Researchers from the RAND Corporation evaluated the experiences of three out-of-school-time (OST) systems that used a particular framework to assess their efforts. The framework authors drew on the research findings to produce an updated framework to help OST systems collect and analyze information to make sound decisions.

In 2014, Every Hour Counts developed a framework to help OST intermediaries gather and measure data. It then engaged the RAND Corporation to evaluate efforts by intermediaries in three cities (Boston After School & Beyond; the Providence After School Alliance, in Rhode Island; and Sprockets, in Saint Paul) to put the framework into practice.

RAND researchers reviewed:

• The quality of the data the intermediaries collected
• The measurement tools they used
• The condition of their databases
• The way they stored, processed, and used data
• The community context in which they operated
• How each intermediary was structured
• The resources— human, technological, and financial—they brought to bear on their data-related work

As a result, RAND and Every Hour Counts learned how each of the intermediaries went about incorporating the framework into its work, as well as the core challenges they experienced.

Findings from the evaluation informed the latest revision of the framework and the development of an accompanying guidebook.