Needs Assessment
“Needs assessments are attempts at estimating deficiencies,” (David Royse, 2009, p. 55). There are several reasons for conducting a needs assessment. Some of these reasons are: “to explore the extent of an ongoing problem with a client population or community, prioritize the needs for services and help with resource allocation, determine whether other interventions and resources to address the problem exist, determine whether existing interventions are known to or are acceptable to potential clients, determine if there are barriers preventing clients from accessing existing services, and obtain information for tailoring a program to a specific target population,” (David Royse, 2009, p. 56). This narrative will address the need assessment for Full Gospel Tabernacle Leadership Training, and the steps included in writing a needs assessment.
Full Gospel Tabernacle Leadership Training Program
An expressed need, which is a demand for services, was voiced by some members of Full Gospel Tabernacle and the community. Chambers County, Texas is a small, rural area without any type of outreach services. The poverty level is high and many residents rely on welfare. Feedback shows that many welcomed a leadership program. The leadership program would mentor adults, teens, and children in various areas.
A training program was designed to meet the need of the members of Full Gospel Tabernacle and the community. The training was designed to encourage leaders to collaborate with Full Gospel Tabernacle and effectively lead others in the Tabernacle’s mission to implement an effective community leadership program. Training is held for one hour for six weeks and then there will be a probation period of 60 days to ensure prospective leaders abilities to effectively lead.
Summative assessments were performed at the end of the training sessions in the form of surveys/questionnaires, direct testing and performance ratings. Once the assessments were analyzed it was discovered that a needs assessment was needed to figure out in what areas leaders needed additional training or were deficient in.
According to feedback, Full Gospel Leadership Training program has areas where improvements are needed. During the probation period, many of the prospective leaders expressed the need for further training. Therefore, the level of the assessment would be within the organization. Training effective leaders would also have an impact on the community where the congregation is located. It could affect the community because of the community outreach programs conducted by Full Gospel Tabernacle.
Stakeholders, Budget, Resources, and Time
The stakeholders are those who were impacted by the training, the needs assessment, and the improvements implemented in regard to the needs assessment. The stakeholders would be the Pastor, members of Full Gospel Tabernacle, community leaders, school employees, participants of mentoring program, and the community. The budget is simple because the training was done in house and most of the resources needed were already available. The only outstanding expenses associated with the program would be paying staff, printing of manuals and surveys, and supplies needed for training. Volunteers and committee members will provide services of presenting information to school board, community, and other stake holders. The allotted time for the needs assessment would be twelve weeks. The actual training takes place over a six week period. Twelve weeks give committee members the opportunity of reviewing feedback from potential leaders and surveys from stakeholders.
Acquired Information
A committee has been formed to oversee the program and it meets once a month to discuss the needs and approve actions that come up in regard to the mentorship program. A partnership was formed with all schools in the county to ensure the success of the program. The committee surveyed members of Full Gospel Tabernacle, school employees, community leaders, and students in middle and high school.
Information needs to be acquired to provide support of a need in Chambers County, Texas. This information can be acquired from census data and stakeholders. Additional information could be gathered from community leaders. Committee members were allowed to do a presentation at the school board meeting. They were given permission to do another presentation at an in-service to have school employees complete the survey and students were given the survey in homeroom. Community leaders and residents were able to complete surveys at a community meeting, which was attended by over 60 leaders and residents.
Data
It is a good idea to include data that will back up the purpose. The more data used the better the need is presented; but there should not be repetitive data in the assessment. If possible, using government information, such as census, is a good idea. It is best to use this type of information would be good because it would be accurate.
Data was collected on the importance of mentorship. This data is important because it tells the story of how affective mentorship is. Those who are reviewing the needs assessments would be interested in this so a picture can be painted for the need of the program. The data backs up the information presented earlier in the needs assessment showing statistical information of need.
Writing Needs Assessment
Once all of the information has been gathered it is time to write the actual needs assessment. This can take some time and should not be done at the last minute. It is best to write multiple drafts of the needs assessments. This way mistakes can be caught. Also, someone else besides the writer should read the assessment. It is always better to have more than one set of eyes. It needs to be clear and the statistical information and data should be accurate. The purpose of the need assessment should be a focal point. Keeping this in mind will assist the writer on presenting as much important and needed information that backs up the purpose.
Results
Getting the results to the committee as quick as possible is important. It is important for committee to have as much information as possible. Committee members may have questions and it is important for the project coordinator be available to answer any questions that may arise. Writing an executive summary and doing some type of presentation in regard to the results would help the stakeholders get a full understanding of the project. “It is also important that recommendations generated from the report are viewed as credible by the stakeholders and the key agency personnel. This will help to ensure utilization of the needs assessment results,” (David Royse, 2009, p. 61).
Conclusion
Needs assessments are important because they provide the opportunity to involve stakeholders, participants, and others in the planning process. Allowing them to voice their opinions in regard to what is needed will help provide needed projects. It will assist you in answering at least four important questions: “what do the individuals who are part of your target community identify as their key needs, what needs are not being met by other organizations serving this target population, does the need you have identified fit within your organization’s mission or statement of purpose as captured in your incorporation papers, and do you have within your group of skills, experiences, and connections to the target audience that will enable you to address this need effectively,” (Why do a Needs Assessment?, 2014, p. 1)?
References
David Royse, B. A. (2009). Program Evaluation: An Introduction. Stamford,CT: Cengage Learning.
Why do a Needs Assessment? (2014). Retrieved July 14, 2014, from Community Resource Xchange: http://www.crenyc.org/_blog/News_and_Views/post/Why_do_a_Needs_Assessment/
“Needs assessments are attempts at estimating deficiencies,” (David Royse, 2009, p. 55). There are several reasons for conducting a needs assessment. Some of these reasons are: “to explore the extent of an ongoing problem with a client population or community, prioritize the needs for services and help with resource allocation, determine whether other interventions and resources to address the problem exist, determine whether existing interventions are known to or are acceptable to potential clients, determine if there are barriers preventing clients from accessing existing services, and obtain information for tailoring a program to a specific target population,” (David Royse, 2009, p. 56). This narrative will address the need assessment for Full Gospel Tabernacle Leadership Training, and the steps included in writing a needs assessment.
Full Gospel Tabernacle Leadership Training Program
An expressed need, which is a demand for services, was voiced by some members of Full Gospel Tabernacle and the community. Chambers County, Texas is a small, rural area without any type of outreach services. The poverty level is high and many residents rely on welfare. Feedback shows that many welcomed a leadership program. The leadership program would mentor adults, teens, and children in various areas.
A training program was designed to meet the need of the members of Full Gospel Tabernacle and the community. The training was designed to encourage leaders to collaborate with Full Gospel Tabernacle and effectively lead others in the Tabernacle’s mission to implement an effective community leadership program. Training is held for one hour for six weeks and then there will be a probation period of 60 days to ensure prospective leaders abilities to effectively lead.
Summative assessments were performed at the end of the training sessions in the form of surveys/questionnaires, direct testing and performance ratings. Once the assessments were analyzed it was discovered that a needs assessment was needed to figure out in what areas leaders needed additional training or were deficient in.
According to feedback, Full Gospel Leadership Training program has areas where improvements are needed. During the probation period, many of the prospective leaders expressed the need for further training. Therefore, the level of the assessment would be within the organization. Training effective leaders would also have an impact on the community where the congregation is located. It could affect the community because of the community outreach programs conducted by Full Gospel Tabernacle.
Stakeholders, Budget, Resources, and Time
The stakeholders are those who were impacted by the training, the needs assessment, and the improvements implemented in regard to the needs assessment. The stakeholders would be the Pastor, members of Full Gospel Tabernacle, community leaders, school employees, participants of mentoring program, and the community. The budget is simple because the training was done in house and most of the resources needed were already available. The only outstanding expenses associated with the program would be paying staff, printing of manuals and surveys, and supplies needed for training. Volunteers and committee members will provide services of presenting information to school board, community, and other stake holders. The allotted time for the needs assessment would be twelve weeks. The actual training takes place over a six week period. Twelve weeks give committee members the opportunity of reviewing feedback from potential leaders and surveys from stakeholders.
Acquired Information
A committee has been formed to oversee the program and it meets once a month to discuss the needs and approve actions that come up in regard to the mentorship program. A partnership was formed with all schools in the county to ensure the success of the program. The committee surveyed members of Full Gospel Tabernacle, school employees, community leaders, and students in middle and high school.
Information needs to be acquired to provide support of a need in Chambers County, Texas. This information can be acquired from census data and stakeholders. Additional information could be gathered from community leaders. Committee members were allowed to do a presentation at the school board meeting. They were given permission to do another presentation at an in-service to have school employees complete the survey and students were given the survey in homeroom. Community leaders and residents were able to complete surveys at a community meeting, which was attended by over 60 leaders and residents.
Data
It is a good idea to include data that will back up the purpose. The more data used the better the need is presented; but there should not be repetitive data in the assessment. If possible, using government information, such as census, is a good idea. It is best to use this type of information would be good because it would be accurate.
Data was collected on the importance of mentorship. This data is important because it tells the story of how affective mentorship is. Those who are reviewing the needs assessments would be interested in this so a picture can be painted for the need of the program. The data backs up the information presented earlier in the needs assessment showing statistical information of need.
Writing Needs Assessment
Once all of the information has been gathered it is time to write the actual needs assessment. This can take some time and should not be done at the last minute. It is best to write multiple drafts of the needs assessments. This way mistakes can be caught. Also, someone else besides the writer should read the assessment. It is always better to have more than one set of eyes. It needs to be clear and the statistical information and data should be accurate. The purpose of the need assessment should be a focal point. Keeping this in mind will assist the writer on presenting as much important and needed information that backs up the purpose.
Results
Getting the results to the committee as quick as possible is important. It is important for committee to have as much information as possible. Committee members may have questions and it is important for the project coordinator be available to answer any questions that may arise. Writing an executive summary and doing some type of presentation in regard to the results would help the stakeholders get a full understanding of the project. “It is also important that recommendations generated from the report are viewed as credible by the stakeholders and the key agency personnel. This will help to ensure utilization of the needs assessment results,” (David Royse, 2009, p. 61).
Conclusion
Needs assessments are important because they provide the opportunity to involve stakeholders, participants, and others in the planning process. Allowing them to voice their opinions in regard to what is needed will help provide needed projects. It will assist you in answering at least four important questions: “what do the individuals who are part of your target community identify as their key needs, what needs are not being met by other organizations serving this target population, does the need you have identified fit within your organization’s mission or statement of purpose as captured in your incorporation papers, and do you have within your group of skills, experiences, and connections to the target audience that will enable you to address this need effectively,” (Why do a Needs Assessment?, 2014, p. 1)?
References
David Royse, B. A. (2009). Program Evaluation: An Introduction. Stamford,CT: Cengage Learning.
Why do a Needs Assessment? (2014). Retrieved July 14, 2014, from Community Resource Xchange: http://www.crenyc.org/_blog/News_and_Views/post/Why_do_a_Needs_Assessment/