Key Components and Framework
of the MTS Intern Program

Overview:   Interns will engage in up to 10 days (80 hours) of program evaluation work with ATE projects. The work plan and schedule will be collaboratively agreed on by the intern and the ATE representative and approved by The Evaluation Center. Work must be completed within 6 months.

Supervision:   All interns have completed The Evaluation Center's Summer Evaluation Institute training, meaning that all have at least introductory knowledge of evaluation theory and methods. The intern program is intended, in part, as a follow-up ‘hands-on' training. Assigned mentors from the Center staff will provide oversight and counsel for the interns' work throughout the program.

Expenses:   Expenses (within approved limits) for the intern's involvement will be covered by the MTS grant. Interns are paid at the rate of $175/day (up to 10 days) for their work. Travel expenses (airfare, lodging, per diem) for interns and ATE representatives to attend the required orientation in Kalamazoo are covered up to $1,000 per person. Each intern is also reimbursed for up to $1,000 in travel, communication, and related costs to visit and maintain contact with their respective ATE sites.

Confidentiality:   Evaluation information, data collected, and reports prepared by the intern will be treated as confidential information (i.e., confidential to the ATE projects and Evaluation Center staff). None of this information will be reported to NSF or other agencies or individuals without the explicit written permission of the respective ATE project representative. However, evaluation designs, instruments, and other materials and resources developed for use in conducting the evaluations will be placed in the MTS database.

Framework:   The program will begin with the required orientation meeting in Kalamazoo. The orientation will be used to provide a thorough overview of the program's framework, review expectations for interns and ATE project representatives, and allow time for the interns and ATE representatives to begin collaborating on an evaluation work plan.

The evaluation work plan is the first task to be completed. A rough draft of this plan should be completed by the close of the orientation meeting. This plan will outline the major evaluation tasks to be undertaken by the intern and the methods and time lines for completion of those tasks. Because the interns only have ten work days (80 hours) in which to conduct the evaluation work, it is not expected or feasible that they do the entire program evaluation, but to engage in substantive evaluation work that is of benefit to the project and to the development of the intern's evaluation skills. The Evaluation Center will monitor the intern's progress in comparison with the evaluation work outlined on the evaluation plan that is submitted and approved.

The bulk of the program will involve the intern carrying out the work identified in the evaluation plan. Assigned mentors from The Evaluation Center will provide oversight and counsel throughout. During the course of the work, it is expected that the intern meet with the ATE representative and conduct site visits as necessary. The intern may include travel time to the project in his or her 80 hours, but interns are placed as close as possible to their projects to keep travel time at a minimum. Evaluation Center staff plan to visit each site at some point in the collaboration in order to follow-up on the progress firsthand.