Focus Group Invitation Phone Script

Attachment 17d:

Focus Group Invitation Phone Script – NSF Staff

Script for Contacting Non-Respondents for Noyce Evaluation Focus Group Participation: NSF Staff

**Start Call

Introduction

WKC: Hello, this is [NAME] from WhitworthKee Consulting. May I please speak with [NAME]?

Potential Participant: Yes, this is [NAME].

WKC: Great! Hi [NAME], I hope you’re doing well.

Purpose

WhitworthKee Consulting was contracted by the National Science Foundation to evaluate components of the Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program (the Noyce Program). I’m reaching out because we recently sent you an email inviting you to participate in a focus group for the evaluation. We haven't heard back from you yet and wanted to check if you’re potentially interested in participating.

Importance

Your participation in the focus group would be incredibly valuable to us, as the information from the evaluation will provide insights about what is going well and potential growth opportunities to ultimately refine the Noyce Program in future iterations.

Details

The focus group will last about 60 minutes. You will have the opportunity to discuss the Noyce Program and STEM teacher preparation/leadership with current and former NSF colleagues who have been similarly involved with Noyce. There will be separate focus groups for NSF support staff and NSF leads. We are scheduling focus groups for [INSERT DAYS OR DATE RANGE].

Would you be interested in participating?

Handling Responses

**If yes: That’s great news! I can schedule you for a focus group timeslot right now. The available times are [LIST VIRTUAL AND IN-PERSON TIMES/DATES, AS APPLICABLE]. Which time is best for you? [Add participant to selected focus group.]

You will receive a confirmation email momentarily and another reminder email the day before the focus group. If you have any further questions or need more information, please contact the WKC Evaluation team at [email protected]. We look forward to speaking with you.

**If no, ask the following as appropriate:

Are there any questions that you have that I could answer?

**If yes: Jump to ‘if maybe or need more information’ section.

Are there any other times you’d be available for a focus group?

**If yes: Schedule participant for a timeslot 1-2 weeks in the future based on participant and facilitator availability.

**If respondent still says no: Okay, thank you so much for your time. I will make a note of that, and you will not receive any more emails or calls from us. If you have any further questions or change your mind and would like to participate, please contact the WKC Evaluation team at [email protected].

**If maybe or need more information, pull from following text as needed:

Noyce: The Noyce Program provides funding to higher education institutions via (a) scholarships, (b) stipends, and (c) other means of programmatic support to recruit and prepare science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) majors and other professionals to become K-12 STEM teachers and teacher leaders. Projects funded by the Noyce Program may be called different names at different schools or institutions.

Evaluation: The purpose of the Noyce Program evaluation is to (a) understand overall perceptions of the Program from both individuals who have applied for and/or received a Noyce award and those who have never applied and/or been awarded, and (b) identify what is working well and opportunities for growth. Information from our evaluation will help support the overall goal of increasing diversity within the STEM teacher education field.

Recruitment: We are reaching out to you because of your commitment to and support of the Noyce Program through your work at the National Science Foundation. We are interested in the perspectives of both current and former NSF staff. We value NSF’s perspective on the Noyce Program and think it provides a unique piece of the holistic story of the Program that we would like to hear about.

Confidentiality: We take privacy seriously, and data related to identifiable characteristics of individuals, institutions, and schools will be used for evaluation purposes only to provide the Noyce Program information about what is working well and potential growth opportunities. Information shared with us in the evaluation will be stored on a password-protected cloud drive. WhitworthKee Consulting will not disclose or release identifiable information to anyone (including other NSF staff or Noyce project members) outside of the WKC Evaluation Team. We are planning to conduct focus groups of current/former NSF support staff separately from focus groups of current/former NSF leads. During data analysis, we will combine AAAS and NSF support staff responses to evaluate findings, followed by an independent study of AAAS/NSF leads' combined responses for outcomes and reporting.

Do you have any other questions I can answer?

Closing

Have a great day!

**End call.

Voicemail Script for Contacting Non-Respondents for Noyce Evaluation Focus Group Participation: NSF Staff

Hello! This message is for [NAME]. My name is [NAME], and I’m calling on behalf of WhitworthKee Consulting.

WhitworthKee Consulting was contracted by the National Science Foundation to evaluate components of the Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program (the Noyce Program). I’m reaching out because we recently sent you an email inviting you to participate in a focus group for the evaluation. We haven't heard back from you yet and wanted to check if you’re potentially interested in participating.

Your perspective is incredibly valuable to us, as the information from the evaluation will provide insights about what is going well and potential growth opportunities to ultimately refine the Noyce Program in future iterations.

Participating in the evaluation would mean joining a 60-minute focus group where you will have the opportunity to discuss the Noyce Program and STEM teacher preparation/leadership with the WKC Evaluation Team as well as some of your other current and former NSF colleagues who are similarly involved with Noyce.

If you’re interested in participating or have any additional questions, please call us back at 202-339-1473 ext. 2009 or email us at [SPELL OUT] [email protected], again that’s [email protected].

Have a great day!