PEG’s mission is to improve learning and performance for children and adults by providing researchers, funders, program leaders, and other decision makers the comprehensive, rigorous, and relevant data they need to measure and continuously improve the positive impact of their work. Our goal is to improve the quality and usefulness of research and the practices and products that emerge from that research by promoting data-driven, evidence-based decision making.

PEG support’s the University of Georgia’s and the College of Education’s commitment to excellence in research by collaborating with university researchers to design rigorous and comprehensive evaluation plans for grant proposals and conducting outcome (summative) as well as implementation (formative) evaluations of research studies. As evaluators on funded projects, we (a) measure researchers’ success in achieving the intended outcomes of their research, (b) assess how the implementation process impacts outcomes, (c) provide interim performance data to reveal needed mid-course corrections, and (d) help researchers’ articulate their results and findings in reports to funders and stakeholders who can benefit most from the research.

High-quality research is a critical foundation for our work but just as critical is a thorough, detailed, and comprehensive understanding of the needs of decision makers and stakeholders and a vision of the interrelationships between the people, resources, activities, and environmental influences that directly or indirectly impact outcomes. We help programs answer vital questions, such as (a) what is working and what is not working, (b) what environmental aspects challenge or facilitate implementation of the planned program, (c) which components of the program are most responsible for its success or failure, and (c) what improvements can be made to move the program forward toward achieving the goals and desired outcomes.