Since its inception in 2001, the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholar Program (Gilman Scholarship), has assisted over 10,000 U.S. citizen undergraduates with limited financial means to pursue academic study abroad. This retrospective evaluation of the Gilman Scholarship investigates the effect of the program on scholarship recipients and their home educational institutions, as well as participants' home communities. Findings from the evaluation will enhance our understanding of how the Gilman Scholarship contributes to the deepening of mutual understanding among diverse population groups. Research areas include program outcomes by type of institution (community colleges, four- and two-year colleges, historically black colleges and university, and tribal colleges); specific program components such as the Critical Need Language Supplement; and outreach projects completed by students after study abroad experience. Covering academic years from 2001-02 to 2009-2010, the evaluation launched in September 2011. The Division has commissioned Maryland-based firm Research Solutions International (RSI) to conduct the evaluation.

This evaluation will assess the impact and effectiveness of select English Language programs administered by the Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Three programs will be included, each of which will be assessed individually according to program goals and outcomes: the English Language Specialist Program, the E-Teacher Scholarship Program, and the Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship (ETA) Program. English language programming is central to ECA's mandate to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and people in other countries, strengthen cross-cultural exchanges and learning, and foster linkages between US citizens and institutions and those overseas. This evaluation provides an opportunity to review the effectiveness of each program in achieving specific goals, in order to provide information that the ECA Bureau, ECA senior leadership and management, and ECA program offices can use to enhance program effectiveness and impact. Maryland-based research firm EurekaFacts conducts the evaluation.

This new evaluation, an integrated assessment of five ECA programs that focus on professional development through the gender lens, will provide unique data with regard to the similarities and differences in how men and women experience ECA programs, what they take away, and how they apply and share knowledge after they return home. The findings will enable State Department leadership, ECA senior management, and program officers to better understand potential impacts of the program on its male and female participants and inform on-going and future program design. The five ECA programs to be evaluated are the FORTUNE/State Department Global Women's Mentoring Partnership, the American Government Fellows Program, the American Business Fellows Program, the Institute for Representative Government (IRG), and the International Leaders in Education Program. Research Solutions International (RSI) heads up the evaluation.

This groundbreaking evaluation applies a sectoral approach to investigate the impact that Hubert H. Humphrey Fellowship Program participants have had in the fields of environment, law and human rights, and public health regionally or in their home countries. Each year since 1978 approximately 160 Humphrey Fellows are funded by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) to engage in non-degree study and associated professional experiences at one of 15 selected American universities. The purpose of this evaluation is to examine the effectiveness of the Humphrey Program in fostering change or institutional and organizational capacity building in three critical fields: environment, law and human rights, and public health. The evaluation will endeavor to collect information from fellows from all years, stretching back to the late 1970s, thus offering in-depth analysis of how the Humphrey Program is a catalyst for change. The Evaluation Division is working with Social Solutions International (SSi) to conduct the evaluation.

This evaluation assesses the impact and effectiveness of select cultural and sports programs administered by the Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA).  The evaluation is made up of three individual, thematic assessments: 1) cultural and arts program and projects managed by the International Visitors Leadership Program Office (IVLP); 2) The Sports Visitors Program and Sports Envoy Program conducted through the SportsUnited division in the Office of Citizen Exchanges; and 3) select programs conducted by the Cultural Program Division in the Office of Citizen Exchanges. The numerous programs and projects examined cover a wide range of cultural exchanges and artistic genres, State Department efforts to support girls' and boys' engagement in sports, exposure to athletics in educational settings, technical sports training, and outreach to youth. Management Systems International (MSI) is conducting the evaluation.

The Young Turkey/Young America Program was first announced in 2009 by Secretary Hilary Rodham Clinton as part of an ongoing commitment to strengthen U.S.-Turkish relations. The exchange provides opportunities for emerging leaders in Turkey and the United States to advance critical dialog, identify shared concerns, and develop grassroots initiatives. This formative evaluation covers the first three years of the program, investigating program activities and joint-projects in both Turkey and the United States. Using a mixed-method approach, the evaluation team will research the effects of the program on individual participants, as well as participating institutions such as NGOs, think tanks, youth wings of political parties, business organizations, women's organizations, youth-related organizations, grassroots, and community-based organizations. The evaluation will enhance our understanding of the exchange's role in preparing professional counterparts to address pressing social issues. The Division has commissioned research firm EurekaFacts to conduct the evaluation.