4Culture Doors Open Evaluation Planning
King County, WA / ONGOING
The Doors Open Ordinance passed by the King County Council at the end of 2023 imposes a one-tenth of one percent sales and use tax for seven years, raising an estimated $100 million annually to finance cultural access programs. This public investment in King County cultural health gives 4Culture increased resources for evaluation and assessment capacity at the same time it significantly raises the bar for accountability and measurement of program performance. Seva Workshop is supporting the 4Culture leadership team and an Evaluation Work Group in the development of the Doors Open Evaluation Framework and Plan to be included in the 2024 Annual Report. Our team is also helping integrate Doors Open into longer-term organizational evaluation planning, including the eventual development of an in-house evaluation team, and helping to implement parts of the Evalution Plan through providing data collection, analysis, reporting, and technical assistance.
Framework: The Doors Open Theory of Change
Evaluation studies the consequences, or outcomes, of certain actions. In the case of Doors Open, the action being studied is public investment in hundreds of arts and cultural programs and capacities in King County. This investment, facilitated by 4Culture, and the subsequent efforts of cultural organizations, go on to provide public benefits in the complex ecosystem that is King County. The Theory of Change describes how public investment can drive positive outcomes as explained in the Doors Open Ordinance.
What We Will Measure and How
The Doors Open Evaluation framework measures the program on three different levels. Each level is concerned with different kinds of questions and represents a different degree of connection to 4Culture’s work.
What We Will Know and When
In accordance with the Doors Open legislation, assessment is required to ensure that program funding and spending are utilized effectively, and that Doors Open programs are accountable to the public. As programs are developed and launched, monitoring and compliance data on the distribution of funds is available first. Typically, program performance data begins to be available a year into implementation. The final assessment that reviews practices, methodology, personnel, funding distribution, program performance, planned vs actuals, and impact and public benefit will be completed in 2029. An interim assessment will be delivered to the Executive and King County Council every April along with the annual report providing available data according to the timeline described here.
