Welcome to the website of the Association
for the Study and Development of Community.
ASDC is a research and development company helping
government, foundations and non-profits use science to create
and implement innovative solutions to social problems.
Since 1997, we’ve been providing an integrated approach
to building the capacity of organizations and institutions,
helping to develop the health, economic equity and social justice
of communities. ASDC represents a network of leading
researchers and practitioners who are widely recognized for
their commitment and work in various substantive areas, including
organizational and community capacity building, community organization,
youth development, violence prevention, substance abuse prevention
and intergroup relations.
Our staff members are knowledgeable and experienced in a wide
range of methods for providing evaluation and research support,
technical assistance, and training services to build community
capacity.
We recognize that successful community initiatives focus on
strengthening communities by engaging and strengthening their
institutions. Our goal is to create a system for learning
within organizations and communities that will endure after
our direct involvement has ended.
All our work, regardless of which social issue we focus on,
is designed, conducted, and evaluated with three values in
mind—community is important, capacity building of the
community to assess and solve its problems is essential, and
change is necessary in our ongoing struggle for equity and
justice.
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Special ASDC Report:
Scope, Scale, and Sustainability
What it Takes to Create
Lasting Community Change
ASDC, with funds from the Annie E. Casey Foundation,
conducted a study exploring the history of comprehensive community initiatives
to better understand how these complex efforts can reach the scope, scale,
and sustainability needed to achieve lasting community change. This
report examines the specific practices, approaches and mechanisms that lead
to successful initiatives. The study examines those success factors as
they relate to the ability of a comprehensive community initiative to achieve
the scope and scale required to generate community-level outcomes
and to sustain those positive impacts over time.
What
it Takes to Create Lasting Community Change
Special ASDC Report:
The Importance of Culture in Evaluation
A Practical Guide for Evaluators
Cross Cultural Guide
The Importance of Culture in Evaluation, a publication funded by The Colorado
Trust, provides examples of where cross-cultural competency is critical in
evaluation. While not intended to be the definitive answer to all questions
about cross-culturally competent evaluation, it provides a good start in recommending
questions and strategies that an evaluator should consider when practicing
this form of competency.
To Order Additional Copies: Colorado Trust
Special ASDC Report:
The Five C’s
Strategic Factors for Building Community
Have you ever wondered what would have the greatest and broadest impact on
the well being of individuals, families, and communities? This brief report
describes the strategic factors for stimulating community-wide
health and well-being. It illustrates how each of the Five C’s - Community,
Connections, Control, Cash and Collective Action -
can be put together to develop an effective, broad-reaching, and sustainable
community development strategy.
The Five Cs
Press Release
Stephanie Wilson, Ph.D., a veteran International Program and Planning veteran,
has joined ASDC as a Principal Associate. Click here for the full press
release.
Special ASDC Report:
Scope, Scale, and Sustainability
What it Takes to Create
Lasting Community Change
ASDC, with funds from the Annie E. Casey Foundation,
conducted a study exploring the history of comprehensive community initiatives
to better understand how these complex efforts can reach the scope, scale,
and sustainability needed to achieve lasting community change. This
report examines the specific practices, approaches and mechanisms that lead
to successful initiatives. The study examines those success factors as
they relate to the ability of a comprehensive community initiative to achieve
the scope and scale required to generate community-level outcomes
and to sustain those positive impacts over time.
What
it Takes to Create Lasting Community Change
What's New?

ASDC is pleased to announce:
Dr. Ricardo A. Millett has joined the organization as a Principal Associate. Click
here to see the press release.
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