Remarks

For years we have known intuitively that the “Arts Can Teach”. We needed to prove this with facts. We needed to challenge ourselves and ask what was good about the program and how to further improve the program. Colley Consulting was the perfect match. Thanks to Bernadette Colley and the Staff we were able to confirm that the Arts can really make a difference.

Colley Consulting provided us with thoughtful and careful research along with genuine insight that shaped our planning process concerning a Music Education program. Bernadette Colley was a pleasure to work with.

Dr. Colley has outstanding experience as a researcher, and is certainly among New England's leading experts for program evaluation in the arts. She is highly competent and reliable, with a proven record of excellence.

I was continually impressed with your way of working, and also of your assistants—especially in dealing with the program staff and participants... we came away from our meetings with you feeling energized and ready to take the next step... We learned so much from you and your assessment process. The results of the final report more than exceeded our expectations.

Your knowledge of the field and of what other models were working was the most valuable... also your knowledge of what information was needed in order to make a relevant assessment of what we were already doing, and your ability to choose and justify the option you chose for us. The Maine Arts Commission gave your concept a thumbs up. Chairman Peter Plumb thought the proposal would be a good advocacy tool with the legislature... The freshness of the approach you presented has stirred all our thinking...

The Maine Arts Commission's Partners in Arts Learning [PAL] program does increase access to arts education in nearly every populated part of the vast state of Maine. This is a remarkable achievement and it is unlikely any other state arts agency could claim this extent of reach...This is impressive.

You listened first, did not make any assumptions about how to meet our evaluation goals, and then strategically designed an evaluation that was both cost-effective and brilliant. You knew when to take the project and just run with it, and knew when to check in for feedback and advice on sensitive issues. You were professional in contacting interviewees on behalf of the Arts Council. The report was very user- friendly. The quality of the work was strong—I still quote that evaluation project now twelve years later.

You were smart, conscientious, competent, and a pleasure to work with. You also write—as well as think—very well.

I can't really say enough good stuff about Colley Consulting. You were always such a pleasure to work with. Your feedback and insights were almost always right on the mark! The way you ran the final teacher/administrator advisory meeting was just brilliant. You did a marvelous job of drawing out the meaty comments and ideas from a difficult group of people. I always found your written work really easy to navigate... Bernadette Colley is a strong and direct person, and I really like that in an evaluator! I know that she is always going to tell me straight out what her view of something is - and that is critically important...I felt like you always asked the right questions—the tough questions—and probed our thinking in really good and provocative ways. In short, there is no doubt in my mind that our collaboration with Colley Consulting greatly improved the quality of our programs, and helped us to not only hear the feedback of our constituencies, but to make meaningful adjustments to the way we did things.

The Museum staff and teachers who worked with you found your approach pleasant and interactions helpful. The high quality report is an extremely useful tool for both improving our program and using as ammunition in proving our case for funding. We also plan to use your well thought-out post-visit survey as a means for follow-up evaluation. Most of all, the process has taught us the value of taking a hard look at our programs through new eyes. The process gave us fresh insight and generated exciting new ideas.