Conducting research and evaluation in a rapidly changing sociopolitical climate: The case of the Emergency Housing Voucher Program

The sociopolitical climate of the United States has been in flux over the past few years, contributing to disruptions in personal and professional life. The number of federal policies that have been modified or eliminated has been dizzying and destructive to social service programs, and also has led to logistical and ethical challenges when conducting research and evaluation. We will discuss these challenges as they relate to our role as evaluators of a large-scale social service program called the Emergency Housing Voucher Aftercare (EHVA) Program for survivors of intimate partner violence. We will also discuss strategies to address these and other challenges that scholars may encounter in their work.
Professor Fleming’s work on this project during the summer of 2026 was funded in part by the Doris and Ragnvald Ylvisaker Endowment for Faculty Growth.