Toward Disability-Led Evaluation: A Continuum Framework for Centering Disability in Evaluation Practice

Abstract

As evaluation practices evolve to better reflect the needs, values, and experiences of diverse stakeholders, it is essential for evaluators to recognize the expertise that comes from lived experience. Historically, marginalized communities such as people with disabilities have often been left out of evaluation processes despite the ethical and practical imperative for their meaningful inclusion. To challenge a paradigm of exclusion in evaluation and encourage evaluators to center the voices of people with disabilities in their work, this paper details the core principles of disability-led evaluation and introduces the Continuum of Disability Engagement in Evaluation.