{"id":2361,"date":"2025-02-14T23:36:33","date_gmt":"2025-02-15T07:36:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tei.cgu.edu\/?page_id=2361"},"modified":"2025-11-19T14:28:50","modified_gmt":"2025-11-19T22:28:50","slug":"award-winner","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/tei.cgu.edu\/tei-social-betterment-award\/award-winner\/","title":{"rendered":"Award Winner"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span data-olk-copy-source=\"MessageBody\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-2419\" src=\"https:\/\/tei.cgu.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/41\/2025\/05\/Adobe-Express-file-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"Reception photo of awardee and CGU members\" width=\"853\" height=\"640\" srcset=\"https:\/\/tei.cgu.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/41\/2025\/05\/Adobe-Express-file-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/tei.cgu.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/41\/2025\/05\/Adobe-Express-file-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/tei.cgu.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/41\/2025\/05\/Adobe-Express-file-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/tei.cgu.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/41\/2025\/05\/Adobe-Express-file-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/tei.cgu.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/41\/2025\/05\/Adobe-Express-file-2048x1536.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 853px) 100vw, 853px\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span data-olk-copy-source=\"MessageBody\">2025 Award Winner<\/span><\/h2>\n<p><span data-olk-copy-source=\"MessageBody\">The Evaluators\u2019 Institute (TEI) is proud to announce <b>Dr. Donna Mertens<\/b>, Professor Emeritus at Gallaudet University, as the recipient of the inaugural TEI Social Betterment Award. The award was presented on May 1, 2025, at the Western Psychological Association (WPA) Convention during a special event celebrating the Claremont Colleges\u2019 enduring contributions to applied psychological science and evaluation.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis award reflects our commitment to uplifting evaluators who foster a more just, informed, and thriving world through their work,\u201d said <a href=\"https:\/\/tei.cgu.edu\/people\/tiffany-berry\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Dr. Tiffany Berry<\/a>, Director of Student Affairs and Strategic Planning for TEI and Dean, School of Social Science, Policy &amp; Evaluation at Claremont Graduate University.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe are thrilled to recognize Donna Mertens as a leader and change agent in the evaluation community.\u201d\u00a0 <a href=\"https:\/\/tei.cgu.edu\/people\/stewart-donaldson-phd\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Dr. Stewart I. Donaldson<\/a>, Executive Director of TEI and Distinguished University Professor at Claremont Graduate University, agreed. \u201cRecognizing Donna Mertens with the inaugural TEI Social Betterment Award highlights the profound influence she has had in advancing evaluation as a force for social good. Her legacy sets a high standard for all who seek to use evaluation to foster a more just and thriving society.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Selected from a highly competitive pool, Dr. Mertens was nominated by a global cohort of scholars, including Professor Anthony J. Onwuegbuzie (UK\/South Africa), Dr. Fiona Cram (New Zealand), Professor Bagele Chilisa (Botswana), Professor Norma Romm (South Africa), Dr. Tamarah Moss (Bahamas\/US), and Professor Anna CohenMiller (Spain).<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDonna Mertens is a trailblazing evaluation and mixed methodology theorist, scholar, mentor, and practitioner whose work has revolutionized the field by centering social justice, equity, and the voices of marginalized communities,\u201d said <a href=\"https:\/\/tei.cgu.edu\/people\/ayesha-boyce\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ayesha Boyce<\/a>, a member of the TEI Social Betterment Award Selection Committee.<\/p>\n<p>Support letters praised her \u201cunparalleled commitment to transformative, mixed methods evaluation,\u201d calling her a \u201ccatalyst for positive change\u201d with a legacy of \u201cinclusive innovation\u201d and \u201cradical generosity.\u201d Committee member <a href=\"https:\/\/tei.cgu.edu\/people\/sarah-chapman\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Sarah Chapman <\/a>emphasized the global reach of her influence and the profound impact of her work on both theory and practice.<\/p>\n<p>The Selection Committee also recognized two honorable mentions:\u00a0<b>Dr.<\/b>\u00a0<b>Dawn X. Henderson<\/b>, founder of WeClaim Research, LLC, and the\u00a0<b>Reciprocal Consulting Inc. team<\/b>\u00a0(Dr. Kim van der Woerd, Dr. Billie Joe Rogers, Kylee Swift, and Sofia Vitalis).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>2025 Award Winner The Evaluators\u2019 Institute (TEI) is proud to announce Dr. Donna Mertens, Professor Emeritus at Gallaudet University, as the recipient of the inaugural TEI Social Betterment Award. The award was presented on May 1, 2025, at the Western Psychological Association (WPA) Convention during a special event celebrating the Claremont Colleges\u2019 enduring contributions to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":172,"featured_media":0,"parent":2351,"menu_order":3,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-2361","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Award Winner - TEI | The Evaluators&#039; Institute<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/tei.cgu.edu\/tei-social-betterment-award\/award-winner\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Award Winner - TEI | The Evaluators&#039; Institute\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"2025 Award Winner The Evaluators\u2019 Institute (TEI) is proud to announce Dr. Donna Mertens, Professor Emeritus at Gallaudet University, as the recipient of the inaugural TEI Social Betterment Award. 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