Children’s Savings Accounts (CSAs) are a powerful policy tool designed to expand postsecondary access and build wealth for historically underserved families. However, because their true outcomes unfold over decades, programs face a systemic challenge: they must rely on early- and mid-stage indicators to prove their worth to funders, but have little guidance on how to do so credibly.

In her capstone project, Ash Horn addresses this exact gap through a comparative, multi-method qualitative research design.

The Methodology

Ash’s research approached the problem from two distinct angles:

• The National Landscape: An analysis of 13 national CSA programs to identify how early-stage indicators align with funding structures. This resulted in a four-type typology of evaluation logics that explains variations in program sustainability.
• The Local Landscape: A deep-dive into Providence Promise, a city-based CSA program. Ash analyzed how staff, donors, and partners define success, revealing three competing stakeholder dynamics: a relational/empowerment logic (staff), an accountability/measurement logic (donors), and an ecosystem logic (partners).

Ash's work illuminates a critical structural tension in the field: the quantitative metrics most legible to institutional funders are often the least equipped to capture the equity-driven, community-embedded dimensions of impact.

By identifying Providence Promise as a "hybrid" program within their typology, Ash concluded the study with four applied recommendations for the organization, alongside a transferable analytical framework for other CSA programs nationwide navigating funding transitions or scaling up.

Ash shared this advice for future UEP students: “Use this year to take risks, learn as much as possible, and build strong connections. Your capstone will reflect that work, so don’t let perfection stand in the way of making it meaningful and true to the change you want to see in the world.”