Our staff makes an impact both through their work at The Evaluation Center and through their contributions to the broader evaluation community. In 2025-26, they continued to build on their records of professional service, leadership, and recognition.
Lori Wingate, Executive Director
"I was incredibly honored to receive WMU's 2025 Distinguished Service Award. I'm grateful to my colleagues at WMU and beyond whose partnership and support have created so many opportunities for me to grow and lead."
Service
- Member, Student Success Leadership Team
- Lead, Empowering Futures Gift Evaluation Workgroup
Awards and Recognition
- Distinguished Service Award, Western Michigan University
Brad Watts, Assistant Director
"I am most proud of my contributions to the Joint Committee on Standards for Educational Evaluation (JCSEE) this past year, including authoring and updating the accuracy section of the 4th edition draft, securing new funding through donations and sponsors, and leading the organization's return to ANSI accreditation."
Service
- Executive Committee Treasurer, Joint Committee on Standards for Educational Evaluation
- Secretary and Board Member, Meadows Homeowners Association
Lyssa Wilson Becho, Principal Research Associate
"This year, I am proud of the work our staff has done to integrate accessibility practices into their standard workflows. This is just one example of our team's dedication to continuous improvement and living our values.
Service
- Co-executive Editor, Journal of MultiDisciplinary Evaluation
- Reviewer, American Journal of Evaluation
- Communications Lead, STEM Education and Training TIG, American Evaluation Association
- Member, Presidential Strand Committee, Evaluation 2026 Conference, American Evaluation Association
Awards and Recognition
- 2025 Excellence in Discovery Award, Western Michigan
Kelly Robertson, Principal Research Associate
"Seeing the ATE Evaluation Fellows flourish and run with the opportunities we are working hard to create has been a point of pride for me."
Service
- Member, American Evaluation Association Conference Advisory Working Group
Brandon Youker, Evaluation Lab Director
"I am most proud of the continued growth and maturity that I have seen in both the Evaluation Lab and the amazing lab staff that works there."
Megan Lopez, Senior Research Associate
"This past year, I am most proud to have secured two new contracts as principal investigator with nonprofits serving the community where I live. Throughout my career, I have been motivated by using evaluation to support and strengthen the work of organizations that make a tangible difference in people's lives. Expanding my work at The Evaluation Center to include local, community-based partners has been especially meaningful because it allows me to apply rigorous evaluation in service of the community that I call home."
Service
- Committee member, American Evaluation Association's Student Evaluation Case Competition
Brianna Hooks Singletary, Senior Research Associate
"This year, I'm proud of collaborating with my brilliant colleagues to dream up creative new ways to advance the work of EvaluATE. I love the energy of building something new alongside people who challenge and inspire me, and I'm genuinely excited for what's ahead."
Awards and Recognition
- The Best of Volume 45 Award, American Journal of Evaluation
Valerie Marshall, Senior Research Associate
"I am most proud of both the launch and conclusion of a case study on the use of evaluation in the field of advanced technological education (ATE)."
Service
- Co-Chair, Health Evaluation Topical Interest Group, American Evaluation Association
- Member, Research on Evaluation Topical Interest Group, American Evaluation Association
- Co-Section Editor for Research Articles, Journal of MultiDisciplinary Evaluation
Erika Sturgis, Project Manager
"I have enjoyed applying content expertise in strategic meetings, demonstrating coaching and mentoring skills, and facilitating and documenting strategies discussed during group conversations."
Maureen Green, Research Data Analyst
"This year, I transitioned into a new role as a Research Data Analyst. Moving into a position focused on transforming data into meaningful insights has been both rewarding and inspiring. The experience challenges me to continually expand my skills, grow professionally, and approach my work from new perspectives. I am excited for the opportunities ahead."
Tina Smith-Balanda, Budget Analyst
"I revised several spreadsheets that I use to calculate salary recovery for each pay period by adding additional checkpoints to ensure accuracy. The checkpoints verify that the recognized data matches the expected data. Every time my new checkpoints detect an error, it makes me happy because I can correct the error before sending the journal entries to Grants and Contracts."
Rebecca Ruiz, Administrative Assistant II
"Joining the EvaluATE team has been a highlight of my year. I'm proud to contribute to meaningful work that advances high-quality evaluation while strengthening collaboration and shared learning across projects and partners. Being part of a team that values a culture of growth, connection, and community has been especially rewarding."
Samantha Hooker, Marketing Specialist Senior
"I'm proud of how much we've grown our approach to communicating evaluation this year. From refreshing our websites and developing new resources to creating more opportunities for evaluators and ATE project staff to connect, I've enjoyed helping make evaluation information more approachable, useful, and accessible."
Awards and Recognition
- Make a Difference Award, Western Michigan University
Additional Evaluation Center Staff 25-26
Arlen Gullickson, Emeritus Researcher
Archer Lee-Easton, Senior Research Associate
Lee McClure, Project Manager
Student Employees
J. Hyde, doctoral student in Evaluation, Measurement, and Research
Michael Hart, doctoral student in Interdisciplinary Evaluation