YSB Report Card
The YSB Report Card
CYSA has been partnering with the State Department of Education and The Charter Oak Group, LLC since 2009 to develop a Results-Based Accountability (RBA) Framework for Youth Service Bureaus statewide. The Connecticut State Legislature has adopted RBA and state agencies are using the RBA framework for the development of plans, reports and budgets.
What Does This Mean For YSBs?
The RBA framework will be used for SDE cost-sharing grant for YSBs in terms of planning, reporting, budgeting, outcome measures and data tracking. CYSA members were identified to participate in a pilot program to develop the RBA framework with SDE and The Charter Oak Group, LLC in 2010. That work has resulted in data collection forms for the YSB grants that are currently being used across the state as well as surveys to capture critical data. These forms have become a regular part of the YSB grant reports. The data collected from those reports will demonstrate not only the cost-effectiveness of YSB programs and services, but will also demonstrate that Connecticut children, youth and their families are better off as a result of participation in those programs and services.
About RBA
RBA is “a disciplined way of thinking and taking action that can be used to improve the quality of life in communities, cities, counties, states and nations. RBA can also be used to improve the performance of programs, agencies and service systems” (Friedman, Mark. Trying Hard Is Not Good Enough: How to Produce Measurable Improvements for Customers and Communities. Trafford Publishing, 2005). For those who use it, RBA creates a common language, enhances decision making based upon analysis of data, uses common sense measures to identify what works and tells the user whether or not programs or services really make a difference in the lives of the people served.
Click here to download a five minute RBA Overview.
