🎉 It’s here! 🎉
📘 “Evaluation: The Hidden Career”
An illustrated career storybook for high schoolers
A few weeks ago, a dear friend’s daughter—a high school junior—asked me, “What do you do?”
I told her, “I’m a program evaluator.”
She paused: “Never heard of it.”
That stuck with me.
We teach students to consider careers like doctor, lawyer, engineer, entrepreneur… but no one talks about program evaluation—a field that blends pretty much all areas of study – data science, education, social science, policy, and storytelling to help people and organizations make better decisions.
So I decided to create something simple and accessible that might change that.
📘 The Hidden Career: Program Evaluation is a short, visual story following three students—Jordan, Maya, and Leo—as they discover how asking the right questions, collecting the right data, and reflecting on impact can change systems and lives. And that they could choose to become program evaluators!
💭 This is not a commercial project. There’s nothing for sale.
Just something I made using some creativity and a little quiet time—a personal response to a tough grants season and a reminder that sometimes, stepping back from work, a little outreach, creativity, and imagination go hand in hand.
🌱 My Path (in case you’re wondering):
My journey wasn’t linear or planned.
I began with a degree in Agricultural Science in India. I worked in Public Relations & Advertising, then pursued advanced degrees in Applied Sociology and Education Research & Methods. It wasn’t until I came to the U.S., more than two decades ago, that someone introduced me to the field of evaluation! The rest, as they say, is history.
Today, I’m proud (and sometimes still surprised) to run my own firm that’s nearly 20 years old.
I didn’t set out to be an evaluator, but looking back, it makes sense.
📈 This guide is meant for:
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High schoolers who don’t yet know how big the world is
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Educators and counselors looking for new ways to spark curiosity
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Anyone who’s taken a winding, unexpected path and wants to show others what’s possible
🔗 The Hidden Career – Storybook
💬 Please share with a parent, an educator, or a student who might need this. You never know what conversation it could start. Happy reading!
