Evaluation criteria

Extent to which the submission creatively and cohesively incorporates multiple dimensions of infrastructure (physical, digital, social) to address the needs of the entrant’s target student population and community.

Extent to which the submission identifies a significant learning need for a community that can be addressed through infrastructure investment, considers how this need may evolve in the future, and articulates how the need is generalizable in other contexts.

Extent to which the submission describes a theory of change — including an integrated learning experience and infrastructure plan — grounded in learning science, mapping to students’ future success, and proposing reliable metrics to track improved student learning outcomes, especially for historically marginalized populations.

Extent to which the submission demonstrates the entrant team’s authentic local presence and trust, signaled by a knowledge of local needs, barriers, community assets, and partnerships needed for a solution in their community.

Extent to which the submission articulates an achievable near-term delivery plan and a logical pathway for acquiring the necessary partnerships, capacity, and resources to execute the plan.

Extent to which the submission creatively and seamlessly integrates multiple dimensions of infrastructure in order to improve learning experience and efficacy.

Extent to which the entrant has validated how their solution could be scaled to respond to future needs and needs in other contexts, especially for historically marginalized populations.

Extent to which the submission provides a comprehensive, evidence-based logic model — including relevant, externally validated outcomes measures.

Extent to which the target community has meaningfully contributed to the design of the solution and the submission articulates plans for additional community input through the prototyping process.

Extent to which the submission demonstrates commitment from all key partners and articulates an attainable plan for acquiring the necessary resources, funding, and additional partners required to implement the solution.

Extent to which the infrastructure solution has been refined based on the learnings from prototyping and advances the broader field by validating a new or novel approach.

Extent to which the submission identifies the scale of need in other contexts and articulates a specific pathway to scale the solution beyond the community of initial implementation.

Extent to which the submission provides early evidence of potential impact through the measurement of leading indicators, includes a plan for rigorous outcome measurement, thoughtfully acknowledges program elements that were unsuccessful, and identifies future changes and iterations based on these learnings.

Extent to which the submission demonstrates community buy-in and ownership of the solution and articulates long-term plans for ongoing community engagement and feedback.

Extent to which the submission presents a feasible plan for implementation with evidence from prototyping and includes specific detail on funding, governance, and long-term sustainability.