Anchor Institution Evaluation Rubric

Mass Economics worked with a group of national foundations (The Funders’ Network) to create a draft rubric to assess anchor community engagement. The proposed rubric addressed performance measures related to anchor contributions such as local sourcing, local hiring, and conditions for employees, with attention given to the economic and community context in which anchors were working. To create the draft rubric, Mass Economics interviewed project funders and staff, scanned and cataloged existing anchor engagement metrics, data sources, and other ranking instruments used to evaluate anchor engagement and effectiveness. The team then worked with experts, funders, and staff to lay out the initial parameters and options for developing the assessment index.