprehensive Centers program
Dear [REL Director],
I am writing to request your assistance with the Congressionally mandated study we are conducting on the Comprehensive Centers program. In partnership with Abt Associates, we are conducting interviews of Comprehensive Centers grantees and surveying their stakeholders to understand the implementation of the program from 2019-present.
In the coming days, you will receive an email from Abt Associates asking you to participate in an interview for the study. The purpose of the study is to provide the U.S. Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences (IES) with information about assistance and services the Centers offer, challenges and successes in implementing the program, technical assistance recipients served, and the partnership between Comprehensive Centers and Regional Educational Laboratories. Findings will help IES improve the program.
Thank you for your cooperation with this effort. If you have any questions about the study, please contact Allan Porowski, study director, at Allan_Porowski@abtassoc.com or (301) 634-1765.
Sincerely,
[Insert Chris’s electronic signature and title here]
U.S. Department of Education
2. Initial Interview Scheduling Email
To: [REL Director]
CC: Chris Boccanfuso <Chris.Boccanfuso@ed.gov>; <compcenterseval@abtassoc.com>
Subject: Scheduling an interview for the National Evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers (CCs)
Dear [REL Director],
My name is [enter your first and last name], and I am working on the National Evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers. As you may know, the purpose of this evaluation to examine the delivery and effectiveness of the Centers’ technical assistance, given potential new stakeholder needs and changes that took effect with the 20 new grants awarded in in 2019. This data collection on the Comprehensive Centers is critical because it will help the Department of Education learn about the problems that the Comprehensive Centers are addressing, the services that they are providing to address these problems, and successes and challenges related to the new program structure. Title II, Sec. 203 of the Educational Technical Assistance Act (ETAA) mandates that results of the national evaluation of the CCs be reported to Congress.
As part of the evaluation, we are scheduling 30-minute interviews with all REL Directors to better understand the nature of collaboration between Comprehensive Centers and RELs and the successes and challenges that you have experienced while collaborating.
Please use the link below to select an interview day and time that is convenient for you:
[Calendly link]
If you are not available during these times, please provide a few dates and times when you are available between [interview window start and end dates].
Thanks in advance for your time and consideration, and please let me know if you have any questions about this request.
Best,
Interviewer Name
3. Reminder Interview Scheduling Email (if necessary)
Note: Send one week after initial email if no response is received. Reply all to initial scheduling email.
Dear [REL Director],
I’m writing to follow-up about the email I sent last week about scheduling a 30-minute interview for the National Evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers. Please use the link below to schedule an interview:
[Calendly link]
If you are not available during these times, please provide a few dates and times when you are available between [interview window start and end dates].
Thanks in advance for your time and consideration, and please let me know if you have any questions about this request.
Best,
Interviewer Name
4. Interview Confirmation Email
Note: Reply all to scheduling email chain
Dear [REL Director],
Thank you for your response. I have scheduled your interview for DATE at TIME through Webex. You will receive a calendar invitation shortly. My colleague, NOTETAKER NAME, will join us on the call as a notetaker.
During the interview, we will discuss successes and challenges you have faced when collaborating with the Comprehensive Centers.
We are looking forward to speaking with you! Please don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions!
Best,
Interviewer Name
5. Webex Invitation
To: [REL Director]
CC: [Notetaker]; Chris Boccanfuso <Chris.Boccanfuso@ed.gov>; <CompCentersEval@abtassoc.com>
Subject: National Evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers Interview
Note: Send directly after sending the interview confirmation email. Don’t forget the Webex Link!
Dear [REL Director],
Thank you for agreeing to participate in an interview for the National Evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers. We are looking forward to speaking with you on DATE at TIME.
To join the call, please click the link below. Please don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions!
[Webex Link]
Best,
Interviewer Name
6. Interview reminder
To: [CC Director]
CC: [Notetaker]; <CompCentersEval@abtassoc.com>
Subject: Reminder: National Evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers Interview DATE at TIME
Note: Send 2 business days before interview
Dear [REL Director],
We hope all is well. This is a friendly reminder that we have an interview scheduled for the National Evaluation of the Comprehensive Centers on DATE at TIME via Webex. You should have received the Webex link through a calendar invite.
If you have any questions, please let me know. Looking forward to speaking with you soon!
Best,
Interviewer Name
7. Interview Thank you
To: [REL Director]
CC: [Notetaker]; Chris Boccanfuso <Chris.Boccanfuso@ed.gov>; <CompCentersEval@abtassoc.com>
Subject: Thank you!
Note: Send no later than 1 business day after the interview.
Dear [CC Director],
Thank you so much for speaking with us about the nature of collaboration between Comprehensive Centers and RELs and the successes and challenges you’ve faced while collaborating. We know you are busy and appreciate your time! Your insights will be a helpful contribution in aiding the Department of Education learn about the successes and challenges in collaborating with the Comprehensive Centers.
Please feel free to contact us if you have anything else to add and thanks again for your participation.
Best,
Interviewer Name
| File Type | application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document |
| Author | Kyla Brown |
| File Modified | 0000-00-00 |
| File Created | 2022-03-16 |