On October 29, 2019, at a bipartisan Capitol Hill briefing, Results for America released the 2019 Invest in What Works Federal Standard of Excellence (Federal Standard of Excellence), an annual snapshot of how federal agencies are building and using evidence and data to get better results for young people, their families, and communities. The event recognized the nine participating agencies for their significant progress in using and building evidence to inform budget, policy, and management decisions.
The event featured remarks by David Medina, COO and Co-Founder of Results for America and Nick Hart, CEO of the Data Coalition. A panel featured bipartisan senior congressional staff Mark Laisch, Professional Staff Member at the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee; Ryan Martin, Senior Human Services Advisor at the U.S. Senate Finance Committee; and Diana Epstein, Evidence Team Lead at the White House Office of Management and Budget.
Leaders from participating agencies spoke on a panel about the progress they have made to increase their use of data and evidence. The conversation focused on the key steps agencies are taking to build their evidence capacity in light of the Foundations for Evidence-Based Policymaking Act and how they are using that evidence to improve results. The panel was moderated by Jed Herrmann, Vice President for State and Federal Policy at Results for America, and included:
- Casey Dunning, Director, Results & Learning; Millennium Challenge Corporation
- Mary Hyde, Director of Research and Evaluation; Corporation for National and Community Service
- Susan Jenkins, Director, Office of Performance and Evaluation; Administration for Community Living; U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
- Jessica Ramakis, Senior Advisor, Office of Planning, Evaluation, and Policy Development; U.S. Department of Education
- Joshua Kaufman, Acting Director, Office of Learning, Evaluation and Research; U.S. Agency for International Development
- Emily Schmitt, Deputy Director, Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation; Administration for Children and Families; U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
- Barry Steffen, Senior Research Scientist; U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development
The event concluded with a congratulatory reception recognizing these federal agencies for their commitment to using data and evidence to improve lives and get better results.