Measurement / PRISM

The Program Report for Improvement and System Measurement (PRISM) is a summary dashboard of a program’s performance in areas of practice that relate to program organization and structure, supportive environment, engagement in activities and learning, and youth social-emotional skill development.

The PRISM allows programs to compare themselves to a city-wide group of their peers and to research-informed benchmarks to determine areas of relative strengths and challenges, which in turn inform focus areas for year-round continuous improvement. School year partners receive a mid-year and end-of-year PRISM, and summer partners receive a post-program PRISM in the fall. The PRISM is generated through the Cityspan Provider Database.

How to Read Your PRISM

Learn how information is organized on the PRISM and which groups are presented as comparison points for programs to understand their results in the context of broader city-wide efforts.

General Information, Demographics, and Attendance

This section of the PRISM provides a general overview of program characteristics, youth participant demographics, and youth participant attendance.

Program Management Practices

The most important part of the PRISM, this section summarizes evaluation results of program practice from the observer and youth perspectives, benchmarking the program against research-inform standards, its cohort of peers, and its past performance.

Skill Building Staff’s Perspective (SAYO-T)

Programs in the Youth Outcomes Membership Level and/or the Badging Membership Level receive a summary report of their participant’s social-emotional skill demonstration at baseline and growth over the program, as rated by program staff.

Skill Building Student’s Perspective (HSA, HSA-R)

Programs in the Individualized Support Membership Level receive a summary of their students’ self-assessment of social-emotional strengths and challenges as well as their perceived growth over the course of the summer.

Suggestions for Comparing Data Across the PRISM

This section provides tips and strategies for making connections between program practice data and youth social-emotional skill data across the various sections of the PRISM.

Apply Data Findings to Continuous Program Improvement

Reading and understanding the PRISM is the initial step in a broader process of using data to inform continuous program practice improvement. Learn more about additional steps programs can take here.