Nonprofit Research Seminar Series – Fall 2019
Hosted by The USC Center on Philanthropy and Public Policy

Jodi Sandfort

Professor, Leadership & Management Area, Humphrey School of Public Affairs

Founder and Academic Director, Future Services Institute

University of Minnesota

Private foundations are often interested in funding innovation, efforts that allow nonprofit organizations and government to do something new.  While researchers may be brought in to assist in evaluating such efforts, it is not common for a similar level of engagement by scholars in the design phase.  In this talk, I consider what might be gained if social scientists work with agencies during the design of innovations.  Drawing upon the literatures of policy implementation and innovation in social policy, I what is known about what it takes to innovate within the programs and administration of the social sector.  I then offer lessons from a number of design-based projects being undertaken by the Future Services Institute in the publicly-funded human services.  In this work, we are creating a comprehensive methodology for design-based research that we believe might be relevant to other sectors .  Through a commitment to rigorous engaged scholarship (Van de Ven, 2007), social scientists can help support the redesign necessary in this era to so many public services.

Kindly RSVP to Lisa at [email protected] by Thursday, October 3^rd .