Volunteers and Evaluation: Two New SHATIL Publications

Readers of NIF News may not be aware that in addition to consulting to social organizations, running courses for social activists and spearheading our own social change projects, SHATIL also publishes booklets in all areas of concern to those working to make Israel a more just society. In the past week, two colorful new booklets have seen the light of day: So, how are we doing? Introducing Evaluative Processes to your Organization in three editions - Hebrew, Arabic and English; and Encouraging Citizen Involvement and Volunteering: A Guidebook for Nonprofit Organizations in Israel.

The first such publication in Israel, the evaluation booklet helps non profits to improve their work by learning to answer such critical questions as, "How do we know that we are doing well? How can we tell if we are being effective? Are we having the kind of impact that we hoped to have?" It was written by Dr. Nancy Strichman, an evaluation specialist at Haifa University and Fathi Marshood, director of SHATIL's Haifa office and one of Israel's leading organizational consultants, and published in cooperation with OnetoOne, Israel. The booklet is especially timely as more and more funders are requiring more rigorous evaluation of programs.

The 200-page volunteer booklet was written by volunteerism expert Brenda Needle-Shimoni and published in cooperation with the Community Centers Association, the Haim Tzipori Center for Community Education, Yad Sarah and the National Council for Volunteerism in Israel. It covers a wide range of topics from what motivates volunteers, to recruitment, training, planning their work, defining their role, trouble shooting and more.