Smith, Nick L.

(b. 1946, Kirksville, Missouri). Ph.D. Educational Psychology, B.S., University of Illinois, Urbana; M.S., Illinois State University.

Smith was given a head start in the field of evaluation by his influential advisors at the University of Illinois, especially Tom Hastings, Ernie House, and Bob Stake. His thinking has also been heavily influenced by the writings of Michael Scriven and Donald Campbell, as well as a list of colleagues too long to include.

His early evaluation work included conducting large-scale evaluation studies at the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory in Portland, Oregon (1973–1975), and evaluations of medical education at the University of Nebraska Medical Center (1975–1976). Returning to the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory in 1976, Smith directed a multiyear, federally funded, research and development project to produce alternative evaluation methods ...