On January 1, EnCompass CEO/CFO Tessie Catsambas began her tenure as president of the American Evaluation Association (AEA), an organization of 8,000 members from around the world seeking to improve evaluation practices, increase the use of evaluation, and promote evaluation as a valued profession. This appointment is part of a 3-year term; she was president-elect in 2018 and will continue as immediate past president in 2020.
As AEA President, Ms. Catsambas is committed to increasing the visibility of the evaluation profession. Her pledge to AEA members is to “nurture a vibrant evaluation community of practice that promotes partnership, scholarship, open exchanges, and mentorship—a community that welcomes and encourages young evaluators, delights in intellectual discourse, and makes space for differences in practice and thinking.”
Ms. Catsambas will travel the country and the world, representing AEA and its mission at global evaluation conferences, learning events, and other venues. In November, she will preside over AEA’s annual evaluation conference in Minneapolis, Minnesota. This year’s theme, “Paths to the Future,” emphasizes how evaluators can help people come together around evidence to understand what is, and envision a better future.
“Evaluation offers the promise,” she says, “of productive discussions, inclusive and systematic approaches for engaging multiple stakeholders, and rigorous review of evidence. Our profession is highly relevant today. Evaluation is a core service for decision makers and the public to create their desired futures together.”
The EnCompass team congratulates our CEO/CFO, Tessie Catsambas, on this latest achievement. We look forward to supporting continued innovation and deeper connections across our global evaluation community in 2019, and we are excited to support the work of the AEA through Tessie’s service. We hope to see you at AEA’s Summer Evaluation Institute and Evaluation 2019!
