Washington, District of Columbia, United States
Esther C. Nolton, PhD, MEd (she/her) is an established administrator, strategist, and leader in research and evaluation. She is often selected to lead enterprise-wide cross-functional groups and initiatives and provides thoughtful servant leadership in all her roles. For example, Nolton is an active leader within the American Evaluation Association (AEA) and Washington Evaluators (WE), including as the 2022 WE President, AEA Board Member-at-Large (2024-2026), and member of the AEA Evaluation Policy Task Force. Prior to finding a home in the field of evaluation, Nolton was an established sports medicine clinician and researcher. Over the last two decades, she has worked on more than 50 research and evaluation projects, published 9 peer-reviewed works, and delivered over 60 local, regional, national, and international presentations across different topics and contexts. Nolton has taught over 20 unique undergraduate and graduate courses (e.g., program evaluation, data-driven decision-making, sports medicine courses, functional anatomy, research methods, and evidence-based medicine) across seven academic institutions. Nolton earned a Bachelor of Science in Athletic Training with minors in Psychology and Biology from George Mason University, a Master’s in Education in Kinesiology with a focus in Sports Medicine from the University of Virginia, and a PhD in Research & Evaluation Methods with a secondary specialization in Health & Education Policy from George Mason University. Nolton has formal training and experience in capacity building, facilitation, data strategy and governance, and strategic change management. She continues to learn and grow through formal education, professional training, connecting with colleagues in the field, and consuming literature or resources. Please feel free to reach out if you want to connect and share more of your expertise or favorite resources with her!
Faculty member and coach with the Illuminate Learning Center, delivering applied learning experiences grounded in practice and professional judgment. My current course offering includes: Meaningful Engagement in Program Planning and Evaluation.
- Offers expertise and perspective as a culturally responsive research and evaluation methodologist who utilizes relevant and robust approaches to produce actionable findings and recommendations - Provides research, strategy, management, and technical assistance services for organizations seeking consultation on monitoring, evaluation, and learning of programmatic activities and organizational processes - Specializes in the design of evaluation and data strategies, engagement and measurement plans, survey/questionnaires, and tools/templates tailored to organizational needs and priorities - Provides meeting facilitation and group management for executive leaders, Boards, committees, and other working or advisory groups through organizational change management, learning and evaluation, or strategic planning activities For more information, visit www.eversteadstrategies.com!
- Serves as a Chair on capstone and dissertation committees for students pursuing a doctorate in education - Teaches doctoral courses in applied research methods
- Teaches graduate courses in Program Evaluation and Data-Driven Decision Making.
- Led enterprise-wide strategic initiatives to establish a robust data and evaluation infrastructure. - Provided intellectual leadership and oversight on the development and implementation of PCORI's strategy for monitoring progress and measuring success on its organizational goals. - Served as a strategic business partner to facilitate data strategy and governance change management processes. - Managed people and teams from design through implementation of complex initiatives and projects. - Consulted on various research and evaluation methodological and data-related issues and innovations. - Oversaw survey account management and technical consulting as Brand Administrator for the enterprise Qualtrics license.