This article explores the application of empowerment strategies to program
evaluation within a community health setting and presents a case study to e
xamine the policy, direct practice, and research issues associated with the
plan to evaluate a community-based HIV-prevention program. Empowerment eva
luation strategies were used to develop an innovative street outreach inter
vention that can be measured and evaluated, to transfer evaluation knowledg
e from the researcher-expert to the program stakeholders, and to help overc
ome evaluation implementation obstacles. The article addresses the benefits
and risks inherent in an empowerment approach to the evaluative research p
rocess.