Building the Global Sisterhood: Measurement, Evaluation and Learning Report for the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation’s Catholic Sisters Initiative Strategy

The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation Catholic Sisters Initiative launched a five-year strategy in February 2013 to enhance the vitality of Catholic sisters, who in turn advance human development around the globe. It aims to support efforts to attract, form and retain members, develop their leadership skills and help them take advantage of the financial and social resources available to them.

The Foundation awarded the USC Center for Religion and Civic Culture (CRCC) a grant in April 2014 to evaluate the Catholic Sisters Initiative strategy over four years. As the Sisters Initiative’s Measurement, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) partner, CRCC seeks to answer the question, “Does the strategy effectively increase the vitality of women religious across the globe as they advance human development?”

In order to answer this question, CRCC has developed an understanding of the landscape of Catholic sisters, where the Sisters Initiative’s strategy fits into this landscape and how it can evolve. The evaluation also includes examining how the Sisters Initiative implements its strategy and how closely aligned the grants are to the goals of the strategy.