Company

HPW Associates, LLC, a Pennsylvania Certified Woman Owned Business, applied research, evaluation and program performance measurement in government, non-profit and private arenas. We work with our clients in developing appropriate performance measurement and improvement structures that can be easily incorporated within their own organizations.

HPW Associates works collaboratively with programs and organizations in the public, non-profit and private sectors to increase their capacity to meet the needs of the individuals they serve through the use of appropriately implemented evaluation and performance measurement systems. Our philosophy is to utilize a participatory approach with clients and stakeholders from the onset to the completion of each project.

We have experience in the areas of behavioral health; managed care; school based programs; criminal justice; case management; information systems; cost benefit studies; prevention and education.

Findings from our evaluations have resulted in the improvement of existing programs, as well as in obtaining additional funding for program enhancement and expansion. HPW Associates has served as the lead evaluator for several federally funded initiatives.


Click on an associate's name for background information and qualifications.

  • Holly P. Wald, Ph.D., President of HPW Associates, LLC has over twenty years of experience in the design, coordination, implementation and evaluation of human service programs. Her evaluative work has been in the areas of behavioral health, case management and treatment of substance abusing and co-occurring populations, criminal justice, systems integration in the adult and child serving systems, substance abuse and tobacco prevention and education. These efforts consist of process, outcome and impact evaluations, as well as the development and utilization of performance measurement systems as a mechanism for continuous quality improvement. Dr. Wald has served as an evaluation and quality improvement consultant to several counties in the Western Pennsylvania area. She is currently serving on the Data Integration/Outcomes Sub-Committee developed as part of Pennsylvania’s Co-Occurring Disorders State Incentive Grant.

    Dr. Wald has conducted numerous trainings on evaluation and performance measurement and has presented the results of her evaluative projects in peer-reviewed journals and at national conferences. She also serves as the grants co-chair for the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure Pittsburgh Affiliate.

  • Jennifer M. Bouchard, M.A., Data Specialist, received her degree in Research Methodology from the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Education in 1998, and her B.S. in English Writing with a minor in Communications from Slippery Rock University in 1996. Prior to joining the HPW Associates team, she spent five years as an Evaluation Supervisor working in a research and evaluation department for a privately owned provider of corrections, treatment and educational services to government agencies, specifically focusing on the juvenile population. Ms. Bouchard has expertise in database development, statistical analysis and in the development of training materials related to database utilization.

  • Robert L. Goldbach, M.A., Research Associate, received his degree in Sociology from Duquesne University in 1976. Prior to joining the HPW Associates team, he accumulated 28 years of experience in various research and evaluation capacities, focusing on technical assistance to nonprofit and government agencies. His areas of expertise include strategic planning, data collection and statistical analysis, market research, demographic trend analysis, environmental scans, needs assessments and feasibility studies.

  • Mary Larzelere, M.A., Research Associate, received her graduate degree from the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public and International Affairs with an interest in non-profit management. Her areas of expertise include quantitative data collection, statistical analysis and Geographic Information System technology.

  • Carol Brooks, M.S.W., Research Associate, received a Master’s degree in Social Work Administration from the University of Pittsburgh. Her areas of expertise include qualitative data collection including facilitation of focus groups, personal interviews and qualitative analytical approaches. She has worked on various initiatives in the human service arena, including aging, juvenile justice, corrections, substance abuse, and education.