Amherst H. Wilder Foundation (Research Department)
Wilder Research -- part of the Amherst H. Wilder Foundation in Saint Paul -- is one of the nation’s largest nonprofit research and evaluation groups dedicated to the field of human services. Their long-standing mission is to improve the lives of individuals, families, and communities through human services research. They are committed to research and evaluation that is useful, culturally competent, cost-effective, and respectful of individual dignity and confidentiality. They have experience working with groups of people who are diverse, often under-represented, and sometimes excluded or overlooked in research.
Since 2000, Wilder Research has actively promoted the development of evaluation professionals from under-represented groups. The organization noted the absence of qualified applicants from under-represented groups for positions and decided that to meet its needs and contribute to the development of the evaluation profession, it should initiate training for people entering the field. In collaboration with the University of Minnesota, ten years ago Wilder Research began a research and program evaluation training fellowship program for graduate students from under-represented groups. In 2008, it was selected as one of the placement organizations for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Evaluation Fellowship Program. The RWJF program provides Wilder Research the opportunity to offer evaluation training experience to an additional fellow from a wider range of academic institutions and geographic areas.
Placement Mentor - Paul Mattessich has worked in applied social research since 1973. In 1982, he became executive director of Wilder Research and has served as a member of the Wilder Foundation's senior leadership team since then. He has authored or co-authored more than 250 publications. He has also served on a variety of government and nonprofit boards of directors and special task forces. He received his Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of Minnesota.
Paul lived for a year in Belfast, Northern Ireland, where he worked with organizations that promote the development of democratic skills to bring communities together and to resolve conflict through nonviolent means. He lectures frequently throughout the United States and the United Kingdom, especially on topics of organizational effectiveness, collaboration/partnerships, and major social trends that will affect our future.
Recent Projects:
- Twin Cities Compass, a new initiative to raise awareness about community trends and support efforts to improve the quality of life in the Twin Cities region
- Writing a chapter on "managing evaluation studies," to appear in a New Directions in Program Evaluation book
- Studies of capacity building and volunteer initiatives
- Studies of community foundations and development of philanthropy
- Wilder Foundation strategic planning
- Study of racism in the East Metro area
Books/Publications:
- Information Gold Mine: Innovative uses of evaluation
- The manager's guide to program evaluation
- Collaboration: What makes it work
- Community-building: What makes it work
Placement Supervisor - Edith Gozali-Lee’s research focuses on education, and she often works closely with teachers and school staff. She first joined Wilder Research in 1995 to work on a major demonstration project to study children's transition from Head Start into elementary school. Edith has a Ph.D. in human development and family studies from Iowa State University, an M.S. in child development, and a B.A. in psychology.
